2026 Walter Cup Finals predictions, storylines and picks
After a thrilling opening round of the Walter Cup Playoffs, only two teams are left standing, with each hoping they can label themselves as the best team in the PWHL.
We are poised for an entertaining all-Canadian matchup to see who takes home the Walter Cup, as the top-seeded Montreal Victoire face off with the underdog Ottawa Charge. The Victoire punched their ticket to the championship series after winning a playoff series for the first time, taking down to the two-time Walter Cup champion Minnesota Frost in five games. The Charge is back in the final for the second straight year, vanquishing the Boston Fleet in four games.
Our “experts” at Daily Faceoff – Scott Maxwell, Hunter Crowther and Tyler Kuehl – made their prognostications on what they think will happen in the third edition of the Walter Cup Final.
Click here for the Walter Cup Final schedule
Who are you more surprised made it to the finals?
Tyler: I might sound like a jackass, but Montreal.
Were they the best team in the PWHL during the regular season? Yes. However, given the team’s track record, faltering in the semifinals in the league’s first two years, and the fact they were facing the two-time defending Walter Cup champions spelled a recipe for disaster. However, the big names came through in the clutch, Ann-Renee Desbiens barely got outplayed, and the Victoire finally won a playoff series. Does this make it their year? We’ll find out soon enough.
Scott: Yeah, I’ll agree with Tyler here. The Victoire are probably the best team in the league this season, but the Charge have shown us in the past how they can get to the Final, and with the Fleet being a similar team to them (flawed roster up front surrendering lots of shots with an elite goalie covering it up), it’s no surprise that Gwyneth Philips was enough to beat Boston.
Montreal was up against Minnesota, who just have this feeling of inevitability around them in the playoffs. When they found ways to hang on in the series, especially in Game 4, it felt like the Frost were going to win again. And when the game was delayed due to multiple Victoire players getting illnesses, that felt doubly so. So I’m certainly surprised that it didn’t end up that way, but I’m glad the Walter Cup will finally be in new hands this season.
Hunter: Despite appearing in last year’s Walter Cup Final, I’m more surprised the Charge were able to make it back this season. Yes, Philips was her usual dominant self throughout the first round, finishing the series with a .951 save percentage and looking just as impressive as she did last spring when she was named Ilana Kloss Playoff MVP.
But a lot of things needed to go right for Ottawa, and they needed more than the usual suspects of Brianne Jenner and Rebecca Leslie to produce offensively. Enter Fanuza Kadirova and Ronja Savolainen, who each scored in Games 3 and 4 and became difference makers when the Charge needed it most. Combine that with a near suffocation of the Fleet’s offense, and Ottawa paved themselves an impressive path back to the Final
Which player has surprised you so far?
Hunter: I don’t know if I would say she’s “surprised” me, but I’ve been impressed with the play of Hayley Scamurra. She’s always been a reliable two-way player and was able to chip in offensively here and there throughout the regular season. But it feels like she made an impact on nearly every shift against the Frost, winning faceoffs and creating chances for herself and her teammates.
Tyler: I don’t know if I’ve just had my blinders on in the past, but that semifinal series against Boston really showed what Ronja Savolainen is capable of. She was put in plenty of tough situations in the four games, and made contributions at both ends of the rink. The Finnish defender was very active offensively, being credited with the game-winning goal in the crucial Game 3 win (though she had a little bit of help). Three points in four games against one of the best defenses in the league was a welcome sight for the Charge.
Scott: It’s Fanuza Kadirova for me. She had a solid first regular season in the PWHL this year, but has unlocked a whole other level to her game. That said, it shouldn’t be a surprise. She’s thrived all season at creating chances in front of the net, and those are the types of players you need to create offense when defense tightens up in the playoffs. The Victoire are going to be much better at tightening up than the Fleet, so the Charge will need Kadirova to continue this in the Final if they want to win.
Who needs to step up in the finals?
Hunter: The Victoire will need goals from players not named Marie-Philip Poulin or Laura Stacey, and at the top of that list is Abby Roque. While the Montreal forward both delivered and received big hits against the Frost, she was largely absent from the scoresheet after Game 1 — a game she finished minus-two in, despite having two even-strength assists. She provided value away from the puck in round one, but considering she was tied for the team lead in points during the regular season with 22, she’ll need to produce against Ottawa.
