Toronto vs. Minnesota: 2025 Walter Cup playoff series preview and pick
| Date | Game | Time |
| Wednesday, May 7 | 1. Minnesota at Toronto | 7 p.m. ET |
| Friday, May 9 | 2. Minnesota at Toronto | 7 p.m. ET |
| Sunday, May 11 | 3. Toronto at Minnesota | 6 p.m. ET |
| Wednesday, May 14 | 4. Toronto at Minnesota* | 7 p.m. ET |
| Saturday, May 17 | 5. Minnesota at Toronto* | TBD |
The Skinny
Well, here we go again! Last season, the team formerly known as PWHL Toronto dominated the league’s first regular season and comfortably finished in first place, choosing to play a PWHL Minnesota in Round 1 that had finished the season with five straight losses. Toronto got out to a 2-0 series lead, then Minnesota stormed back with three straight wins, shocking the league and riding the momentum into the PWHL Finals, where they eventually beat PWHL Boston to win the league’s first Walter Cup.
This season, like most sequels, it’s not quite the same, but close enough: the Sceptres went on a long winning streak and earned enough points to get within a hair of first place, while the Frost, loaded with talent, struggled to find consistency and squeaked into the playoffs on the last day of the regular season. This time, a first-place Montreal Victoire group chose their first-round opponent in the Ottawa Charge, leaving Toronto and Minnesota destined for a second straight first-round matchup.
Head-to-Head
Toronto:1-1-2-2
Minnesota: 2-2-1-1
The Frost had the upper hand on the Sceptres for most of the season, only losing once in regulation in their six matchups. Michela Cava scored four of her nine goals this season against Toronto, and Britta Curl had three goals against the Sceptres through the year.
For Toronto, Jesse Compher found success playing against the Frost, scoring three goals and two assists in their six games. Daryl Watts had three goals and three assists in her six games against Minnesota this season.
Top Five Scorers
Toronto
Daryl Watts, 27 pts
Hannah Miller, 24 pts
Renata Fast, 22 pts
Jesse Compher, 18 pts
Sarah Nurse, 14 pts
Minnesota
Kenddall Coyne Schofield, 24 pts
Taylor Heise, 22 pts
Sophie Jaques, 22 pts
Michela Cava, 19 pts
Claire Thompson, 18 pts
X-Factor
There were a number of players, goalies or scenarios I went through when putting together this story, but I think this is the true X-factor of the series: will the real Minnesota Frost please stand up?
At the start of the year, it felt like the Frost, fresh off of winning the league’s first championship and adding two Olympic-level players in Thompson and Curl, would cruise through the regular season and take another stab at a championship. But then they started to lose games, and some of them in ugly fashion. What was most baffling for their fans was how many times they lost in regulation, leaving points on the board and putting themselves in a situation where they were fighting for their playoff lives.
But on the final day of the season, when they knew nothing short of a regulation win against the Boston Fleet would get them in. So that’s what they did, in convincing fashion, defeating them 8-1 and punching their ticket to the dance. If we see that same Minnesota group in Round 1, it might be a quick series. If we see the team that struggled for chunks of the regular season, it’s Toronto’s to lose.
Offense
Last season, the likes of Natalie Spooner and Sarah Nurse led the way for both Toronto and the entire league, but an injury to Spooner derailed her postseason, as well as the first half of her 2024-25 regular season. This year, former Charge forward Daryl Watts has been the most productive free agent signing, finishing with 27 points, including a team-leading 12 goals. Hannah Miller had flashes of offense last season and exploded on the scene this year, recording 24 points.
Much of the production came from Renata Fast, whose strong two-way game and team-leading 25 minutes of ice time per game helped her produce 22 points, nearly doubling her point total from last season. She ended up finishing with 16 assists, tied with Sirens’ forward Sarah Fillier for the most in the league.
For Minnesota, Kendall Coyne Schofield led the way with 24 points via 12 goals and 12 assists, while Taylor Heise and Sophie Jaques, both in just their second professional seasons, had 22 points. Six players finished with at least seven goals, including Cava and Curl, but it was fourth-round draft pick Brooke McQuigge, who started the year with Sweden’s Modo program, that developed as the year went on, earning more and more ice time and finishing the season with eight goals and 15 points.
