The Montreal Victoire are heading to their first Walter Cup remaining as they defeated the two-time defending champion Minnesota Frost 2-1 at Place Bell on Tuesday within the fifth and deciding recreation of their Skilled Girls’s Hockey League semifinal.
Marie-Philip Poulin scored the game-winning objective at 3:06 of the third interval on the facility play. The win units up a best-of-five remaining in opposition to the Ottawa Cost, making certain that the league will crown its first Canadian champion. It was Poulin’s second game-winning objective of the tight sequence.
It’s the first time the Frost misplaced a recreation going through elimination, transferring to 6-1. They’ve been in all the league’s deciding fifth video games.
Erin Ambrose made a cross-ice move to Poulin, who beat Maddie Rooney on a pointy angle close to the objective line.
Minnesota pushed laborious after the objective, getting a number of probabilities within the Montreal finish, however Ann-Renee Desbiens was strong within the Victoire web. Rooney made some huge saves of her personal, conserving the sport at 2-1.
Sam Cogan scored for the Frost, whereas Rooney made 15 saves.
Catherine Dubois additionally scored for the Victoire, whereas Desbiens made 25 saves, together with eight within the third interval.
Montreal opened the scoring when Dubois’ shot hit off of Elizabeth Giguere’s stick and tricked Rooney. Poulin moved Dubois proper earlier than the faceoff, and gained it again to her within the capturing place. The objective got here 12:18 into the primary interval, and was scored after Minnesota opened with a 9-2 shot benefit.
Dubois was moved to the highest line for this recreation, and it was her first objective of the playoffs.
Desbiens had an eventful interval of her personal. A Mae Batherson shot deflected in entrance by Kendall Coyne Schofield and trickled via Desbiens, however she was capable of flip round and use her stick with cease the puck from crossing the road earlier than grabbing it.
Minnesota tied the sport 1-1 with 11:45 left within the second interval when Cogan tipped a Abby Hustler move within the slot that beat Desbiens.
As much as that time within the second interval, each goaltenders made huge saves with Desbiens making a rolling two-pad stack save on Giguere, and Rooney stopping Laura Stacey and Kaitlin Willoughby on separate probabilities early within the body.
The photographs within the second interval have been 6-5 Montreal, however the Frost had many of the possession within the interval, aided partly to the sport’s first energy play.
This report by The Canadian Press was first printed Could 12, 2026.
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