PWHL Power Rankings: Montreal and Toronto gearing up for a marquee matchup
The race for first place in the PWHL is shaping up like last season–the two biggest Canadian markets duking it out for the regular season title.
With just a couple of months remaining in the regular season, the Montreal Victoire and Toronto Sceptres are setting the pace for the rest of the league. Let’s see how Hunter Crowther and Tyler Kuehl lay out the six teams this week.
1. Montreal Victoire
Record: 9-3-1-4, +8
Last Week: 1st
Hunter’s Rank: 1st
Tyler’s Rank: 1st
Hunter: The Victoire suffered two losses last week to a desperate Frost group and a Charge team that’s looking to make … a charge … I’m sorry, I’ll stop. Montreal looked good to open the game against Minnesota, but a late first-period goal seemed to zap any energy out of them, outshot 21-12 in the second and third frame, then generating only 16 shots later that week in a 3-1 loss to Ottawa.
They’re still the best team in the league, and have at least two games in hand on everyone else in the league, giving them a chance to extend their first-place spot even wider. Sometimes, you need a wakeup call in order to get better.
Tyler: Yeah…the Victoire looked a little worse for wear on Saturday, eh? I will say, it is hard to be as consistent as this team has been for an entire season. They were due for an off night (or, in this case, two).
I still think Montreal will bounce back this week. They’ve rarely shown this form of vulnerability at all this season. You know that going up against the Sceptres with first place on the line will reinvigorate Kori Chevrie’s team. I expect them to have big performance in Laval to stay atop the league standings.
2. Toronto Sceptres
Record: 8-2-4-6, +2
Last Week: 2nd
Hunter’s Rank: 2nd
Tyler’s Rank: 2nd
Hunter: The Sceptres are rolling right now. They somehow managed, again, to start the season poorly, then make it all up with an extended winning streak. There was a moment a month or so ago when I thought this team was done for, where they could only fight for a fourth-place playoff spot. Good on them for climbing back.
So much has been made about Hannah Miller, and rightfully so, but I want to give props to Daryl Watts, who has been all-world since the league returned from the international break. With a two-goal performance, followed up by a three-assist game, Watts was fantastic last week. We saw a glimpse of how good she could be with Ottawa last season, and it’s now on full display with Toronto.
Tyler: How about that Kristen Campbell. After I was seemingly prepped to give Raygan Kirk my support for being the starter in the Six, the veteran goaltender came back with a couple of great outings last week, only allowing two goals on 47 shots over two games against the Sirens and Frost. At this point, I don’t know who I’d rather have in net for Toronto come playoff time because there just isn’t a clear-cut favorite.
During this six-game win streak, the Sceptres haven’t allowed over two goals. In this nine-game point streak, the team has allowed three goals or more twice. While players like Miller and Watts are starting to light up the scoreboard, the defense is playing a key role in putting the team within striking distance of first place.
As stated above, the Sceptres head to Montreal for a must-see matchup against the Victoire on Tuesday night.
3. Boston Fleet
Record: 6-5-2-6, +6
Last Week: 4th (+1)
Hunter’s Rank: 3rd
Tyler’s Rank: 3rd
Tyler: Is the Boston offense…good?
About a month ago, I don’t think I was signing that tune, but here we are. Similar to the Sceptres, the Fleet is on a little bit of a heater, wiring four straight games and six of their previous seven dating back prior to the last international break. In each of their wins, the team has scored at least three goals, a seemingly insurmountable feat in the opening months of the season.
While Aerin Frankel is staking her claim to win the Goaltender of the Year award, everyone’s chipping in offensively. From the big names in Hilary Knight, Susanna Tapani and Alina Müller to players such as Loren Gabel and Jamie Lee Rattray, all hands are on deck in Boston. Not to mention the fact that this team is bullying its opponents shows the extra grit they’ll require to make another deep run in the playoffs.
Hunter: Don’t look now, but there’s another team that’s just as hot as the Sceptres. The Fleet have been terrific, winning four straight and six of their last seven games. One thing to keep an eye on is they’re giving up lots of shots, including 36 and 39, in their two games against the Sirens last week. They’re going to need to tighten up defensively and not rely too much on Aerin Frankel.
