Confident Charge knock off Fleet in ‘surprise’ return to Walter Cup Final

OTTAWA — When the Professional Women’s Hockey League season started there was much speculation about what kind of team the Ottawa Charge would become.

Decimated by the expansion draft and free agency, many pundits expected this to be a bit of a rebuilding campaign for the Charge after having reached the Walter Cup Final last season, before losing to the defending champion Minnesota Frost.

The Charge showed exactly what kind of team they are on Sunday by beating the Boston Fleet 4-3 in double overtime to win the best-of-five semifinal series in four games to secure their second straight trip to the Walter Cup Final.

Ottawa will take on the winner of the Montreal Victoire-Frost series, which will be decided with Monday’s Game 5.

“The noise outside of us has never been a concern,” said Ottawa head coach Carla MacLeod. “We are in the industry of trying to grow and get better every day. We say it all the time, and this is a group that has embraced that.”

MacLeod admitted the team and organization were aware of the external skepticism but never let it filter internally.

“You know, if things don’t go our way, we’re going to get better,” MacLeod said. “If things go our way, we’re still going to get better. And I think for us, that’s always been the focus … So for us, it was just a matter of growing and then getting ourselves to this point and now we have a chance to go play for the Walter Cup.”

The best example of Ottawa’s growth and resiliency came early in the second period of Sunday’s game when the Charge let a 2-0 lead slip away and then found themselves trailing 3-2.

Captain Brianne Jenner said lesser teams might have folded after such a turn of events.

“I think the fact that we were able to put that in the rear view and just keep going that’s something that, you know, we try to cultivate in our locker room, and that’s stuff we work on.”

Jenner credited the Charge’s mental performance coach, Kim Thompson, for helping the team develop that toughness.

“So, to see it come out in a big game where it’d be easy to hang our head right after those five minutes, but we kept going and found a way.”

Boston took some solace in finding a way to get back in the game and turn things around but gave the Charge full marks for resiliency.

“You know, they do a good job boxing out,” said Fleet head coach Kris Sparre. “They get sticks on pucks … full credit to Ottawa. I tell you what, like, you push on them, they push right back. They’re resilient just like their coach who’s going through some things right now with her health.”

Avoiding a fifth and deciding game is ideal on a number of fronts, but there’s no denying the extra rest will be beneficial for Charge goaltender Gwyneth Philips, who faced 142 shots through the four games. Boston was also aggressive in front of Philips looking to gain any edge possible.

Philips rose to prominence during last year’s playoff run where she posted a 1.23 goals-against-average and .952 save percentage and earned the Ilana Kloss Playoff MVP Award, despite being on the losing team.

The 25-year-old continues to develop her game and has been instrumental to the Charge’s success.

“I think you can see a huge step mentally, and like when she has a rare mistake she bounces back so quick, and that’s amazing to see from a young, elite player like that,” said Jenner. “So she’s got all the tools, but she’s also got, you know, the compete and she’s got the mindset.”

Philips frustrated the Victoire in last year’s semifinal where she was outstanding and posted the only shutout of the playoffs.

Montreal finished first overall this season and had the option of choosing Minnesota or Ottawa as its first-round opponent and opted for the Frost despite the proximity to Ottawa and the Charge finishing fourth. One can’t help but wonder if last year’s playoff loss to Philips and the Charge played a factor in that interesting decision.

Regardless of who Ottawa faces in the final retribution will be on the line.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 10, 2026.

Lisa Wallace, The Canadian Press