Team Harvey's Wins PWHPA Title To Cap Off a Successful Season

Team Harvey's entered the PWHPA final as the top-ranked team but pulled off a comeback for the championship. It completed a tour that took many steps forward.

After leading the PWHPA Secret Dream Gap Tour all season, Team Harvey’s came from behind in the championship final to capture the Secret Deodorant Cup, defeating Team Scotiabank 5-4. 

Team Harvey’s was paced to the win by Emily Clark and Jessie Eldridge’s four-point performances, including a hat trick from Clark, who was named the game’s first star.

According to PWHPA operations consultant Jayna Hefford, the season was a success.

“The 2022-23 PWHPA season was our biggest and best yet,” said Hefford.

The Secret Dream Gap Tour this season saw more games played than ever before, with stops in five Canadian and four U.S. markets, partnering with eight NHL clubs, one AHL team, and the OHL. 

The PWHPA also set a single-game attendance record in Niagara, welcoming 4,301 fans. Hefford also pointed to television deals, increased stats recording, an All-Star Game and skills competition, regular season awards and the Secret Deodorant Cup as significant improvements over past offerings.

Despite the successes of this season, however, Hefford says the PWHPA remains focused on their ultimate goal – launching their own professional women’s hockey league.

“Despite the immense success of this season, we haven’t lost sight of the end goal - the launch of a professional women’s hockey league,” said Hefford. “There has been incredible work done behind the scenes with world renowned investors and industry experts. We are on the precipice of history for our sport, and the players of the PWHPA have influenced this exciting new chapter.”

In the tour final featuring the top teams from the season, Team Harvey’s and Team Scotiabank faced off in what turned out to be a back-and-forth affair decided in the final minute of play.

To open the scoring, Team Scotiabank’s Kelly Pannek capitalized off a faceoff win on the power play, scoring from the top of the circle through traffic. 

Minutes later, Pannek notched her second of the period, giving Team Scotiabank a quick 2-0 lead. She took a feed from Victoria Bach in the slot where she beat Team Harvey’s netminder Ann-Renee Desbiens. 

Just over a minute later, Team Harvey’s got on the board as Jamie Lee Rattray grabbed a Megan Keller giveaway in the slot. Emerance Maschmeyer stopped Rattray’s first attempt from point blank, but Rattray shovelled home her rebound to make the score 2-1.

Before the frame was out, Team Scotiabank regained their two-goal lead. Off what appeared to be a broken play when Melodie Daoust’s pass hit a Team Harvey’s skate, Alex Carpenter found the loose puck and wasted no time wiring a shot top shelf over Desbiens’ glove.

In what turned out to be an offense-filled opening frame, Emily Clark kicked off her night with only 49 seconds remaining, taking a cross-crease pass from Jessie Eldridge before tapping home a shot back door to pull Team Harvey’s within one.

In the second period, Clark scored to tie the game 3-3 on the power play. Eldridge found Marie-Philip Poulin in the high slot who got all of a one-time attempt. The puck squeaked through Maschmeyer, where Clark was again sitting on the doorstep to tap home her second of the game. 

Just over five minutes later, Clark completed her hat trick and give Team Harvey’s their first lead of the night. Eldridge grabbed her third assist on the evening, springing Clark in alone against Maschmeyer where Clark made no mistake, pulling the puck to her backhand before roofing it high glove side.

With time winding down in the second period, Blayre Turnbull walked the puck to the net for Team Scotiabank, crashing hard before beating her Team Canada teammate  Desbiens to deadlock the game at 4-4 heading to the third period.

The third period saw alternating action, with both netminders making key saves. With less than a minute to go in the game, which looked destined for overtime, Jessie Eldridge grabbed her fourth point of the night, scoring the game-winner with only 42.1 seconds remaining. Poulin and Clark assisted.

Eldridge walked the puck from the half board before firing a shot low on net through traffic. Maschmeyer stopped the initial attempt, but Eldridge followed her shot to the net, scooping up the rebound and putting home the goal for Team Harvey’s. The play was reviewed for potential goaltender interference, but the call on the ice stood.

Team Scotiabank pulled their goalie for an extra attacker, but Team Harvey’s, who was the top-ranked team heading into the weekend, held on to capture the Secret Deodorant Cup.

With the 2022-23 Secret Dream Gap Tour over, it’s possible this was the final ever tour for the PWHPA. The organization hopes its new professional women’s hockey league will be operational for 2023-24.