Hilary Knight leads the team in scoring, but it’s Müller who has dominated in the last month. Since Jan. 22, Muller has five goals and seven assists in nine games, a 40-point pace over the course of a full 30-game season. If she can keep it up, Boston could again do damage in the playoffs.
The Fleet has a few days off before visiting the Victoire on Saturday afternoon.
4. Minnesota Frost
Record: 6-4-3-7, 0
Last Week: 3rd (-1)
Hunter’s Rank: 4th
Tyler’s Rank: 4th
Hunter: The Frost earned a much-needed win against the Victoire last week, but with 10 games to go, Minnesota is clinging onto a playoff spot, a sentence I never thought I’d write. Some players have cooled down since the international break, including Claire Thompson, who has one assist in her last five games, and Taylor Heise, who had two assists in one game but has been held off the scoresheet otherwise.
The Frost have three games this week, two against the top teams in the league in Montreal and Toronto. If they want to start the postseason with a home game, they’re going to need to rack up some points.
Tyler: I was on my way to burying the Frost for doing the same exact same thing they did last year. While they aren’t out of the woods quite yet, that convincing win over the Victoire, on the road no less, gave me some hope that this team will turn things around. However, that doubt was reinstituted on Sunday when they fell to the Sceptres at home.
What’s strange is how good this team was when they had the rotating lineup due to injuries earlier in the season. Now, with a fully healthy squad, they cannot seem to generate the same level of consistency that made them an early favorite to finish first in the league.
The Frost will be off this week. They will not be in action until next Tuesday, March 4, when they visit the Victoire.
5. Ottawa Charge
Record: 7-0-4-8, -7
Last Week: 5th
Hunter’s Rank: 5th
Tyler’s Rank: 5th
Tyler: I’m starting to get excited to watch the Charge again. After hammering Minnesota in the team’s first game from the break to playing a couple of hard-fought games in overtime against Toronto and Boston, Ottawa started to build up its confidence again. That confidence led to a dominating effort against the Victoire on Saturday, putting the Charge within four points of the Frost for the last playoff spot.
They’ve been playing well in the absence of Katerina Mrazova as well, which was something that couldn’t have been said last season. Both Emerance Maschmeyer and Gwyneth Philips are holding the fort down between the pipes and Emily Clark is starting to heat up. If this team can get rolling like their provincial rivals…watch out.
Hunter: I really liked the Charge’s effort last week, picking up four of a possible six points and showing some fight against a Fleet squad that’s the hottest team not named the Sceptres. Down 2-0 going into the third, Tereza Vanisova took things into her own hands – literally – squaring up and fighting Jill Saulnier in the PWHL’s first-ever fight.
Not long after, Ottawa scored twice to tie it, sending the game to overtime and earning a point in the loss. After beating the Victoire on Saturday, they’re now just four points out of a playoff spot. I’d like to see this group battle in a five-game series.
Ottawa will be hosting the Sirens in their next slate of action on Tuesday night.
6. New York Sirens
Record: 4-3-3-9, -9
Last Week: 6th
Hunter’s Rank: 6th
Tyler’s Rank: 6th
Tyler: I’m about two losses away from giving up on the Sirens.
This team had all the potential heading into the season. The duo of Alex Carpenter and Sarah Fillier brought life to the team based out of New Jersey. Now, with a league-high seven losses in a row, New York is starting to look like an afterthought.
To make matters worse, it isn’t like these losses have been down to the wire. Five of their last eight defeats have come by more than one goal, with the Sirens’ seemingly impenetrable goaltending starting to look mortal. Corinne Schroeder has seemingly lost the net to Kayle Osborne, who certainly can’t win games by herself at this time. The Sirens need a shake-up and quick.
Hunter: In hindsight, maybe we bit off more than we could chew. The Sirens had gotten off to such a hot start that it seemed like the arrival of Sarah Fillier alone would catapult this team into a playoff spot.
But now losers of seven straight, including two last week by a score of 4-1, it’s clear there’s still a lot this team needs to work on. Even Corinne Schroeder, arguably the best goalie in the world, has given up four goals in each of her last three starts. It’s going to take more than an elite talent like Fillier to turn the Sirens into a playoff contender.
The Sirens will try to end their losing ways when they visit Ottawa on Wednesday night.