To date, the Minnesota Frost have won every playoff round they have been a part of, and have done so without ever winning the opening game of a series.
If history is to repeat itself, the Frost are perfectly positioned, as the Ottawa Charge stayed undefeated at home in the playoffs, getting an overtime goal from Emily Clark to beat Minnesota 2-1 and take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five Walter Cup Final.
After Minnesota dominated the third period and the early stretches of overtime, Clark picked up an ill-advised Frost drop pass in the defensive zone and went coast-to-coast, beating Frost goalie Nicole Hensley by finding a tiny gap between the netminder and the near post.
Klara Hymlarova scored the only goal for the Frost, who outshot Ottawa 26-19 for the game. They got 17 saves from Hensley.
“We started well. We had a little bit of a lull, I felt like, in the first. But then I liked our second and third,” Frost coach Ken Klee said. “We know it’s going to be a tight series. They’re a good team. Goals are going to come at a premium, and obviously they got one more than us tonight.”
Game 2 is Thursday evening in Ottawa.
The scoreless first period was a tale of two nations, as the Frost dominated early and got the game’s first power play but were unable to capitalize with the extra player.
Ottawa went on the power play later when Michaela Cava pulled down her former Minnesota Duluth teammate Gabbie Hughes, and the Charge pelted Hensley with a quartet of shots on the advantage, but were also held off the scoreboard. The period ended with Ottawa holding a 9-4 shots lead.
Again in the second, Minnesota was the early aggressor, with Denisa Krizova’s solo rush to the net ending with a backhand shot sliding just wide of the far post, and Kendall Coyne Schofield getting tripped up on a 2-on-1 rush to the net, drawing the Frost’s second power play.
They tested Gwyneth Phillips several times, but again failed to score on the advantage. Just seconds after Ottawa got back to five-on-five hockey, Rebecca Leslie threaded a shot through a crowd in front of Hensley for the first goal of the Final.
The second period ended with Ottawa up 1-0 and on the power play, although Minnesota had locked things down defensively and allowed the Charge little offense with the extra skater.
“Ottawa is a great team, a fast team, physical and relentless, so we were prepared for that,” Frost defender Lee Stecklein said. “We’ve faced teams like them all season, so nothing crazy. We just have to stick to our game and find a way to get the puck in the net.”
Phillps’ propensity to range far beyond her crease came back to bite Ottawa early in the third, as the Frost pulled even.
Katy Knoll pulled the puck off the wall in the corner while Phillips scrambled to get back into position. Knoll zipped a cross-zone pass to Hymlarova, who caught the puck in her skates, pushed it ahead to her stick and popped a backhand shot into the mostly empty net a half-second before Phillips could get back to the crease.
It was a rare mistake by the Charge, and the first goal of the playoffs for Hymlarova, which swung the momentum to Minnesota’s side.
The Frost dominated the final period of regulation, outshooting Ottawa 10-3 and forcing Phillips into several high-danger saves before the game went to overtime.
“We knew to expect a close game, and of course the first one goes to overtime,” said Stecklein. “(I) like the way we played. Unfortunately it didn’t go our way tonight but we have a day to reset and get ready for Game 2.”
Minnesota won 2024 playoff rounds versus Toronto and Boston after losing the opening game in both series. This season the Frost dispatched Toronto in the PWHL semifinal round after falling in the series opener.
Phillips finished with 25 saves for Ottawa, which improved to 3-0 at home in the playoffs.
Rebecca Leslie #37 scores on Nicole Hensley #29 of the Minnesota Frost in the second period during Game One of the PWHL Finals at The Arena at TD Place on May 20, 2025 in Ottawa, Ontario. (Photo by Troy Parla/Getty Images)
Minnesota Frost forward Michela Cava (86) is stopped by Ottawa Charge goalie Gwyneth Philips (33) during second period PWHL final action, Tuesday May 20, 2025 in Ottawa. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press via AP)
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