PWHL Players of the Week: Carpenter, two Victoire standouts earn Week 4 honors
After over a week off for the Rivalry Series and international games, the PWHL returned in the third week of December as teams approached the quarter mark of the 2025-26 campaign.
In addition to the return of the regular season schedule, the latest round of games also saw the second season of the PWHL Takeover Tour kick off, with an attendance of 10,438 in Halifax for the Montréal Victoire’s 2–1 win over the Toronto Sceptres, setting the stage for Chicago’s Takeover Tour game to kick off the next round of games.
As the season progresses, Tyler Kuehl, Hunter Crowther and I are rotating with who we think are the players of the week. In case you missed it, read Hunter’s player rankings from Week 3.
Here’s the latest edition for Week 4, as teams hit between their fifth and seventh games played.
Alex Carpenter (F, Seattle Torrent)
The Seattle Torrent only played once this week, capturing a dominant 4-1 win against the Ottawa Charge on home ice, powered by an elite performance from Alex Carpenter. The Former New York Sirens forward began the night with an assist on Julia Gosling’s first period goal, before scoring twice in the second frame, including once on the powerplay.
The 31-year-old Team USA forward has cracked the 20-point mark in the league’s first two seasons and now finds herself on pace to do it again. At the same time, she is also proving a critical part of a potent second line for the Torrent, playing alongside Hilary Knight and Gosling, all of whom picked up points in the win.
Carpenter’s performance was her first multipoint game of the 2025-26 campaign and her second three point showing in the PWHL, her last coming over a year prior with two goals and an assist in the Sirens’ 2024-25 season opener.
Dara Greig (F, Montréal Victoire)
It was a good week for the Montréal Victoire and Dara Greig had a week to remember within it, netting her first career PWHL goal in her 34th regular season game. Her team, meanwhile, picked up the first PWHL win in Nova Scotia against Toronto and she scored her first goal and added an assist in a 4-2 win over the Vancouver Goldeneyes.
Playing on a third line alongside Hayley Scamurra and Skylar Irving, the former Wisconsin and Colgate standout found the back of the net in the second period against Vancouver, as Scamurra intercepted a Goldeneyes clearance to set up Greig in front of the net. A bottom six forward, it was the 18th shot of her career and the first to tickle twine.
Later on in the third period, Greig helped set up Shiann Darkangelo as well, putting the finishing moments on a dominant performance in their first visit to the Pacific Coliseum
“It feels good,” she said postgame after having just three assists in her rookie season “I think I’ve taken a step in the off-season. I wanted to be able to contribute a bit more offensively this year… it was nice to get one.”
The win against Vancouver also saw her play significantly more time than usual, logging 21:35 of ice time, compared to her previous season high of 11:20
Ann-Renée Desbiens (G, Montréal Victoire)
The Victoire played twice this week, taking on the cross-continent trip from Halifax to Vancouver and head coach Kori Cheverie relied on different goaltenders in both games. While both Ann-Renée Desbiens and Sandra Abstreiter picked up wins, Desbiens’ stood out brightly.
Starting in the crease at the Scotiabank Centre in Halifax, Desbiens weathered the pressure of a Takeover Tour game, and made a season-high 35 saves on 36 shots as the Victoire picked up a 2-1 victory in a shootout.
While she can count herself lucky for a penalty on Emma Maltais’ breakaway goal which briefly won the game for Toronto before being called back, the Team Canada netminder showed her skills in the shootout stopping all five skaters for the third time in her last four shootouts.
Her showing also brought her season record to 3-1 and her save percentage to a .966, good for second among eligible PWHL goalies, trailing Aerin Frankel’s .968 with the Boston Fleet.
“It’s always fun to play behind this team – you always have players you can rely on,” she said after the win. “There are always people willing to block shots and do the little things that may go unnoticed to most players, but for me, it makes the biggest difference, whether it’s the box out, clearing out the rebounds and all those things.”
Both Desibien and Greig now look to the Victoire’s next test against Seattle on Tuesday at Climate Pledge Arena.