PWHL Power Rankings: Record-breaking Victoire sit atop the charts
With just a couple of weeks to go in the regular season, the battle for playoff positioning is reaching its peak, with several storylines heading into the homestretch.
There’s the battle for first place between the Montreal Victoire and Boston Fleet, with a trio of teams staying right in the thick of the fight for the last postseason position. With just a few games to go, we’re shaping up for a thrilling finish.
Today, Ben Steiner, Scott Maxwell and Tyler Kuehl rank the eight teams after a number of important games in the week that was.
1. x-Montreal Victoire
Record: 16-4-2-5, +36
Last Week: 1st
Ben’s Rank: 1st
Scott’s Rank: 1st
Tyler’s Rank: 1st
Ben: It’s the Ann-Renné Desbiens show right now for the Montreal Victoire, as the veteran netminder made 44 of 45 saves this week in a 1-0 win over the Boston Fleet and 4-1 win over the Seattle Torrent.
While the dominant performance against Seattle was expected, the showing against Boston made it evident that Montreal really is the best team in the PWHL at the moment. It could have been a massive issue to give up five power plays, but they managed to kill each one, and likely could have won by a greater margin with less time in the box. The vibes are high, and it couldn’t come at a better time.
Tyler: Just keep winning, baby. That’s exactly what head Kori Cheverie should be writing on the board every night from here on out. A huge win in front of a sell-out crowd at TD Garden, widening the gap between them and the Boston Fleet, the Victoire are in control of their own fate to finish atop the league standings for the second year in a row. They’ve become the first team in PWHL history to win 20 games in a season and have points in a record 14 consecutive games, most of which without captain Marie-Philip Poulin.
The only concern I have – and I’ll keep bringing it up until something changes – is if the Victoire have enough gusto to carry their success into the playoffs. They’ve been exceptional in the first two regular seasons, but have failed to get the job done when it matters most.
Montreal has a chance to take another big step toward first place on Friday, when it hosts Boston in Laval.
2. x-Boston Fleet
Record: 14-5-2-5, +26
Last Week: 2nd
Ben’s Rank: 3rd
Scott’s Rank: 2nd
Tyler’s Rank: 2nd
Tyler: I want to be disappointed in the Fleet failing to rally in front of a boisterous crowd at TD Garden, but, while the chances were few and far between, Boston did its part in limiting Montreal’s offense for the most part. The only issue, which has been a constant problem with this team since its inception, is the absence of a consistent offensive presence. They weren’t able to generate enough to really test Ann-Renee Desbiens outside of a few opportunities. Sure, in a best-of-five series, they might have the favorable goaltending matchup, but if they can’t score in a winner-take-all game, this historically great Fleet team might come up short in the playoffs.
Ben: The Boston Fleet may have said farewell to the top spot in the PWHL regular season with the 1-0 loss to the Victoire this week, but it won’t concern them too much, having cushioned the loss with an expected 5-1 win over the Goldeneyes. The key for this team heading into the final four games will be to get the power play clicking once again, after going 0-for-5 against the Victoire, dropping the season percentage down to 12.6, a significantly lower mark than either Minnesota or Montreal, the other two teams with secured Walter Cup Playoff berths.
The Fleet hosts the Frost on Wednesday before taking on the Victoire two nights later.
3. x-Minnesota Frost
Record: 13-3-4-6, +23
Last Week: 3rd
Ben’s Rank: 2nd
Scott’s Rank: 3rd
Tyler’s Rank: 3rd
Ben: The Minnesota Frost got back to calm hockey this week, after last week’s chaotic 6-5 win over the Vancouver Goldeneyes. This week, the one game saw a straightforward 4-1 win over the New York Sirens, with solid performances across the roster.
Britta Curl-Salemme, Taylor Heise and Grace Zumwinkle continued stellar seasons, but the most important factor was simply the team’s return to its usual form. The two-time Walter Cup champions know how to win, and doing so without much issue was a key part against a team they are — at least on paper — significantly better than.
Tyler: The Frost aren’t totally out of the race for first in the PWHL, but odds are the team will finish third. It’s still better than how things have gone over the first two years, when Minnesota squeaked into fourth place before turning things around and winning the Walter Cup.
After a wild 6-5 win to the struggling Vancouver Goldeneyes the week before, the Frost played a more complete game against the Sirens this past Saturday, though they needed three goals in the third to come away with the win. I know Ken Klee loves rotating his goaltenders, but I think it’s Maddie Rooney’s net to lose. She has played better than Nicole Hensley for the second season in a row, and I don’t know if you could trust Hensley in a big-game situation.
The Frost are on the road on Wednesday night, visiting the Fleet.
4. Ottawa Charge
Record: 7-7-1-12, -10
Last Week: 6th (+2)
Ben’s Rank: 4th
Scott’s Rank: 6th
Tyler’s Rank: 4th
Tyler: Analytics, shmamalytics. The Charge are doing what they need to do in order to move closer toward a playoff spot: win hockey games. Were they brutally outplayed by the Sceptres on Saturday? Sure. Did Gwyneth Philips have to play the game of her life? Absolutely. Regardless, Ottawa did what it had to do to snap its four-game losing streak and grab fourth place, for now.
They certainly are heading for a busy end to the regular season, with the Charge’s three games coming in a seven-day span. Yet, with the guts this team is playing with despite missing its head coach…you kind of have to cheer for them a little, right?
Ben: If only the Charge had put away the game they were supposed to, instead of falling 5-3 to the last-place Seattle Torrent. If they had, and also still secured the 2-0 weekend victory over the Toronto Scepters, they likely would have unofficially wrapped up the race for the final playoff spot.
