The Montreal Victoire are “on the way” to their first-ever Walter Cup Final after eliminating the Minnesota Frost with a 2-1 win in Game 5 of the PWHL’s semifinal round on Tuesday. The Victoire will now face the Ottawa Charge in the final after the Charge beat the Boston Fleet in the other semifinal matchup. After the final game of the Victoire-Frost series was postponed from Monday due to an illness, the arena was not “as packed as usual” on Tuesday -- with the “upper bowl empty at the start of the rescheduled game.” But the “mood was festive during the do-or-die game,” with the crowd “erupting into loud cheers” when the Victoire F Catherine Dubois notched the first goal of the game (MONTREAL GAZETTE, 5/12).
The final matchup means the Walter Cup “will be awarded to a Canadian team for the first time in PWHL history.” After clinching its spot in the final on Sunday, the Charge “departed for Montreal by bus on Tuesday afternoon” to await their opponent. The Charge “will now be able to stay put in Montreal,” where the “first two games of the Walter Cup final will take place later this week.” The series “will then return to Ottawa” for Game 3 on May 18, and Game 4, if necessary, on May 20, both at Canadian Tire Centre. If a Game 5 “is needed, it will take place back in Montreal with a date and time to be determined” (OTTAWA CITIZEN, 5/12).
