Move over Michael Jordan. Make room for Marie-Philip Poulin.
Montreal Victoire captain Marie-Philip Poulin had a hat trick despite being audibly congested and admitting she was under the weather after the game. It brought back memories of Jordan’s “Flu Game” where he had 38 points and the game-winning shot in the 1997 NBA Finals. The stakes weren’t the same, but it showed her ability to step up even in adverse conditions. The Victoire beat the Ottawa Charge 4-1 on Wednesday night at Place Bell.
Rookie forward Jennifer Gardiner had a goal and two assists. The win moves Montreal to 7-2-1-2, and into first place in the PWHL. They are one point ahead of Minnesota, but still have three games in hand.
After 10 days off, the Montreal Victoire shook off some rust in the first period, but scored four unanswered goals.
Ottawa carried the play in the first period, as Montreal struggled to get back to game speed after a layoff since the two teams played in Quebec City on January 19. Each team is mandated to have a seven day break in the PWHL’s CBA and Montreal returned this week with two practices. Ottawa has played two games over that same span.
The Charge got the first-goal of the game when Jincy Roese’s point shot was tipped past Ann-Renée Desbiens by former Victoire forward Tereza Vanišová. It was Vanišová’s fourth goal of the season. Ottawa outshot Montreal 15-6 in the opening frame. They were helped by a late power play where they kept Montreal’s fourth line on the ice with only one defender for the entire two minutes. Despite their chances generated, they were unable to put a second puck past Desbiens.
Montreal fought back in the second period, led by their captain. Just 2:10 into the period, Montreal led a counter attack after Emily Clark had a chance at the other end. Jennifer Gardiner had a two-on-one with Poulin, and Poulin wired a shot past Ottawa goaltender Gwyneth Philips to tie the game at 1-1.
The shot was perfectly placed, and the rookie netminder had nothing she could do.
POULIN !!!! OTT 1, MTL 1
— Victoire de Montréal (@victoire-lphf.bsky.social) January 29, 2025 at 8:20 PM
[image or embed]
“I thought that that goal turned the tide of the entire game,” said Montreal head coach Kori Cheverie. “I am glad Pou shot that hard. Normally, she won’t take too many one timers in practice if her teammates are in front of her, so I am really happy that all that one-timer work she puts in at the end at practice paid off.”
Five minutes later, Montreal took the lead. Amanda Boulier sprung Gardiner on a breakaway of her own, and she fired another perfect wrist shot past Philips. It was Gardiner’s third goal of the season.
GARDINER! OTT 1, MTL 2
— Victoire de Montréal (@victoire-lphf.bsky.social) January 29, 2025 at 8:55 PM
[image or embed]
The floodgates stayed open for Montreal, who outshot Ottawa 15-7 in a full reversal of the first period. The difference is that they capitalized on their chances.
“We probably played our best period of the season in the first,” said Ottawa head coach Carla McLeod. “We were really playing well, and we were really taking it to Montreal. We had many opportunities to score a couple goals in that period. Kudos to [Desbiens] for her capabilities, but I felt like all those missed opportunities certainly hurt us. When we get those grade-A chances, you need to put them away. In the second period, Montreal got some of those chances and they put them away. So, to me, that was probably the difference in the game, and we’ve just got to figure that out.”
Less than three minutes after Gardiner made it 2-1, the Victoire extended their lead on the power play. Poulin had the puck at the right circle, and took her time to fire a perfectly placed shot far side on Philips for her second goal of the game.
ET DE DEUX POUR MPP! MPP'S SECOND OF THE NIGHT! OTT 1, MTL 3
— Victoire de Montréal (@victoire-lphf.bsky.social) January 29, 2025 at 8:56 PM
[image or embed]
“We just came back from nine days off, so it’s true that the first 20 minutes weren’t necessarily our best, but I think being able to come together in the room after the first, talking to each other and seeing what we could change,” said Poulin. “I think in the second half we were able to change our mindset, and we got our legs back. We put a lot of pressure on her, and Ann-Renée (Desbiens) kept us in the game – her saves were incredible tonight.”
After the third goal, Ottawa made a switch in goal. Emerance Maschmeyer entered the game for Philips, who had her first career shutout in her last start. Philips made nine saves on 12 shots.
“(Gwyneth) Philips came out of the game, but I thought she played really well, but the three shots that beat her were perfectly placed shots,” said Cheverie.
Desbiens made 31 saves in the win, her league-leading seventh of the season. She also leads the league’s qualified goaltenders in goals against average (1.86) and save percentage (.933). Maschmeyer made the save on all 20 shots she faced in relief and also has a season save percentage of .933.
Ottawa had 10 shots in the third period as they tried to get back into the game, but Desbiens stood tall. The Charge pulled the goalie with under four minutes remaining, but it was Poulin who scored her third goal of the game with 3:44 remaining.
Poulin’s three goals now put her in the league lead with eight goals. No other player has more than six.
Montreal goes right back to work on Thursday night when they will host the Toronto Sceptres for the first time this season. Puck drop is at 7:00 p.m. at Place Bell.
Notes:
- Montreal went with the same lineup that they have used the last two games. Laura Stacey missed her third straight game with a lower-body injury but is nearing a return as she avoided a long-term injury. She has been a participant at practice, but in a non-contact jersey.
- The Victoire recorded a power play goal for the fourth straight game and are 6/15 (40%) during that stretch.
- Erin Ambrose recorded an assist to extend her point streak to three straight games (6A). The Victoire defender has eight assists in her last six games and ranks fourth overall in the league with nine assists in 12 games.
- Cayla Barnes recorded her fourth assist in six games since the calendar turned to 2025. The Victoire first-round selection picked up her fifth helper on the power play and is tied for the rookie lead in power play points with five. She is also tied for second among all skaters with five power play assists.
- Attendance was 6,150 for the Wednesday night game.
Standings
Full Highlights
