The Ottawa Charge win their first regulation game on the road, as Peyton Hemp scores her first career PWHL goal, and Gwyneth Philips makes 25 saves for her first shutout of the season.
In a brief stop on the West Coast, the Ottawa Charge win their second in a row with a 2-0 win over the Seattle Torrent, jumping ahead of the Toronto Sceptres for the fourth and final playoff spot with seven games left in the season. Gwyneth Philips made 25 saves for her first shutout of the season, and first since April 2 of last season.
The game marked the first career PWHL game for defender Vita Poniatovskaia, who was signed to a Standard Player Agreement on Friday following the injury to defender Brooke Hobson. Poniatovskaia became the league's third Russian-born player, along with Anna Shokhina and Fanuza Kadirova, and first defender, to play in the PWHL.
This game was a strong full-team effort that saw depth scoring from the likes of Sarah Wozniewicz and Peyton Hemp, the latter of who scored her first career PWHL goal, more consistency from start to finish, and better overall defensive structure.
"Stephanie Markowski got the puck deep at the start of the play, and then Gabbie Hughes was taking the puck wide," Hemp recalled of her first goal. "Brooke McQuigge was driving the net, so it left me open. Hughes made a beautiful pass. I just had to put it away. It's been super fun to play on that line with Hughes and Michela Cava lately."
In particular, this was a showcase of the puck support the coaching staff has been focusing on heavily in recent practices. When the Charge, who were much quicker in transition tonight, gained the offensive zone, they had another player with them in the attack, often ready to drive the net in search of a rebound, helping generate more high-danger scoring chances.
By contrast, throughout much of the season, Ottawa forwards often found themselves gaining the zone with no extra layer to their attack, making them easier to defend against and making it much more difficult to generate and sustain any pressure.
It's also worth noting the chemistry that continues to develop between Gabbie Hughes and Peyton Hemp since Carla MacLeod shuffled the forward group, as the two have combined for a goal for the second straight game. Their styles of play complement one another well, as they are both physical players, an aspect of their game that helps create separation from their opponents.
And a game story would not be complete without discussing Philips' performance. Following her uncharacteristic performance against the Minnesota Frost on March 18, she has now made 45 of 46 saves and looks much calmer in the net. She's reading the play more quickly, allowing herself to get set up and square to the shooter. Everyone was playing with more confidence because Philips was seeing the puck so well.
"I think I had a little bit of a hiccup coming back from the Olympic break," Philips said. "It was on me to follow in the footsteps of my teammates. They showed up really well today in front of me. I just had to make the first save."
For MacLeod and the coaching staff, there's no doubt they'll continue to monitor the number of penalties this team takes in a game. The league's worst penalty kill took seven penalties in this game, tying the most they've taken in a single game this season. While they were able to hold Seattle at bay, giving an opponent that many opportunities to gain momentum and climb back into a game won't help their playoff chances.
The Ottawa Charge fly to Calgary for a matchup against the Sceptres on April 1 in the league's next Takeover Tour stop before returning home to play their first game of the season at the Canadian Tire Centre on April 3.