OTTAWA, ON – Britta Curl-Salemme scored late within the third interval and once more in time beyond regulation to raise the Minnesota Frost to a 2-1 series-tying win over the Ottawa Cost, silencing a sellout crowd of 8,206 followers on Thursday evening at TD Place.
The rating remained scoreless for many of regulation till Jocelyne Larocque broke the impasse at 17:25 of the third interval, giving Ottawa the lead. With 15 seconds left in regulation, and the Frost urgent on an influence play with their internet empty, Curl-Salemme scored the equalizer to ship the sport to time beyond regulation.
Whereas each groups traded probabilities in further time, it was Curl-Salemme who struck once more––scoring with lower than 4 minutes left within the first time beyond regulation body–– to raise Minnesota to the win. Maddie Rooney made 37 saves on 38 photographs in her third win of the postseason, whereas Gwyneth Philips turned apart 22 of 24 photographs in her sixth begin of the postseason. The loss was Ottawa’s first in 4 video games on residence ice this postseason.
Recreation Three of the best-of-five PWHL Finals, offered by Scotiabank, is about to happen on Saturday at 5 p.m. ET at Xcel Vitality Middle. 
QUOTES
Frost Head Coach Ken Klee: “They took it to us the primary half. I believe within the third interval we lastly bought to our sport. We began getting pucks in and enjoying the way in which we all know we are able to play. It was a good sport, and we all know it’s going to be tight and that’s what we’ve come to anticipate.”
Frost Goaltender Maddie Rooney: “I used to be seeing the puck properly, however I assumed the group did an ideal job attempting up sticks in entrance of us and clearing out our bodies in entrance of us making it simpler to see. It simply says so much about our group being down and having the ability to tie it with 15 seconds left and getting the win in time beyond regulation.”
Cost objective scorer Jocelyne Larocque on getting the lead late within the sport however shedding it within the dying seconds: “It’s playoff hockey. If one objective in opposition to goes to get you down, I don’t suppose you’d make it this far within the playoffs. Earlier than time beyond regulation, we simply wished to keep it up. We had been proud of our play. We made a few changes and simply wished to maintain the strain on as a result of we had been enjoying some actually good hockey.”
Ottawa captain Brianne Jenner on the sensation of seeing a victory slip away: “It’s irritating, however this was a a lot better sport for us than our first sport and we are able to take a number of confidence from the way in which that we performed. We bought again to our type tonight. We all know it’s going to be a hard-fought sequence. We knew that coming into it. Yeah, we might have appreciated to shut this one out for positive. However we’ll study from it and we’re proper within the battle and we’re having enjoyable.”
NOTABLES
Britta Curl-Salemme scored her second and third objectives of the postseason for her first multi-point efficiency of her postseason profession. Two of her three playoff objectives have come on the facility play, making her the one skater to internet a number of energy play objectives this postseason.
Curl-Salemme grew to become the fourth participant in PWHL historical past to attain a number of objectives—together with the game-winner—in a single playoff sport, becoming a member of Taylor Heise (Could 17, 2024), Julia Gosling (Could 7, 2025), and Michela Cava (Could 11, 2025). She’s the primary to perform the feat with an time beyond regulation winner.
Maddie Rooney’s 37 saves set a brand new profession excessive and marked the primary time the goaltender has made 30+ saves in a postseason contest. She’s now received all three of her postseason begins this 12 months, matching her win complete from final 12 months’s playoffs in 5 begins.
Gwyneth Philips allowed a couple of objective for the primary time since Recreation 2 of the semifinals in opposition to Montréal—and the primary time she’s achieved so at residence this postseason.
Jocelyne Larocque scored her first objective of the season – and second of her PWHL profession – for her first marker in a Cost uniform, and first-ever playoff objective. The defender has factors in back-to-back video games for the primary time this season.
