Counting Down PWHL Ottawa's Top Contributors So Far

PWHL Ottawa might be sitting at the bottom of the standings, but with a few breaks, things could look different moving forward. Alex Adams counts down Ottawa's top performers so far.

The inaugural season for Ottawa’s pro women’s hockey team has started with plenty of woulda, coulda, shouldas. They have lost each of their four overtime games and only managed two wins in their first seven games. The result is that Ottawa currently sits last in the PWHL.

However, there have been plenty of bright spots for the team, with some players that have pleasantly surprised and overachieved to start the season.

Here are PWHL Ottawa’s five best performers so far.

1. Lexie Adzija

Adzija, who was drafted in the 11th round, 65th overall in the PWHL Draft this season, was expected to be a depth winger who with her physicality and size could be a good forechecker and produce a bit of offence as well. Nobody expected Adzija to be Ottawa’s leading goal scorer and point getter through seven games, tallying a point in six of seven games so far. She also has never-ending hustle and her compete level is her greatest strength. Ottawa has gotten significantly more than they expected from Adzija, who has been Ottawa’s best player to start the season.

2. Savannah Harmon

Harmon was Ottawa’s first-ever draft pick and has shown her promise. She is second on the team in points as a defender, which is no small feat. She is an effortless skater who is able to evade forwards on the forecheck with tidy little passes to allow her team to exit the zone. Harmon is not overly physical but is able to use her body in the corners to escape with the puck. She has been a solid as quarterback on Ottawa’s power play which has been the best power play in the league at 29.2%. Overall, Harmon is steady, consistent and everything you would want from a first round pick.

3. Emerance Maschmeyer

The team’s top goaltender, Maschmeyer has been one of Ottawa’s best players. She has posted good but not great numbers with a .914 save percentage and a 2.19 goals-against average which puts her in the middle of the pack in the PWHL. Unfortunately, in overtime she has allowed four goals, including some she’d want back. Overall, Maschmeyer has been a steadying presence in goal, giving up very few shaky goals and bringing consistent goaltending to the crease. She has also been a workhorse, as she is the only goalie in the league to have played in every single one of her team’s games to start the season.

4. Emily Clark

Clark has lived up to the billing as a top free agent signing in the off-season. She has been able to produce with four points in seven games and has been one of Ottawa’s best penalty killers. Her ability to create plays in tight windows has been invaluable. Clark has driven a line with Gabbie Hughes that has been able to create chances all season, and coach Carla MacLeod relies on it. PWHL Ottawa has outshot their opponents in six of their seven games to start the season, in no small part thanks to Clark’s ability to forecheck, retrieve pucks, and use her speed to enter the zone and create chances. The hope for Ottawa and their fans is that Clark’s chances start going in: she has a 5.8% shooting percentage on the season.

5. Brianne Jenner

Heading into the season, most would have expected Jenner to top this list. However, she had a slow start and did not record a point in her first four games. It was not for lack of opportunities. Jenner’s line with Hayley Scamurra generated plenty of chances but like the entire Ottawa team they were unable to find the finish. Jenner has ticked up her production with a three-game point streak that was snapped on Sunday night against PWHL New York. However, she has brought stability on the ice. There have been many instances when there has been chaos in the Ottawa zone and she has gotten the puck and calmly made the right pass or play to exit the zone. If she can improve on her 4.5% shooting percentage it will probably mean better fortunes for her PWHL Ottawa team.