Heading into last weekend’s game, Toronto sat dead last in the standings while Minnesota was enjoying the view at the top of the standings.
Not only was Minnesota the best team in the league but Toronto was getting set to face Grace Zumwinkle, who shares the top leading scorer position in the PWHL,
Add to that, Nicole Hensley was starting in goal for Minnesota. She hasn’t conceded more than two goals in a game all season long.
Toronto forward, Natalie Spooner said the task before the team helped them focus.
“It was a big game and to get that win I think we got confidence from that,” she said.
Spooner played a key role in taking down the league leaders. She put up a first-star worthy performance with two goals and one assist that made her the leading scorer in the PWHL with seven goals in nine games played.
With this win, Toronto has won three of its last four games, a big improvement compared to where this team was at the start of the season.
PWHL Toronto goaltender, Kristen Campbell faces the media after a 4-1 win over Minnesota. Campbell made 24 of 25 saves. Photo credit: Andre Leal
Captain Blayre Turnbull scored her first of the season.
“Our last few games have been our best games,” she said. Turnbull said that bounces are falling in their favour as of late.
Toronto head coach, Troy Ryan agreed his team is “trending in the right direction,” but said there is still lots of work to be done before he can be satisfied.
After getting their fourth win of the campaign, Toronto find themselves fourth in the PWHL. A better view than rock bottom, a place where Toronto has spent most of its season.
Beyond the challenge of facing a team who had a hot start, the NHL hosted its All-Star weekend in Toronto and many players in the PWHL — including Toronto’s Turnbull, Renata Fast, Jocelyne Laroque, and Sarah Nurse — took part in several activities to help build their league’s brand.
Fast, who also scored her first goal of the season against Minnesota, said she’s proud of the way her team approached the game, despite all the distractions that they were involved in throughout the weekend.
“Our group came to the rink focused today and we got the job done,” Fast said.
Along with other highlights of this game, forward Victoria Bach made her PWHL debut for Toronto.
Throughout the game, she was matched with several different combinations of forwards and got ice time with players such as Spooner and Nurse. She was also given time on the first power-play unit which opened the scoring.
Ryan deemed her as a “very smooth player” and liked her offensive ability. He said that this was a great opportunity for her to get some experience under her belt.
Toronto’s next home game will be on Feb. 16 at a sold-out Scotiabank Arena. The 19,800 seats sold out within minutes after going up for sale on Feb. 1, upsetting Minnesota once again, which held the 13,316 attendance record for a professional women’s hockey game set by Minnesota at the Xcel Energy Center.