Lee Stecklein tallied her fourth help for her seventh level of the postseason and is tied for the lead in playoff scoring, alongside teammate Heise. The defender had 9 factors in 30 regular-season video games, three of which got here in Minnesota’s closing two contests of the season.
Claire Thompson recorded her third and fourth assists of the postseason, incomes her first multi-point postseason sport of her profession.
Mellissa Channell-Watkins tallied her fourth help for her fifth level of the postseason and sits third amongst defenders in postseason scoring.
Rebecca Leslie tallied her third level of the postseason – matching her regular-season level tally by means of 27 video games – and is driving a three-game level streak for the primary time in her profession. No PWHL participant has ever had a four-game level streak in a single postseason.
Emily Clark fired a profession playoff-high six photographs on internet in tonight’s sport. Cost captain Brianne Jenner additionally fired 5 photographs, which ties her profession playoff file, after she additionally recorded 5 photographs in Recreation 2 in opposition to Montréal – which went to 4OT.
Ottawa’s 16 second-period photographs are essentially the most photographs recorded by any group in a single interval this postseason and tied for fourth-most photographs in a playoff interval all-time.
Six of Ottawa’s 9 postseason objectives have been scored within the third interval. Throughout the common season, solely 29% of the Cost’s objectives (21/71) got here within the closing body.
Minnesota fired their first shot of the sport at 6:32 within the first interval, which is the group’s longest stretch and not using a shot to open a sport this postseason.
Minnesota recorded three photographs on internet within the first interval, tied for the bottom shot tally by any group this postseason. Minnesota’s 9 photographs on objective by the top of the second interval can also be tied for the bottom shot tally after two durations of play by any group this postseason.
That is the second sport this postseason to stay scoreless after two durations. Just one sport in the course of the common season – New York at Toronto on Jan. 12 – remained scoreless heading into the third interval.
All six of Ottawa’s playoff video games this season have been determined by precisely one objective. It’s the longest streak of one-goal video games inside a single playoffs by a PWHL group all-time. On this 12 months’s common season, no group had a streak longer than 4.
Ottawa outshot Minnesota for the primary time this season by means of eight general conferences. Ottawa’s 38 photographs on internet in tonight’s sport are the group’s highest tally in opposition to Minnesota this season. 
Kateřina Mrázová missed immediately’s sport for Ottawa as a consequence of a decrease physique damage. Taylor Home stepped into the lineup in her absence.
SCORESHEET RECAP
Minnesota 0 0 1 1 – 2
Ottawa 0 0 1 0 – 1
1st Interval- No Scoring.Penalties-Vanišová Ott (holding), 4:32.
2nd Interval- No Scoring.Penalties-Savolainen Ott (unlawful physique checking), 9:09; Cava Min (tripping), 11:16; Home Ott (tripping), 14:22.
third Interval-1, Ottawa, Larocque 1 (Meixner, Leslie), 17:25. 2, Minnesota, Curl-Salemme 2 (Thompson, Stecklein), 19:44 (PP). Penalties-Thompson Min (interference), 1:42; Vanišová Ott (hooking), 6:34; Vanišová Ott (tripping), 19:23.
1st OT Interval-3, Minnesota, Curl-Salemme 3 (Channell-Watkins, Thompson), 16:24. Penalties-No Penalties
Pictures on Aim-Minnesota 3-6-10-5-24. Ottawa 8-16-6-8-38.
Energy Play Alternatives-Minnesota 1 / 5; Ottawa 0 / 2.
Goalies-Minnesota, Rooney (38 shots-37 saves). Ottawa, Philips (24 shots-22 saves).
A-8,206 (sell-out)
THREE STARS
1. Britta Curl-Salemme (MIN) 2G
2. Maddie Rooney (MIN) 37/38 SV
3. Jocelyne Larocque (OTT) 1G
SERIES
Collection tied 1-1
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Recreation 3: Saturday, Could 24 at 5 p.m. ET (Xcel Vitality Middle)
