The Montreal Victoire have two overtime victories in the first two games of the series, and will have a chance to take home the Walter Cup in Game 3 against the Ottawa Charge on Monday here on TSN.
The Victoire have surged to a 2-0 series lead thanks to back-to-back overtime victories on home ice. The hero in the first game was Abby Roque, who’s overtime winner deflected off her facemask and into the net for an unlikely goal to cap off a wild comeback.
Game 2’s heroics belonged to defender Maggie Flaherty, who one-timed a perfect pass from Victoire legend Marie Philip-Poulin into the net for the 2-1 victory in OT.
“There’s a lot of character,” Poulin said about her team this season after Game 2 on Saturday. “There’s a lot of people that are here for the right reason. They want to win. They want to do it for each other. They want to make a difference day in and day out.”
It’s been a hard-fought series between two evenly-matched opponents to this point. The Charge move back to home ice with some desperation, but captain Brianne Jenner believes that the close margin in the first two games is a sign that the Charge are still alive.
“That’s a playoff-type goal,” Charge captain Brianne Jenner said, describing a goal by Ottawa’s Sarah Wozniewicz after a mad scramble in the Montreal crease that opened the scoring on Saturday. “We’re going to need to get some of those greasy goals like that, and I thought everybody on the ice did a great job keeping that puck alive and finding the back of the net.”
Charge head coach Carla McLeod also added that “There is a lot in our game that’s going really well.”
Both the Victoire and Charge are seeking their first Walter Cup titles in franchise history after the Minnesota Frost took won the title each of the first two PWHL seasons. Montreal will now have two chances to close it out on the road as the series shifts back to the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa.
“We know that the third win is going to be the hardest to get,” Victoire head coach Kori Cheverie said on Saturday. “We know that if we outwork them and if we bring our talent to the table and if we utilize our depth, we’re in a good position to set ourselves up for success. It’s a good team on the other side and we’re going to have to work for it.”
