PWHL Minnesota shutout in playoff opener for sixth straight loss – The Rink Live

TORONTO – Minnesota was eliminated 4-0 by Toronto on Wednesday in Game 1 of the best-of-five PWHL semifinals.

The game marks the sixth straight loss for Minnesota. The team has not won a match since March 24.

Toronto now has a 1-0 series lead heading into Game 2, which will also be played on Canadian home ice at the Coca-Cola Coliseum on Friday. Game 3 (and 4, if necessary) will be played in St. Paul at the Xcel Energy Center.

In the game, Minnesota defeated Toronto by an overall margin of 26-20, but could not get past netminder Kristen Campbell. Nicole Hensley allowed 4 goals on 20 shots in net for the visiting team.

PWHL leading scorer Natalie Spooner scored the first goal of the playoffs when her shot from the left circle went over Hensley’s glove for a 1-0 lead in the first period.

Toronto then doubled its lead in the middle frame when Sarah Nurse made a pass to Emma Maltais, who pushed the puck from close range five-hole. Striker Blayre Turnbull then scored twice to increase the score to 4-0 and further secure victory for the home side.

Game 3 will be played Friday at 6:00 PM CT in Toronto. The match will be streamed live for free on the PWHL YouTube channel.

MINNESOTA 0, TORONTO 4

MIN: 0-0-0—0
TOR: 1-2-1-4

Scoring first period — 1. TOR, Natalie Spooner (Hannah Miller, Allie Munroe) 9:47
Sanctions — No.

Second period scoring — 2. TOR, Emma Maltais (Sarah Nurse, Renata Fast) 0:55; 3. TOR, Blayre Turnbull (Spooner, Jocelyn Larocque) 15:05
Sanctions — MIN, Denisa Krisova (interference) 4:13; TOR, Olivia Knowles (hooks) 6:53

Scoring in the third period — 4. TOR, Turnbull (Miller, fast) 19:22
Sanctions — MIN, Abby Boreen (stumble) 7:47

Shots on target – MIN, 6-11-9-26; TOR, 7-4-9-20
Goalkeeper saves — MIN, Nicole Hensley 6-2-8-16 (4GA); TOR, Kristen Campbell 6-11-9-26

Penalty minutes: MIN, 2-4; TOR, 1-2
Powerplay Goals – Odds: MIN, 0-1; TOR, 0-2

Referees — Jared Cummins, Alexandra Clarke
Linemen — Antoine Bujold-Roux, Laura Gatauskas

Presence – 8473

Sydney Wolf is a reporter for The Rink Live, primarily covering youth and high school hockey. She joined the team in November 2021 and graduated from St. Cloud State University with a degree in mass communications and a minor in writing and rhetoric studies.