Wenczkowski ends marathon Game 2, PWHL Boston takes 2-0 series lead over Montreal

In what was the longest professional hockey game of the year — men’s or women’s — it was an unheralded hero that came in clutch.

Montreal and Boston began their Walter Cup Semifinal with a fantastic overtime affair. The two teams decided to double, and triple down on Saturday night, as Taylor Wenczkowski’s goal 11:44 into the third overtime gave Boston the 2-1 win, and a 2-0 series lead.

The game saw dozens of momentum shifts, both in regulation and in the multiple overtimes. Early in the third extra frame, Montreal looked like they were going to score the game-winning goal, with an errant deflection off Boston defender Sydney Morin narrowly missing the net. The visitors slowly turned the tide back in their favor after that, creating a couple of good chances. Boston was rewarded when Morin fed Wenczkowski, who had two whacks at goal, the second sneaking by Ann-Renée Desbiens to give her team a commanding series lead.

It was Wenczkowski’s first goal of her PWHL career.

“It was great. It was awesome,” Wenczkowski said after game. “I was so happy to end it and go back to Boston with two wins. It was a lot of hockey. It’s a grind, especially with the physicality, but super proud of the girls that we came out on top.”  

It was also the first playoff game in North America to go to three overtimes.

Some of the numbers are insane. The two teams combined for 109 shots on goal. Boston goaltender Aerin Frankel made 56 saves in Game 2, and has turned away 109 of the 111 shots she has faced in the series. There is no question she has been the MVP of the series.

Desbiens made 50 saves in the losing effort.

Montreal’s Erin Ambrose played 61:33, while her defense partner Kati Tabin was on the ice for 56:49. For reference, Seth Jones played an NHL-record 65:06 in Game 1 of the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Tampa Bay Lightning — in a game that took five overtimes.

In all, 12 skaters played over 40 minutes, and yet, Boston’s Abby Cook did not see the ice once.

You have to wonder what shape Montreal is in after a game like this. Not just because they suffered a demoralizing loss but because of how much head coach Kori Cheverie used her top players. Along with Ambrose and Tabin’s workload, the top line of O’Neill, Marie-Philip Poulin and Laura Stacey each played over 50 minutes. Even with the extra day off for travel before Game 3, trying to recover after playing such a long game might leave Montreal withered ahead of a must-win situation.

Stacey stated that doing the little things right will be vital in keep Montreal’s season alive.

“We need to keep focusing on the good things we did and keep doing them,” Stacey said. “It hurts, because we wanted to win for the other players on the team, for the staff, as well as the fans who have been supporting us all season long. We’re heading to Boston to get a win.” 

Boston played a much better game after getting outshot by a 2:1 margin in Game 1. They got off on the right foot as Amanda Pelkey scored her first of the playoffs minutes into the contest.

The game really opened up in the second period. Montreal took advantage of an early power play, as Kristin O’Neill scored her second of the series less than two minutes into the frame.

Boston star defender, Megan Keller, briefly left the game with what appeared to be an upper-body injury. However, she returned and gutted it out to register over 40 minutes of ice time.

Montreal had many close calls in the final 20 minutes of regulation. Their best chance came with less than a minute to go, when Melodie Daoust was stopped by Frankel on the doorstep. Daoust poked the puck through the Boston netminder’s pads, but the whistle blew before O’Neill tapped the puck across the line. Even after a lengthy review, the call on the ice of no goal stood.

Montreal had two power plays in the first overtime, including a five-minute major as Lexie Adzija was given a major penalty and a game misconduct for intent to injure when she caught Laura Stacey with a hit up high.

Montreal went 1-for-4 on the power play, while Boston was 0-for-2.

Game 3 is set for Tuesday night at the Tsongas Center in Lowell. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. ET.

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