Charge Lose Marathon 4OT Game to Victoire
What a game!
The Charge just don't know how to do things the easy way.
They went into this series as underdogs, and the goal was always to get the split in Montreal. Taking a 2-0 lead with a chance to sweep in Ottawa was maybe always a bit too much to ask for, and for most of this game, it didn't look like it was going to happen. But of course, they had to drag it out, with a thrilling quadruple-overtime thriller. It was fun, but it would have been so, so nice if they'd won it.
The two teams had barely settled into the game when Montreal scored only about two minutes in. Not sure you can blame Phillips too much, as O’Neill simply outskated everyone and tapped the puck in five-hole. 1-0 Montreal.
After the bad start, the rest of the first period was pretty good. There was a ton of back and forth, although neither team got any particularly exciting chances. The Charge killed off a Victoire powerplay, controlled the play for the most part, and got a few nice shots. A decent 20 minutes of hockey, but they were still trailing.
The second period didn’t start any better. Once again, the teams didn’t seem that far apart in terms of skill, but Montreal’s finishing ability made the difference. After long stretches of back-and-forth, Laura Stacey, who had been dangerous all night, buried one of her many chances. She sure does love to score on the Ottawa Charge specifically. 2-0 Montreal.
The Charge responded immediately with a greasy goal to cut the lead in half, but it was waved off. Initially, the refs didn’t seem to think the puck had crossed the line, and after a lengthy review they determined that it had, but that there had been goaltender interference on the play. Honestly, it didn’t look like interference to me - there was initial contact, but Desbiens was clearly able to get back into position, and it was her own teammate that interfered with her after that. I guess Carla McLeod agreed with me, because she challenged the decision. The challenge was unsuccessful, and Ottawa went to the penalty kill.
They killed off the penalty, and actually looked very dangerous in the immediate aftermath of the almost-goal. Emily Clark had an especially good chance on the penalty kill. Both teams looked like they were playing very loose, with very good chances on both ends. The game was not out of reach by any means.
The third period was downright thrilling, but not exactly for the right reasons. The Charge got the chances - good ones, too - but the Victoire were even better. For most of this series, Montreal had been a one-line team, relying mostly on Poulin and Stacey, but the rest of the team found their game in the third. Great. Just in time.
The Charge pulled out all the stops in the last 10 minutes or so of the game, but Desbiens absolutely stood on her head. Things were not looking good.
But there was still hope! Eventually, through sheer force of will, Tejralova scored from the point to get her team within one. 2-1 Montreal.
🚨 Aneta Tejralová
— x - Ottawa Charge (@PWHL_Ottawa) May 11, 2025
🍎🍏 Brianne Jenner pic.twitter.com/CTy7u6Cbtt
Ottawa kept the pressure on, calling a timeout then pulling the goaltender. With less than a minute to spare, captain Brianne Jenner - who else? - fired the puck past Desbiens to tie the game. 2-2.
🚨 Brianne Jenner (2)
— x - Ottawa Charge (@PWHL_Ottawa) May 11, 2025
🍎 Emily Clark
🍏 Tereza Vanišová pic.twitter.com/Jd8zoNLrMk
We were headed to overtime.
And oh, what an overtime it would be.
The game was almost over one minute into overtime, when Phillips made an absolutely outrageous save. You could practically feel how nervous both teams were after that. They played a bit more conservatively, clearly trying not to give each other too much space, until Montreal took a too many players on the ice penalty, giving Ottawa a golden opportunity to close out the game.
The powerplay looked dangerous, but couldn’t convert. A few seconds before it expired, the Charge were handed another lucky break when Montreal got called for another penalty. They got a few seconds of 5 on 3 followed by a long powerplay, and it really looked like this might be it.
Unfortunately, the Charge players were holding their sticks a little too tightly. They kept missing passes, and despite creating some very good scoring chances, just couldn’t quite solve Desbiens.
Savolainen saved the game with a great poke check on Poulin, Laroque nearly scored, and things just went back and forth and back and forth.
Here’s the thing about your team getting two overlapping powerplays in overtime of the playoffs. Doesn’t matter what league. If you don’t score on those powerplays, you’re screwed, because you’re not getting another one for the rest of the game. Also, you’d better score soon, because you’re getting the next penalty.
Just as I expected, at one point a Victoire player blatantly tripped a Charge player, and there was no call. On the same shift, Savolainen shot the puck over the glass, and that’s the kind of penalty that’s always going to be called.
Things got worse. Tejralova blatantly tripped Stacey just 30 seconds into the penalty kill, sending the Victoire to an extended 5 on 3 with 0 Charge defenders on the ice. Remember, the PWHL has the “no escape” rule, which forbids line changes after taking a penalty. It was so over.
Apparently not! Phillips played the hero as the Charge somehow weathered the storm and killed off the penalty. Once that happened, it’s like both teams were out of ideas, just running out the clock until the next intermission. It was time for double overtime.
The first overtime had been fun, but the second was absolutely bonkers. Hughes almost scored, then Meixner almost scored, then Poulin almost scored, then Vanisova almost scored, and on and on and on. The Charge looked much more dangerous, but the Victoire pulled out just enough heart-stopping chances to keep us on our toes. And Desbiens was a brick wall. Of course.
The third(!) overtime started out pretty badly for the Charge, with several great chances for the Victoire, but Phillips held on. Ottawa generally looked like they were fading. I’ll admit I was surprised by this because as previously mentioned they’re a much deeper team than Montreal is. About halfway through the third overtime, this became the longest game in PWHL history.
Nobody scored. It was time for the fourth overtime. Would anyone ever score? I was starting to forget what a goal even looked like. I began to wonder about the mechanics of playing a game like this. During one of those intermissions I had heated up leftovers and eaten in front of the television. Did these players have anything to eat? Did any of them have mothers' day plans? Had the Ottawa players been planning on being back at home with their families by the evening? What happens if this keeps going?
Montreal was by far the better team in 4OT. They started out with a bunch of amazing chances, and just when it started to look like the teams were settling back into the game, they finally broke through to score. 3-2 Montreal.
That's got to be one of the worst ways to lose, but the good news is that the series is only tied. The Charge got the split in Montreal.
Game notes
- Gwyneth Phillips was amazing yet again. So good that I think it’s worth having a conversation about which goaltender gets protected in the expansion draft this offseason.
- Emily Clark played one of her best games as an Ottawa Charge. She was easily their best player in regulation, and all over the ice all game.
- Tejralova was especially noticeable on defense.
- Brianne Jenner was unreal, obviously. She got the tying goal, and could have won the game several times in overtime.
- Shoutout to Jocelyne Larocque, the oldest player in the league, who recorded 56 minutes of icetime. She played very well, too.
