A dominant start for Toronto evaporated as Ottawa clawed back, forcing overtime and snatching victory in a wildly fluctuating, physical contest.
Hockey games don’t often feel unhinged from start to finish, but this one did.
The Toronto Sceptres scored early, relatively easily, absorbed pressure, lost players, took penalties, survived scrums, and still appeared to have the game in hand — until they didn’t. The Ottawa Charge simply refused to go away, grinding out a 4–3 overtime win in a game that swung wildly in tone and momentum.
Toronto opened the scoring just 1:38 into the game when Maggie Connors tipped home an Anna Kjellbin shot off a broken net-front play. It was the kind of goal that felt like a gift. Daryl Watts made it 2–0 at 7:32, snapping a wrist shot through a defender’s legs and over Gwyneth Phillips’ glove. Toronto was fast, confident, and assertive, controlling long stretches of play and finishing the first period with a 19–15 edge in shots.
However, already playing without Renata Fast, an apparent knee or ankle injury to veteran defender Allie Munroe at just over 11 minutes into the opening frame cast a shadow and left the Sceptres very shorthanded on the blue line.
Still, early in the second, it looked like the Sceptres might run away with it. Ella Shelton grabbed a loose puck at the top of the circle at 6:08 and beat Phillips to make it 3–0. But less than 20 seconds later, Ottawa pushed back. Rebecca Leslie skated down the right wing and got one past Raygan Kirk — slightly off her angle — to make it 3–1, and the game never felt settled again.
Ottawa kept coming. Gabbie Hughes scored on the power play at 14:12 of the second period, cutting the lead to one and changing the temperature of the building. The game turned increasingly physical, with frequent post-whistle scrums, mounting animosity, and a sense that the Charge were slowly pulling Toronto into survival mode. The Sceptres still led 3–2 after two periods and outshot Ottawa 32–27, but the game had shifted.
That shift became a tie at 4:36 of the third. After extended offensive-zone pressure, Brooke Hobson fired a high shot that appeared to glance off Kirk’s mask and into the net. Suddenly, a game Toronto once owned was level.
Coach Troy Ryan said afterwards, “It was a series of events that tilted the game back against us. We just have to be better. The game is full of plenty of highs and lows, you’ve got to learn to reset when something bad happens and get back to what makes you successful earlier in the game. We gave them life.
"I thought the energy in this building was unbelievable for the first half of the game and I honestly think some of our decisions and some of the plays we made, we took ourselves out of the game, took our fans out of it and let Ottawa back in the game.”
A late Toronto penalty by Jesse Compher at the end of regulation proved costly, carrying over into overtime. At 1:24 of the extra frame, Leslie scored on the power play to complete Ottawa’s comeback and send the Sceptres into the Christmas break with a bitter 4–3 overtime loss.
Game Storylines
A wild night that never settled
This was not a clean, orderly hockey game. It was high-event, emotional, and chaotic — defined by injuries, penalties, physical play, strong goaltending at both ends, and momentum swings that felt abrupt and relentless. Toronto looked dominant, Ottawa looked buried, and yet the game never stopped tilting.
Toronto had it early — and let it slip
The Sceptres couldn’t have scripted a better opening. Two early goals, a third early in the second, and long stretches where they looked faster and sharper than Ottawa. But hockey is 60 minutes, not 30. Once the Charge found traction, Toronto didn’t reassert control — they absorbed pressure instead, and the margin disappeared.
No excuses, but dealt a tough hand
Toronto entered the night without Renata Fast, then lost Allie Munroe to an apparent left-knee injury. The Sceptres were undeniably shorthanded on the blue line. Still, the collapse wasn’t just about personnel. Instead of tightening structure, Toronto collapsed defensively, ceded zone time, and allowed Ottawa to come on in wave after wave until the equalizer arrived.
Raygan Kirk gave them a chance
Kirk was excellent early, making difficult saves look routine and helping Toronto survive penalty kills and chaotic sequences. As Ottawa’s pressure mounted, the shots became harder to manage, and the tying goal — a high shot that appeared to catch her mask — reflected how narrow the margins had become.
A tough one to sit with
For Toronto, this is the kind of loss that lingers. The Sceptres were in control, then wounded, then chasing, and ultimately beaten — all at home, all just before Christmas. Ottawa earned the comeback by sheer persistence, but for Toronto, this one will feel less like a lesson learned and more like an opportunity squandered.