PWHL Players of the Week: Vanisova, Fast, Philips steal the show

Hello everyone, we at Daily Faceoff hope you’re enjoying a very mindful, very demure Sunday. Another week in the PWHL has come and gone, and we’ve seen a number of breakout performances from both the league’s best players, as well as some unexpected sources.

As teams continue to battle for playoff spots, let’s take a look at three players who stood out in this week’s DFO Players of the Week.

Tereza Vanisova (F, Ottawa Charge)

For the second consecutive week, Tereza Vanisova is our top forward, as her two-goal burst late in the third period against the Boston Fleet gave the Ottawa Charge the all-important three-point, regulation win, propelling them into a playoff spot.

Last week, Vanisova made the last after recording a hat trick in a 5-2 win over the New York Sirens. With six goals in her last four games, the Czech forward now has 15 on the season, tying her with Fleet captain Hilary Knight for second in the league.

Hat tip to my DFO colleague Tyler Kuehl for making this point, but with four games to go, if Vanisova keeps scoring at this pace and helps the Charge clinch their first playoff birth in franchise history, she deserves to be a finalist for the Billie Jean King MVP Award.

While the Minnesota Frost are just one point behind the Charge and could pass them with a win Sunday against the Toronto Sceptres, it’s still impressive Ottawa has gotten to this point this late in the season.

Renata Fast (D, Toronto Sceptres)

In a league where the best players in the world are divided among six teams, meaning on any given night, you’re going up against a handful of gold- or silver-medal winning Olympians, as well facing the 99.9 percentile of goalies, you better have some stars in your lineup. And for all the firepower the Sceptres possess, it’s Renata Fast who may be their most reliable.

Yes, Fast scored her sixth of the season in a 4-2 win over the Fleet last Wednesday, but the Toronto blueliner had an even more impressive game away from the puck, closing gaps from opposing forwards, clearing space in front of the Sceptres’ net, being a general disturbance for anyone wearing a Boston sweater. Fast is asked perform in a number of roles, and she thrives while doing so.

Going into Toronto’s Sunday matchup against the Frost, Fast has six goals and 15 assists for 21 points. Her 15 assists are tied for the league at any position, and her 21 points ranks first among all PWHL defenders. You also have to consider that Fast’s 631:35 of ice time through 26 games, which averages to about 24:30 per game, is far and away the most ice time among all skaters.

For such a dominant player at both sides of the ice, it’s hard not to see Fast get at least some sort of MVP love as the season winds down. Defenders typically don’t get much recognition in MVP voting in hockey, but maybe the PWHL will be the professional league that acknowledges how valuable a player like Fast is for a Toronto team that’s dealt with injuries for the entire season.

Gwyneth Philips (G, Ottawa Charge)

Let’s continue waxing poetic about the Charge, a team that lost their No. 1 goalie in Emerance Maschmeyer earlier this month. At various points in the season, Maschmeyer singlehandedly kept Ottawa in games they had no business being in, squeezing out enough points that they’re now in a playoff spot in late March.

But since Maschmeyer’s injury, it’s Gwyneth Philips who has made the difference. The rookie goaltender, taken in the third round of last summer’s draft, has looked comfortable in the crease and performed well enough to make up for the massive lost in net. With a record of 3-2-0 in six appearances since Maschmeyer’s injury, she’s held her own.

Following a difficult 6-3 loss to the Sirens last Tuesday, Philips stepped up against the Fleet on Saturday, stopping 27 of 28 shots and keeping Ottawa within one until the end of the third, when as previously mentioned, Vanisova went beast mode. From the first drop of the puck, it was clear Philips was engaged, stopping 11 of Boston’s 12 shots in the opening frame, then stopping all 16 shots she faced afterwards.

Just like Vanisova, if Philips closes out the season performing the way she did Saturday, Ottawa fans could be seeing playoff hockey for the very first time.

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