Tyler: This season has been the Emily Clark Do Something challenge. After a career year in 2024-25, including being the team’s top scorer en route to the final and being protected in the expansion process, the 30-year-old has been terribly quiet this year. After scoring just nine points during the regular season, Clark went pointless against the Fleet. Going up against a Victoire that has plenty of firepower up and down their lineup, Clark needs to find a way to make an impact offensively if Ottawa wants to prevail in this series.
Scott: I’ll target another Charge forward in Brianne Jenner, who has just one assist so far in the playoffs. She was excellent in the regular season, leading Ottawa in scoring with 12 goals and 26 points, so the drop-off in scoring is an alarming one. To add to that, she was similarly unproductive in the playoffs last year, as after getting three points in the first two games, she went scoreless in the final six, including all four games against the Frost in the Final. If the Charge wants to pull off the win this year, they’ll need more from Jenner in the Final.
Which team has the advantage in goal?
Tyler: Gwyneth Philips is the netminder to beat, full stop. There’s no goaltender that’s ever faced as much rubber in a single season as she has this season, and yet she’s managed to keep her head above water. Ottawa has been brutally outplayed so many times this year, including being outshot in all four games against the Fleet. She thrives under pressure and has the ability to make momentum-altering saves.
Also, she’s beaten Desbiens twice on the big stage – coming in relief to win gold at the 2025 Women’s Worlds, as well as knocking Montreal out in last year’s playoffs.
Scott: Ann-Renee Desbiens certainly has the experience and longevity as one of the game’s best goalies, but Gwyneth Philips is as hot as it gets. Since joining the league last season, she has a .934 save percentage, including a .951 SV% in the playoffs. She’s proven time and time again that she can carry a team, and we already know she can beat the Victoire after last year. It’s not a wide margin right now, but Philips certainly has the ability to make it wide.
Hunter: I want to, so badly, pull a Lee Corso-style “NOT SO FAST, MY FRIEND” on this one, but it’s Ottawa through Philips.
HOWEVER — let me give full marks to Desbiens, who, after giving up a five-spot in Game 1 against Minnesota, was lights out for Montreal, stopping 118 of the next 122 shots she faced and closing the series with a .940 SV%. She may not be the best goalie in the series, but she may be the X-factor that gets them the Walter Cup.
Who wins the Walter Cup?
Hunter: As much as I would like to see Ottawa avenge last year’s Final loss, I’m leaning towards Montreal. Poulin looked unstoppable in round one and whatever cobwebs followed Desbiens through the last two playoff runs seem to have been shaken off. As I said before the semifinals, if you wanna be the champs, you gotta beat the champs. The Victoire took care of the first half of that statement, and they seem destined to follow through on the second.
Tyler: It wouldn’t surprise me if we saw a total of five goals scored in this series, even with the talent on both sides. The goaltending is exceptional, and scoring is going to be tough to come by. As outstanding as Philips was against the Fleet in Round 1, I just don’t think she’ll be able to give up fewer goals than Desbiens, especially with a Victoire team that’s going to have some confidence after exercising some of their own demons…Montreal wins, 3-2.
Scott: Philips is going to be a tough goalie to score on, and the Victoire have a history of being goalied in the playoffs, but this is also a matchup between a Montreal team that dominated possession the most in the regular season against an Ottawa team that was dominated the most. It feels like that might be too much for even Philips to handle, but she’ll certainly try. I’ll say Montreal in four.
Who wins the Ilana Kloss Playoff MVP Award?
Hunter: I mean, who else? I could go off the board and say Stacey could go on a tear in the Final, or maybe Desbiens puts up a few shutouts and steals a win or two for Montreal. But with how she’s played through the first round, the runaway favorite to win it is Poulin. The only other circumstance I could see someone else winning is Philips single-handedly stealing this series for Ottawa, but at this point, it feels like it’s written in stone.
Tyler: If the Victoire are going to win it all, it’s going to be because Marie-Philip Poulin lives up to her nickname once again. After not being able to score the big goals in the first two postseasons, Captain Clutch potted two big game-winners against the Frost. Now, with a championship at stake, this is when she rises to the occasion. Desbiens will certainly get some votes, but Poulin will certainly be grabbing everyone’s attention, along with the Walter Cup.
Scott: This reminds me of the 2016 and 2017 Pittsburgh Penguins runs where, if they won, the Conn Smythe Trophy was Sidney Crosby’s to lose. In this case, what Poulin has already done in the playoffs has given her enough of a rapport that even a “just okay” Finals could earn her the Ilana Kloss Award. That said, if this series winds up being a goalie duel and Desbeins stands on her head to outduel Philips, I could see her winning the award as well.