The Goldeneyes have lost three-straight since returning from the Olympic break, but these losses aren't for lack of effort.
It’s not at all the outcome they would have expected. But over halfway through a highly advantageous five-game home stand coming out of the 2026 Winter Olympic break, the Vancouver Goldeneyes have dropped their past three-straight.
While they have picked up a couple of overtime points through this stretch, for a team that still sits outside the playoff bubble with 21 points in 19 games, not collecting the full nine available during that span of time stings.
What makes matters worse is the fact that, by all metrics, the Goldeneyes have deserved wins in virtually all three of these games. Every single one of these games have been separated by only one goal, with only their 2–1 loss to the Toronto Sceptres occurring in regulation. While they went toe-to-toe with Toronto and the Boston Fleet in their two matchups, they dominated the Ottawa Charge in shot totals on Saturday, putting 36 up on Charge goaltender Gwyneth Philips.
It’s an unfortunate result from a string of games that, frankly, have been some of Vancouver’s better performances this season.
“We’ve had a lot of time here at home these last few weeks, and so working on a lot of things, but I was really impressed with our compete level and our fight,” Goldeneyes forward Sarah Nurse said of the group’s effort through their most recent three games as well as their 3–2 loss to Ottawa. “We talked about it in the locker room — there were a lot of dominant stretches for us in that game, and it was unfortunate that the game didn’t go the way that we wanted it to. But at the end of the day, we have to find ways to win in these hockey games, regardless of how dominant we are, that doesn’t show up in the standings.”
As a collective, the Goldeneyes have stuck to their game through the past three and tried to keep things consistent. They’re doing the important things to try and generate offence — taking the puck to the net, getting up-close with the opposing team’s goaltender, and making sure they keep firing shots on goal. When other teams get physical with them, they’ll get physical right back. When a team brings their high-flying style to the Pacific Coliseum, they answer right back.
In some ways, it’s felt a lot like luck has gone against Vancouver.
“The hardest thing to do in hockey is score goals. So some of that, quite honestly, you always hate to talk about puck luck, but the reality is, if you continue to have volume, if you continue to do the right things, pucks start to find their way,” Goldeneyes Head Coach Brian Idalski added after Vancouver’s loss to the Charge. “It’s staying positive through a lot of what we’re dealing with as far as outcome, being focused on the details and continuing to do the right things, play the right way, and know that you’re going to come out of it. And when [goals] come, they typically come in bunches, in my experience. So we’re on the verge of kind of cracking that egg, and I can’t wait till we come out of the other side.”
Credit @ PWHLPart of the resolution comes from keeping the offensive production consistent. Through this three-game span, Nurse (15), Sophie Jaques (14), and Hannah Miller (14) have consistently piled a high-volume of shots on their opposition, though aside from those three the counts down the lineup haven’t remained as consistent. All three of these players have also scored during this span of time.
Call it a simple solution, but in reality, generating shots works.
That’s not to say that other players haven’t played well during this span of time. Izzy Daniel continues to play with confidence alongside new (but old) linemates Nurse and Miller, while Kristen Campbell has done well filling in for Emerance Maschmeyer as she remains day-to-day due to injury. Anna Meixner and Mannon McMahon were noticeable against their former team in the Charge.
The performances have spoken for themselves, but the scoresheet has yet to work in their favour.
As Vancouver faces the final two games of their home stand, against the fifth-place New York Sirens and third-place Minnesota Frost, the Goldeneyes will need to collect back-to-back three-point efforts in order to give themselves a shot at the post-season.