The PWHL Playoff Race Continues

Rebecca Labaj

After a PWHL Original Six weekend the playoff race continues to heat up. So what does the playoff picture look like? And how does the Gold Plan come into effect? Here’s everything you need to know heading into the final stretch. 

Clinched Teams 

The Boston Fleet stayed hot after the Olympic break, even though they were battling through several injuries becoming the first team to anchor in a playoff spot in record-time clinching in just 24 games. Up next was the Montreal Victoire, who became the first team to advance in all three seasons as Ann-Renée Desbiens continued to hold down the fort. Then it was the back-to-back champions, Minnesota Frost locking in, becoming the second team to clinch in three straight seasons. 

Battle for the Final Spot

With the Fleet, Victoire, and Frost all locked in there’s only spot remaining, and 5 teams battling it out. While it may be out of reach for some there’s a tight battle for the final playoff spot. 

Currently holding the coveted final spot is the Ottawa Charge who climbed back into fourth with a major shutout win fueled by a 42-save performance from Gwyneth Philips. Ottawa made their first playoff appearance last season, where they made a deep run to the Finals, ultimately falling to the Minnesota Frost in overtime of Game 4. They are looking for redemption but Toronto and New York remain on their tail, the Charge need to continue pushing down the stretch especially in the head-to-head battles with the Sceptres and Sirens. 

Just two points behind are the Toronto Sceptres, who have struggled at home this season, falling in all three of their last games. Luckily for the Sceptres 3 of their final 4 games are on the road, but with the standings as close as they are there’s not a lot of room for error. Over the past few weeks there have been changes to the lineup, including the signing of Kristen Della Rovere and Hanna Baskin, which correspondingly saw Clair DeGeorge go to New York and Allie Munroe head to the LTIR. Munroe has been a big piece on the backend for the Sceptres this season alongside partner Kali Flanagan. With the lines mixed up again the Sceptres need to find a way to find their flow quickly if they hope to clinch their third straight playoff berth as the season continues to wind down. 

Three points behind the Sceptres is the New York Sirens who are searching for their first playoff berth. In the league's first two seasons New York fell to the bottom of the standings, but after a big draft and trades the Sirens playoff chances have never looked so good. Though the team is battling through injuries to big stars such as Taylor Girard and Kristýna Kaltounková, players like Sarah Fillier and Casey O’Brien continue to step up with the Sirens rallying for back-to-back wins at home. To wrap up the season the Sirens see the Sceptres twice, once at home and once on the road, the head-to-head matches are going to be the most important in climbing the standings. As they search for their first playoff run the Sirens need to continue their offensive momentum 

Gold Plan 

While neither expansion team has been officially eliminated Seattle is on the edge with Vancouver not far behind, but not all is lost for the season as the Gold Plan is around the corner. 

The Gold Plan was created as a way to prevent tanking in order to secure better draft picks. How it works is once a team has been officially eliminated they start earning points towards the Gold Plan with wins or overtime losses, and at the end of the season whoever has the most points in the Gold Plan, secures the Number 1 pick in the PWHL draft. The last two seasons New York has been the recipient of the top draft pick bringing in Sarah Fillier and Kristýna Kaltounková, who have found success with the Sirens. With this year's draft class stacked, a first pick may be exactly what the expansion teams need as they gear up for Year 2. 

The league has not yet made it clear how the draft order will be shaped, and no official announcement has been made about how many expansion teams there will be in Year 4, securing the Number 1 pick is never a bad idea. 

Stay tuned for more PWHL news and updates as we head into the final stretch of the regular season and gear up for playoffs.