PWHL Power Rankings: Ottawa Charge biggest climbers of the week
It’s a new year and a new opportunity to move up the standings and the power rankings.
Teams like Ottawa and Montreal have made the most of their opportunities, while Toronto, Seattle and Vancouver continue to disappoint.
This week’s PWHL power rankings sees the Charge climb the highest, up three spots from eighth to fifth, while the expansion Goldeneyes and Torrent have tumbled all the way to the bottom.
Let’s get into it with the full power rankings.
1. Boston Fleet
Record: 7-0-2-2
Plus/Minus: +8
League position: 1st
Last power ranking position: 1st
It hasn’t been a great month for Boston, who have suffered a loss each against Vancouver and Ottawa, while winning just one game against Seattle. However, the Fleet remain at the top of the power rankings because of a strong early season that has allowed them to slip a bit and still hold a four-point cushion on first place in the league.
Special teams has been key, with Boston boasting the third-best power play percentage (18.2 per cent) and the best penalty kill (96 per cent). You can thank Aerin Frankel for the Fleet killing off all but one penalty this year as she has the second-best goals-against average (1.28) in the league, the third-best save percentage (.947) and she’s tied for the most shutouts (three).
2. Minnesota Frost
Record: 5-1-2-3
Plus/Minus: +10
League position: 2nd
Last power ranking position: 3rd (+1)
It was all business for Minnesota this week as they improved to a league-best plus-10 goal differential with a 6-2 rout of Seattle. This team is absolutely stacked with four players in the top-seven scorers of the league, led by Britta Curl-Salemme (4G, 9A) and Kendall Coyne Schofield (8G, 4A).
The Frost’s league-worst 76 per cent penalty kill is a little concerning, but they’ve essentially been able to out-score any problems with 34 goals in 11 games. A tough road game in New York on Friday will be a good measuring stick test to see how this team stacks up against a top contender.
3. New York Sirens
Record: 6-0-0-5
Plus/Minus: +2
League position: 3rd
Last power ranking position: 2nd (-1)
January has been pretty quiet for the Sirens, who have wins against Toronto and Montreal to extend their win streak to four games. Rookies have made a huge impact on this team, with Kristyna Kaltounkova (7G) and Casey O’Brien (3G, 4A) leading all first-year PWHL scorers.
Kayle Osborne continues to bail out a below average defence, posting a 1.93 GAA and .930 SV while tying for the league-lead in shutouts (three). A 10-day break before New York hosts Minnesota on Friday should line the Sirens up for a good effort.
4. Montreal Victoire
Record: 5-2-0-4
Plus/Minus: +7
League position: 2nd
Last power ranking position: 5th (+1)
What a difference a week makes as Montreal has surged to second place in the standings with wins over Vancouver and Ottawa. You can’t talk about this team without talking about the captain of the Canadian national team, Marie-Philip Poulin, who is tied for second in league scoring with 12 points (5G, 7A), including nine points in her last seven games.
Ann-Renee Desbiens also continues to play standout hockey, positing the best GAA in the league (1.22) and the second-best SV (.953). Desbiens and Poulin will look to lead the Victoire to a fourth straight win when they visit New York on Sunday.
5. Ottawa Charge
Record: 3-0-4-6
Plus/Minus: -2
League position: 5th
Last power ranking position: 8th (+3)
No one has moved higher up the power rankings than the Ottawa Charge, who beat Vancouver and Boston before losing to Montreal on Tuesday. That snapped a franchise-record six-game win streak for the Charge, although one concern is Ottawa’s 0-4-1-0 record in one-goal games.
It’s no surprise to see Brianne Jenner among the highest scorers in the league with 12 points (7G, 5A) in 13 games. A lot of that success comes from the power play as the Charge lead the PWHL with a 20.5 per cent success rate. All Ottawa can do now is fine-tune that special teams unit as they’re off until next Tuesday.
6. Toronto Sceptres
Record: 4-0-3-4
Plus/Minus: -8
League position: 6th
Last power ranking position: 4th (-2)
It’s been a tough year for Toronto. The Sceptres took some big hits in the expansion draft, losing Sarah Nurse and Hannah Miller among others, but it’s still a little shocking to see their power play unit clicking at an abysmal 8.3 per cent rate, dead last in the PWHL.
With a power play unit as ineffective as Toronto’s, it’s no surprise to see the Sceptres put up a league-low 20 goals in 11 games. That’s a recipe for disaster on Wednesday when Toronto visits a Boston team that has allowed the second-fewest goals (18) this season.
7. Seattle Torrent
Record: 3-1-1-5
Plus/Minus: -6
League position: 7th
Last power ranking position: 6th (-1)
The Seattle Torrent continue to drop down the standings with just three regulation wins on the year. They posted losses to Boston and Minnesota last week, with the 6-2 thumping at the hands of the Frost particularly painful as they were outshot 45-26.
Julia Gosling leads the team with nine points (4G, 5A) and while Hilary Knight is second with eight points, she only has one goal. The Torrent are back home for their next three games and you have to think they’ll need to pick up at least a couple of wins in that stretch if they want to hang around in the standings.
8. Vancouver Goldeneyes
Record: 3-1-1-7
Plus/Minus: -11
League position: 8th
Last power ranking position: 7th (-1)
Losses against Ottawa and Montreal last week have dropped Vancouver to the bottom of the PWHL standings and the bottom of our power rankings. It’s bad all around for the Goldeneyes, who sport a league-worst minus-11 goal differential while scoring the second-fewest goals (21) and giving up the second-most goals (32).
There’s just no offence from this team. Their two leading scorers, Claire Thompson (3G, 5A) and Sophie Jaques (4G, 2A), are defenders and only three forwards have more than one goal. With just one win in seven road games, it’s not ideal timing for Vancouver to be playing three of their next four games outside of B.C.
