PWHL Power Rankings: Toronto duels, stays at the top coming out of the break

It was an exciting return for the Professional Women’s Hockey League last week.

From record-breaking crowds to exciting finishes, fans were treated to great action coming out of the IIHF Women’s World Championship break. A couple of teams used their international stars to come out of the pause on the right foot.

Hunter Crowther and Tyler Kuehl give their thoughts on where the teams stand after last week.

1. x-Toronto

Record: 10-4-0-7, +9
Last Week: 1st
Hunter’s Rank: 1st
Tyler’s Rank: 1st

Hunter: After the league’s top team in the standings lost 5-3 to Ottawa in the last game before the international break in March, snapping their 11-game winning streak, some wondered if we saw a crack in Toronto’s armor. 

That was only reinforced after Toronto lost to a struggling Boston group 2-1 last Thursday. But in front of a record-breaking crowd of 21,105 in Montreal on Saturday, Sarah Nurse scored twice, including the OT-winner, to get back in the win column.

It’s hard to judge any team after two games, especially after a month-long pause, so I won’t look too far into this past week. However you slice it, a big win against the No. 2 ranked team is always appreciated.

Tyler: The first team to clinch a playoff spot deserves to be the first team on our list.

I know the loss to Boston might have concerned some people, thinking maybe the Women’s Worlds wore down many of the team’s top players. Whatever fatigue the team might have had was tucked away in Montreal. It was a gutsy win at the Bell Centre, which is what teams need in order to make a deep run in the playoffs.

In wins like the team had on Saturday, you need your goaltender to step up, and even though she did not play for two weeks with Team Canada, Campbell was exceptional, managing to keep Montreal from building up too much momentum.

Toronto is off until Sunday when they visit New York on Long Island.

2. Montreal

Record: 8-3-5-5, -1
Last Week: 4th (+2)
Hunter’s Rank: 2nd
Tyler’s Rank: 2nd

Tyler: Were we down on this team heading into the pause? You bet we were. We had every reason to. With Marie-Philip Poulin injured, Montreal looked like they were in shambles. Yet, thanks to Poulin seemingly getting healthy during Canada’s run to the gold medal, Montreal came out of the break with four big points. Thanks to a comeback win over Minnesota, in regulation, followed up by the overtime loss, Montreal is back in second place.

The biggest part of this playoff push for Montreal is that they got (arguably) their two toughest games out of the way, and they looked good in both of those games. If they can continue this pace of play, they will be red-hot heading into the playoffs.

Hunter: Again, hard to judge after coming out of a month-long break, but I liked Montreal’s game this week. They peppered Minnesota with plenty of shots in a 4-3 win, including an impressive three-for-four on the power play, the third goal coming from Kristin O’Neill being the game-winning goal with 45 seconds left in the game. 

The loss to Toronto at home in front of over 20,000 fans had to have stung, especially since it felt like they outplayed them for large chunks of the game. But they get a point and are now in sole possession of No. 2 in the standings, tied with Minnesota for points but ahead with more regulation wins. 

Montreal is in action on Wednesday, hosting New York, before visiting Montreal on Saturday.

3. Ottawa

Record: 8-0-6-6, +4
Last Week: 3rd
Hunter’s Rank: 4th
Tyler’s Rank: 3rd

Hunter: There was only one game this week, but what a game! In the aforementioned 4-0 win over Minnesota, team captain Brianne Jenner recorded her first hat trick of the season and has now scored in three straight games, totaling five goals and three assists in that span. 

The only reason I wanted Ottawa at No. 4 is because Minnesota did seem to outplay them at different times, outshooting them by 13, but that’s a testament to Emerance Maschmeyer, who made 35 saves and has really stepped up in the second half of the season. Both Jenner and Maschmeyer were named in Tyler’s Players of the Week. 

Tyler: I know they only played one game this week, and they were, for the most part, outplayed by Minnesota on Saturday, but Ottawa just continues to click off wins. Whether it be Maschmeyer standing on her head, or captain Brianne Jenner playing big minutes, this team is having players step up at the right time. Heading into a crucial game against Boston on Wednesday, I like the focus of Carla MacLeod’s team. They are getting production from their key players, and some depth help as well.

