Ann-Renee Desbiens made a season-high 40 saves shutting the door for the Montreal Victoire in a 2-1 shootout victory. The Victoire held off the Minnesota Frost in PWHL action on Tuesday.
After a scoreless first period, Laura Stacey opened the scoring early in the second period. She ignited the 8,923 in attendance at Place Bell. Late in the second Taylor Heise evened the score for Minnesota. Montreal was drastically outshot in the game with Desbiens facing 41 shots, while Minnesota netminder Maddie Rooney faced half that, making 20 saves in the loss.
“It was huge to have her,” Montreal’s Laura Stacey said of the impact Desbiens had. “I think obviously we didn’t have our game. We didn’t get as many pucks to the net we would liked, and they had quite a few. So, to have her back there, I think we’re fully confident that we have a chance to win every single night. And that’s huge. It allows us to play confidently, move the puck up the ice. It’s totally different when you have a goaltender behind you that you completely trust and you know can stand up behind you, and win games for us. And that’s exactly what she did here.”
After a scoreless overtime, the game headed to a shootout. In the shootout, Marie-Philip Poulin scored the deciding goal to give Montreal the extra point and further secure their hold on first place. For Minnesota, who fourth in the PWHL, it was their eighth loss in their last 11 games.
“You get 40 shots and expect to get at least two goals, and she (Ann-Renee Desbiens) obviously played fantastic,” said Minnesota head coach Ken Klee. “It was a good hockey game both ways. Obviously, Maddie (Rooney) played well for us too and we just have to find a way to bury pucks. I thought all of our lines had good jump and we got pucks behind the D. Today we didn’t get our net front tip goals that we got last time and that, to me, was the difference in the game.”
Montreal is back in action Thursday in Toronto. Minnesota heads to Ottawa for a crucial game with significant playoff implications.