One player we haven’t even mention is Thompson, who after a few years away from hockey came back with a goal and nine assists in her first seven games. She finished the year with 18 points, third among defenders. Her and Jaques are a reminder that Minnesota has an embarrassment of riches.
Defense
While most of the attention will go to Fast, Kali Flanagan and Savannah Harmon, Allie Monroe will be important factors if Toronto wants to contain Minnesota’s depth. Expect Megan Carter and Anna Kjellbin to see some shifts, especially as the checking gets tighter in the playoffs and having size can be crucial when fighting to clear space in front of the net. However, expect the lion’s share of ice time will likely go to Fast, Flanagan and Harmon.
As mentioned earlier, Minnesota is spoiled on the blue line. Beyond Jaques and Thompson, two of the most productive defenders in the game, Lee Stecklein is pound-for-pound one of the best defenders in the game. Her ability to clear the net and always make the smart plays stand out, especially in a playoff atmosphere where mistakes are scrutinized and taken advantage of. Those high-IQ plays give permission to whomever she’s paired with to thrive with the puck and in the opponent’s end.
Goaltending
When you look at Kristen Campbell’s numbers this season, at first glance, you might think she took a step back from after winning Goaltender of the Year last season. But we still saw flashes of an elite goalie, including a nine-game window between Feb. 14 and March 26 where the Canadian National Team netminder only allowed two goals or less (weirdly enough, she didn’t earn a shutout this season). Campbell did have multiple games of allowing four or five goals in a game, which affected her final season stats. If you’re Toronto, all you can do is clear space in front of the net to let Campbell see the puck, then pull your own weight on the other end.
As for the Frost, Maddie Rooney had the majority of starts this season, finishing with an 8-7-3 record, .907 save percentage (SV%) and 2.07 goals against average (GAA). However, it was Nicole Hensley who started the last few games of the year, allowing one goal on 53 shots and helping Minnesota clinch a playoff spot. Hensley was the playoff hero last spring, and while she struggled heavily to start the season, her game has looked significantly better in her last few starts. It will be interesting to see how Head Coach Ken Klee deploys his goalies in Round 1.
Injuries
The Sceptres only fielded a “healthy” lineup late in the regular season, and it appears their best players will be available for Game 1 against the Frost. Nurse missed a chunk of time in February and March, but returned to play a few games before the World Championships in Czechia. Spooner’s return has been tepid since joining the lineup in February, but Head Coach Troy Ryan has strategically deployed her in the last chunk of the season.
No injuries to report for Minnesota, as most of the starting lineup has either played every game or missing only a few. One exception was Grace Zumwinkle, who missed all but one game in January and didn’t return until mid-February. After finishing with 19 points in 24 games in 2024, winning Rookie of the Year, she struggled in 2024-25, recording just four goals and 10 points in 22 games. It will be interesting to see how her game progresses in the postseason.
Intangibles
All the talk in Toronto is around how they will respond after being eliminated in the first round last year, but Ryan made the point after their regular-season finale against the Charge that they’re not asking players to buy into that narrative, that there are players on this year’s squad who didn’t play on the team. It’s a fresh spring, and if the Sceptres want to make their mark on the city of Toronto, they need not worry about the past: only focus on the future.
Minnesota’s dealt with the other six teams giving them their best every night. That comes with the defending champs. Despite clinching on the last day of the season, the Frost were emphatic with how they pulled it off, and are now going into the Walter Cup Playoffs with expectations that are nothing short of a championship. We’ll know early on if Klee and co. are prepared for a repeat.
Series Prediction
If the regular season was any indication, we’d say Frost in 4, but sometimes these things don’t translate so well. As mentioned earlier, if we see the Minnesota squad that easily handled the Charge and Fleet in the final week of the season, it might be a quick one. But if the Sceptres play a full 60 minutes and see Cambell at her best, Toronto might be the one punching their ticket to the final.
Sceptres in five games.