While Toronto's top pairing of Renata Fast and Jocelyn Larocque often take the accolades, the Sceptres would not be successful without the underrated duo of Kali Flanagan and Allie Munroe.

When you hear about or read about the Toronto Sceptres' blueline, the conversation almost exclusively revolves around Renata Fast and Jocelyne Larocque. The long time Team Canada partners have earned their praise, but the Toronto Sceptres would not be able to compete without their "second" pair of Kali Flanagan and Allie Munroe.

The duo have been quietly consistent while Toronto's top pair at times have struggled. Flanagan is a smooth skating, puck moving blueliner who has Olympic and World Championship gold medals on her resume with USA. She was also the PHF Defender of the Year in 2023. She also defends well using her feet to close gaps and take away time and space. Munroe provides the other side of things. Munroe is a physical shutdown defender who makes things difficult on opponents using her body. 

Combined this duo is highly effective, and they rarely receive the respect they deserve from pundits and fans.

Fast and Larocque are averaging more than 24 minutes per night each, but Flanagan and Munroe are close behind with more than 20 minutes per night each. They are among a group of only 18 players league wide averaging more than 20 minutes of ice each game.

Defensively, Munroe leads the PWHL in blocked shots with 17 and sits fifth in the league in hits. While Munroe does much of the heavy lifting, Flanagan is responsible for transporting the puck and jump starting transitions.

The only teams in the PWHL with a top four playing minutes like Toronto, currently sit first and second in the PWHL standings in Minnesota and New York. New York leans the heaviest on their top four of any team in the PWHL with each averaging more than 22 minutes per game. Minnesota's top four will certainly shift in the coming weeks as the team adjusts to the absence of Sophie Jacques, but their top four also averaged more than 20 minutes per game overall, with only Natalie Buchbinder sitting just below the top minute mark.

Toronto often touts their top pairing, but quietly, Kali Flanagan and Allie Munroe have been one of the best 3-4 groupings in the PWHL, and some games are providing more reliable minutes than Toronto's top group. While they don't boast the same current national team status as Toronto's top group, the Sceptres would be dethroned without Flanagan and Munroe.