Corinne Schroeder made 33 saves as the New York Sirens beat the Minnesota Frost 2-0 on the road on Sunday.
The New York win, which counts toward their draft order points, also pushes Minnesota to the brink of elimination.
If Ottawa and Boston each win one of their final two games in regulation, overtime, or a shootout, Minnesota is eliminated. Minnesota also must win both of their final two games, with at least one win coming in regulation to qualify for a playoff spot.
While New York's focus turns from playoffs to draft points, the team was motivated none-the-less.
“I just think our motivation in general has changed a bit with everything that happened yesterday. As of yesterday, we were trying to fight for a playoff spot and now our motivation is, yes, the draft pick has a play into it, but for us and in our room, we don’t feel like we are the sixth-place team," said Sirens captain Micah Zandee-Hart.
"I think we have a lot of motivation to try and finish this season not last in the league. That’s what the big motivation is for us – just trying to finish out the season and maybe finish the season one step ahead of where we were last year.”
How it happened
Taylor Girard scored her first goal of the season giving New York the 1-0 lead, which was all they needed with Schroeder making 33 saves.
Late in the game, the Minnesota Frost pulled Maddie Rooney for the extra attacked. Rooney made 19 saves in the loss. With the net empty, New York forward Paetyn Levis grabbed the puck and scored into the empty net to give New York the 2-0 lead.