Minnesota Frost Outlast Victoire in Overtime Thriller to Steal Game 1

Minnesota Frost Outlast Victoire in Overtime Thriller to Steal Game 1

Minnesota Frost open the postseason with an overtime win in a back-and-forth battle against Montréal.

 By Robert Brent

The Minnesota Frost kicked off their postseason Saturday afternoon with a matchup in Laval, QC against the Montréal Victoire. The first-round series will be the first time in the PWHL’s history that the two franchises meet in the postseason.

Montréal has gotten the better of the Frost in recent meetings, winning all four games this season and shutting Minnesota out in the last two. Still, everything is different in the postseason. No team knows that better than the Frost, who have won the last two Walter Cup Championships as the lowest-seeded teams in the postseason.

The Walter Cup playoffs are a thrilling time for fans and players alike. Minnesota star Taylor Heise spoke before the game about the excitement of beginning the chase for a championship.

“We are so excited to get to work. Playoffs are a special time, and from what we know, it will be a fantastic series,” Heise said. It’s going to take everyone, and everything we have to win, and we are excited and willing to do that.”

Recap

Maddie Rooney started in net for the Minnesota Frost after a successful season for the veteran goaltender. Minnesota has multiple capable goaltenders, including Nicole Hensley, who also has significant postseason experience. Still, Rooney did enough in the regular season to earn the net.

Ann-Renée Desbiens took the net at the other end of the ice. Desbiens’s play will likely be a major factor in the series’ outcome, as the goaltender is one of the league’s star players.

Minnesota got off to a fantastic start, controlling play early. That control paid off with the Frost getting the first goal of the game on a 2-on-1 rush with Katy Knoll getting her first goal of the postseason. Knoll is a key depth scorer for the Frost. The forward contributed in Minnesota’s last playoff run, scoring 5 points in 8 games.

The Frost added to their lead shortly, going to the power play moments later. Taylor Heise made a nice pass from behind the goal to Kendall Coyne Schofield, who was waiting out front. The assist was Heise’s second of the period.

Minnesota continued to play well the remainder of the period, maintaining a 2-0 lead while leading 8-5 in shots on goal.

The Victoire struck shortly into the second period with a goal from Shiann Darkangelo roughly three minutes in.

The Frost had several chances on the power play throughout the second period, but were unable to crack Desbiens and the Montréal defense on four straight extra-attacker opportunities.

Montréal weathered the storm and tied the game late in the period with a goal from Laura Stacey. Marie-Philip Poulin and Abby Roque registered their first points of the postseason on the goal as well.

Less than a minute later, Grace Zumwinkle restored the Frost’s lead with an unassisted goal to finish off the second period’s scoring plays.

A skirmish at the end of the period led to Britta Curl-Salemme getting a game misconduct. The Victoire earned a crucial chance to tie the game with a major penalty.

Montréal converted on the opportunity early in the third period when a Laura Stacey shot through traffic beat Maddie Rooney to tie the game with 17 minutes remaining in game one.

Minnesota answered quickly, just as they had on the Victoire’s last goal. Sidney Morin scored the goal short-handed with assists from Klára Hymlárová and Kelly Pannek. Shortly after the goal, the Victoire got another chance with an extra attacker.

Montréal’s power play was once again successful, with Laura Stacey completing a hat trick to tie the game again.

Stacey’s goal was the last of regulation as the Frost had a grade-A chance at the end of the period, but Desbiens was able to keep the puck out of the net.

The Frost scored early in overtime to take game one five minutes into the overtime period. Jincy Roese got the goal on a shot from the point that leaked into the net.

Minnesota took the 1-0 lead in one of the most memorable games of the Frost’s already extensive playoff history.

Key Takeaways

Depth Scoring Gets the Job Done

The Minnesota Frost are known for employing a core of superstar talent capable of scoring at any time. That high-end talent can sometimes overshadow the team’s fantastic depth. That scoring depth came up huge for the Frost in Saturday afternoon’s game.

Minnesota got a combined six points from players who did not place in the top five in team scoring during the regular season. Klara Hymlárová headlined the group, registering two assists.

The Frost also got a significant scoring effort from their blueliners. Defensive stalwarts Jincy Roese and Sidney Morin both scored after not registering a goal during the regular season. Lee Stecklein also posted an assist.

The team’s star players also contributed significantly. Over the course of a playoff series, the team needs everyone to pitch in. That certainly happened in the game one victory.

Fast Pace Defines Game One

With the first-round matchup featuring the league’s top scoring team (Minnesota) and top defending team (Montréal), it was always going to be fascinating to see what pace the game was played at. At least in game one, the series appears to be trending more towards the fast-paced play that could favor the Frost.

The five goals scored against Ann-Renée Desbiens were the highest total of goals allowed for the netminder this season. In fact, Desbiens had only given up three goals to the Frost this season in four previous games combined. 

The biggest takeaway from game one is clearly that these games do not have to be the tightly contested matchups that took place between the two teams in the regular season. The Victoire will certainly attempt to play more disciplined in the upcoming games, but Minnesota fired on all cylinders in game one.

Playoff Hockey On Full Display

One of the most exciting attributes of postseason hockey is that the intensity ratchets up quite a bit. That fact was on full display on Saturday, with the game featuring significant physicality. 

The Victoire committed seven minor penalties throughout the game. Of those penalties, three were roughing, and another was cross-checking. Minnesota got plenty of its share of physicality as well. Most notably, Britta Curl-Salemme received a major penalty and game misconduct for a check to the head at the end of the second period.

While plays like checking to the head are never great to see, it was just an example of a game that got intense. That style of play seemed to favor players like Kelly Pannek, who had a big day on the scoresheet but also registered three hits and made several physical plays.