Ottawa is also hosting Montreal on Saturday.

4. Minnesota

Record: 8-4-3-6, +7
Last Week: 2nd (-2)
Hunter’s Rank: 3rd
Tyler’s Rank: 4th

Hunter: It was a tough week for the team from the State of Hockey, but they remain in the top half of the power rankings, if only on their spot in the standings. Sophie Jaques had a fantastic offensive night in their 4-3 loss to Montreal, with three assists and a pair of shots at the net, and it’s been great to see her settle in after being traded from Boston. 

But Ottawa blanked the team 4-0 despite outshooting them 35-22. I’ll give Nicole Hensley, one of the league’s most consistent netminders, the benefit of the doubt, considering that was her first PWHL start since March 24. But if this team wants to start the playoffs on home ice, they’ll need to win at least two of their last three regular-season games. 

Tyler: I can’t be too hard on a team that, realistically, could have won twice last week. However, for a team that is battling for home-ice advantage in the Walter Cup Playoffs, you cannot allow points to slip away. I know Montreal has a powerful offense, but Minnesota had no answer to slowing them down in that third period. They were goalied by Ottawa on Saturday, but Minnesota has to expect a tough matchup like that when they face Toronto next month.

Minnesota has just one game this week, as they host Boston on Saturday.

5. Boston

Record: 6-4-2-9, -8
Last Week: 5th
Hunter’s Rank: 5th
Tyler’s Rank: 5th

Hunter: Hey, don’t look now, but Boston’s won two straight and are only two points behind Ottawa in the standings. If you would have told me they’d get a regulation win over first-place Toronto and follow it up with a win over New York … I probably would have believed the second half, but not the first. 

It’s important to remember that Ottawa still has a game in hand and the two teams face off Wednesday in Ottawa. Ottawa has a chance to pull five points ahead and solidify their spot in the standings — but flip the coin, and a regulation win could put Boston in sole possession of the No. 4 playoff spot. 

Tyler: I came very close to pushing them up to fourth. A couple of hard-fought wins keep Boston in the playoff race with just three games to go. Aerin Frankel clearly took losing to Canada in the Women’s World Championship Game personally, making some huge saves to beat Toronto. She did it again on Saturday against New York.

I know a win against New York is nothing to boast about, but the fact Boston was able to keep up with a really good Toronto team, and put New York in its place with a strong effort, proves they have the grit necessary to steal that last playoff spot.

Boston has more important points this week. It faces Ottawa on Wednesday and then visits Minnesota on Saturday.

6. New York

Record: 3-4-3-10, -11
Last Week: 6th
Hunter’s Rank: 6th
Tyler’s Rank: 6th

Hunter: I feel like we’ll look back on this inaugural season and say, wow, if New York could only score just a smidge more than they did, they’d be a playoff team. How can you not think that when you look at the combination of Abigail Levy and Corrine Schroeder? In their loss to Boston this week, Schroeder had 36 saves on 38 shots, and I can’t think of a netminder at any level who compiled a 6-6-1 record with a .936 SV%. That is absurd. 

New York is another loss from being eliminated from playoff contention, but that’s only officially. It’s over for this club, and they should start the process of figuring out what’s on tap for the offseason. For now, just get through the season without getting anyone injured. 

Tyler: I mean, it’s not over yet, right?

Losing your first game out of the break, against a team that you had beaten right before the pause, might be what puts New York far out of reach. With the fact they have to face the top four teams in the league to close out the inaugural season, N.Y is going to need to win every game, and get some help if they want to sneak into the playoffs.

What needs to change for New York is its offensive structure. When you have a team with players like Alex Carpenter, Abby Roque, Jessie Eldrige and Chloe Aurard, you should be generating more scoring chances.

Two tough games are on the docket this week for New York. A road clash with Montreal on Wednesday, before hosting Toronto on Sunday.