Frost look to clinch second straight title in critical Game 4 vs. Charge in PWHL Finals
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The Minnesota Frost have the chance to clinch their second straight Walter Cup on Monday night against the Ottawa Charge in a critical Game 4 of the PWHL Finals.
Watch the Charge and Frost battle in Game 4 of the PWHL Finals LIVE on Monday, May 26 LIVE at 5 p.m. ET/2 p.m. PT on TSN3 and streaming on TSN.ca and the TSN App.
For the third consecutive game of the PWHL Finals on Saturday, Game 3 required overtime and Minnesota prevailed with forward Katy Knoll scoring the winner in triple overtime and taking a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five series.
The goaltenders were the difference makers in the game, with the Charge's Gwyneth Philips making 45 saves in the loss while the Frost's Maddie Rooney turned aside 35 shots.
In the semifinal against the Toronto Sceptres, Rooney and teammate Nicole Hensley split the starts but after the Game 1 loss with Hensley in net, the Frost have gone to Rooney the last two games, both wins.
“I thought everyone was rolling today and it was just a great team win, and the defence was great in front of me," said Rooney after the overtime win in Game 3. "I thought [the defence] kept their Grade A chances to a minimum even though it took six periods. Congrats to Katy (Knoll), I’m so happy she could get that goal.”Rooney has a .921 save percentage and 1.97 goals-against average and has won all four of her postseason starts.
The Charge jumped out to a 1-0 series lead in Game 1 as Emily Clark was the hero in overtime. Game 2 nearly belonged to Ottawa as they held a late 1-0 lead after defender Jocelyne Larocque put the Charge ahead with under three minutes but Britta Curl-Salemme scored the equalizer with 16 seconds remaining and she also notched the overtime winner.
Philips has continued to be the MVP for Ottawa this postseason. At 4-0-3, she has yet to lose a playoff game in regulation and leads all goaltenders in save percentage (.953), GAA (1.17) and shutouts (one).
The Charge look to push the series to a deciding Game 5 at home while the Frost aim to retain their crown as PWHL champions.