Alas, there will still be work to do in the final three games of the season, and they will need significantly more offensive contributions from depth players after both Rebecca Leslie and Brianne Jenner provided the difference-making moments of the week.
The Charge look to use the week of rest to their advantage on Saturday when they host the Sirens.
5. Toronto Sceptres
Record: 9-1-5-11, -18
Last Week: 4th (-1)
Ben’s Rank: 6th
Scott’s Rank: 4th
Tyler’s Rank: 5th
Tyler: The Sceptres did everything but against the Charge on Saturday, and that regulation loss might be the difference between Toronto advancing to the Walter Cup Playoffs for a third consecutive season. Like the other team in the Six that plays down the street, the Scepters have managed to underwhelm for the majority of the year, but have benefited from other teams being worse than them.
Goaltending has been okay at times, and a couple of players are contributing offensively, but it just seems that, even if they qualify for the postseason, the Scepters won’t be much of a threat, given who they might have to play.
Ben: One game this week, and it came with a loss that gave a big blow to Toronto’s playoff hopes, falling 2-0 to the Charge on another night where the power play struggled to produce, falling short on three opportunities. Overall, this season — and in the greater tenure of head coach Troy Ryan – the Sceptres have simply struggled to win the most pivotal games. The difference this season is that it looks like they might be out of the playoffs altogether.
Toronto is on the road on Wednesday night, taking on the Sirens.
6. New York Sirens
Record: 8-2-3-13, -14
Last Week: 5th (-1)
Ben’s Rank: 5th
Scott’s Rank: 4th
Tyler’s Rank: 6th
Ben: The NHL’s Vancouver Canucks became infamous in their market for pushing a narrative of “meaningful games in March,’ amid ever-growing struggles to remain competitive in the final months of the season. The New York Sirens can take some of that inspiration, as they’ve been in a fully-contested race for the final playoff spot, but appear set to miss out by a slight margin in the season’s final games.
A 4-1 loss to the Frost in their lone game this week wasn’t the upset win they needed, but they will look to lead on the very involved Sarah Fillier and Casey O’Brien over the final stretch. Luckily, that includes four games against Toronto x2 and Ottawa, both within their playoff race, as well as Boston, which could be a first-round opponent if they qualify.
Tyler: As I said earlier, I don’t care about the analytics. You want to make the playoffs? Win. If you want to be a true postseason contender, you have to play better on the road. Yes, New York grabbed a big win over the Frost a couple of weeks ago, but how they let that game in St. Paul slip away in the third restored the belief that the Sirens are great at finding ways to lose games at this point of the season.
For as much as this team has found ways to improve, it feels like it has taken two steps forward and two steps back every week. With just one home game before a three-game road trip to end the regular season, New York has very little room for error in the final two weeks.
The Siren’s final home game of the 2025-26 campaign is Wednesday against Toronto.
7. Vancouver Goldeneyes
Record: 7-1-4-14, -19
Last Week: 7th
Ben’s Rank: 7th
Scott’s Rank: 7th
Tyler’s Rank: 7th
Tyler: Just one game for the Goldeneyes last week, and it did not go well. They were beaten and battered by the Fleet, a team that, as I said earlier, struggles to score at times. A 5-1 loss in Edmonton in the final Takeover Tour game of the season was a fitting result, given how things have gone for Vancouver in its inaugural campaign. I’m expecting swift changes with some of the roster in the offseason, because what general manager Cara Gardner Morey has put together this season just hasn’t worked.
I will say, it’ll make all of us reconsider how highly we think of the expansion teams next season.
Ben: The Goldeneyes were plastered across the headlines this week after head coach Brian Idalski shared that “something is there,” seemingly blaming Vancouver’s and Seattle’s struggles in their inaugural seasons on more significant travel than the rest of the league. However, while his claim is reasonable, other teams have been able to deliver on long-haul trips, and Vancouver’s home record is second-worst, only to Seattle, so maybe something is related to the travel, but the home-cooking hasn’t exactly been sweet either.
On the ice this week, Vancouver fell 5-1 to the Fleet, a far worse result than what they had after pushing the Fleet to overtime on home ice last month. They’ll likely need to win each of their four remaining games and would need some luck to fall their way if the postseason dreams still feel at all feasible.
Vancouver can be eliminated from playoff contention with a loss of any kind to…
8. Seattle Torrent
Record: 7-1-3-15, -24
Last Week: 8th
Ben’s Rank: 8th
Scott’s Rank: 8th
Tyler’s Rank: 8th
Tyler: That win over the Charge last week was nice, the team’s first honest road win this season, but it only delayed the inevitable. This Torrent team is certainly looking toward the future. However, if they really want to set themselves up for success in year two, they need to win the first overall pick. In order to give Seattle the best chance of doing that, it is to lose on Tuesday to Vancouver and start earning draft-order points before other teams get the chance, because there’s a chance that the Goldeneyes and Sirens can be eliminated from playoff contention by the end of the week.
Ben: The Seattle Torrent played back-to-back games, a PWHL rarity, to start the week and could have gotten a head start on the Gold Plan and the race for the first overall pick. Instead, they found a 5-3 win over the Ottawa Charge, leaving them within playoff contention heading into Tuesday’s clash with the Goldeneyes.
If the Torrent beat Vancouver and then fail to make a late push, the team could miss out on a formative prospect and a chance to kickstart an instant turnaround with a player like Caroline Harvey, the assumed No. 1 prospect.