Playoff hopes wearing thin as PWHL Minnesota loses fourth straight

TORONTO — Minnesota has needed just a single point in the PWHL standings in its four games over the past two weeks to officially clinch a playoff spot in 2024.

Unfortunately for the team, they have yet to find that single point after losing each of their last four contests in regulation and they now have just a single game left to earn that one point after dropping a 3-1 contest to Toronto on Wednesday.

This means that Minnesota needs to earn a win of any kind or an overtime loss against New York on May 4 in its regular season finale or the team might not make the PWHL playoffs in 2024, depending on the result of how both Boston and Ottawa fare in their last regular season games.

With the victory over Minnesota, Toronto secured the No. 1 spot in the PWHL standings and will participate as the top seed in the 2024 playoffs starting in May.

The road team actually put itself on the scoreboard first in the match as Minnesota forward Michela Cava deflected a shot originally from teammate Maggie Flaherty past goaltender Kristen Campbell and into the back of the net. Toronto tied things up at 1-1 just a few minutes later though as St. Lawrence alum Hannah Miller scored on the power play.

Toronto gave itself a one-goal lead in the second period as PWHL scoring leader Natalie Spooner netted her 17th goal of the season. She then scored her 18th in the third and final frame while on the breakaway as she deked past goaltender Maddie Rooney. Spooner now has a league-high 25 points in 2024. Ohio State alum Emma Maltais then scored an empty-net goal for the home team to further secure the victory.

Kristen Campbell made 25 saves for Toronto in the win while Rooney stopped 19 shots in the loss for Minnesota.

MINNESOTA 1, TORONTO 4

MIN: 1-0-0—1
TOR: 1-1-2—4

First period scoring — 1. MIN, Michela Cava (Maggie Flaherty, Taylor Heise) 4:14; 1. TOR, Hannah Miller (Sarah Nurse, Emma Maltais) 9:44 (pp)
Penalties — MIN, Clair DeGeorge (high-sticking) 8:48; TOR, Renata Fast (cross-checking) 18:42; TOR, Emma Maltais (hooking) 20:00

Second period scoring — 2. TOR, Natalie Spooner (Fast, Maltais) 11:10 (pp)
Penalties — TOR, Miller (boarding) 2:47; MIN, Liz Schepers (hooking) 10:33; MIN, Brooke Bryant (hooking) 19:02

Third period scoring — 3. TOR, Spooner (unassisted) 7:21; 4. TOR, Emma Maltais (unassisted) 17:55 (en)
Penalties — None.

Shots on goal — MIN, 10-4-12—26; TOR, 7-8-8—23
Goalie saves — MIN, Maddie Rooney 6-7-6—19 (3GA); TOR, Kristen Campbell 9-4-12—25 (1GA)

Penalties-minutes: MIN, 3-6; TOR, 3-6
Power-play goals—opportunities: MIN, 0-3; TOR, 2-3

Referees — Lacey Senuk, David Elford
Linespeople — Sophie Thomson, Jeremy Faucher

Attendance — 2571