The Minnesota Frost and Toronto Sceptres faced off in front of 9,536 fans with crucial playoff points on the line for both teams. Minnesota came away with a 5-2 win, and reclaimed the PWHL’s fourth and final playoff spot. On the other side of the puck, Toronto failed to clinch a playoff spot, which they could have achieved with a single point.
Taylor Heise led Minnesota with two goals, while Sophie Jaques, Liz Schepers, and Britta Curl-Salemme also scored for the Frost. Michela Cava and Brooke McQuigge each had two assists for the Frost. Nicole Hensley made 27 saves in the win.
Minnesota Happy With Their Play
Head coach Ken Klee boasted about Minnesota’s performance in the win. He was happy with effort, and feels his team showed their true form in the win.
“We had a lot of jumps and a lot of jams to our game. We were fast, we were first on pucks and when we do those things, and we’re simple with the puck, we’re a tough team to handle,” said Klee. “All four lines scored tonight which was great, all four lines created lots of chances, and they were good in their own zone. When we play as a four-line deep team, and everyone is contributing we’re a tough team to handle.”
Heise saw similar attributes from a player perspective.
“We came out with a lot of speed and up and down the lineup I was impressed with the way we continued to pound them – and then you had Nic (Hensley) back there who made a bunch of crazy saves,” she said.
Toronto Can Still Clinch Ahead Of The International Break
Toronto can’t clinch with a win themselves, but they can still secure a playoff spot before the PWHL shuts down for the World Championships. Toronto needed a lone point from their game against the Frost to secure a playoff spot. Montreal became the first PWHL team to secure a PWHL playoff spot earlier this week defeating Minnesota.
“Obviously, we had the opportunity to clinch our spot in the playoffs today, so I think we’re definitely disappointed in the loss,” said Toronto defender Kali Flanagan. “We’re disappointed in how we played, and we’re just going to look forward to getting back after the break.”
Flanagan and Daryl Watts scored Toronto’s goals in the loss. Toronto head coach Troy Ryan was disappointed in his team’s effort in the loss.
“Our team, if we play like that, without a mentality, without an attitude, bad things are going to happen,” said Ryan. “They looked like the better team, the more skilled team, the more physical team, the faster team this afternoon. There won’t be a lot of wins in our future if we play the way we played today.”
Toronto can still enter the international break with a playoff sport secured. To clinch their spot, the Boston Fleet need to defeat the Ottawa Charge on Wednesday, or Ottawa can beat Boston in a shootout. If Ottawa wins in regulation or overtime, Toronto will need to wait until after the break.
