2024-25 PWHL Power Rankings: Week 9 (01/24-01/30)
Press play (but don't fast forward) on this week's Avicii x PWHL power rankings!
Welcome back to The Ice Garden’s weekly power rankings! Check back every Friday for a new installment and remember: if you think your team is ranked too low, it’s definitely, totally, 100% because we hate them.
There isn't much to say here this week, with just two teams switching places in the rankings while the rest performed about as expected. There are still a few games left to play this weekend, but the PWHL will soon be on its second international break so players can attend the final legs of the Rivalry Series and Euro Hockey Tour. So, don't expect much movement next week either, with only the Sirens playing more than once and the Frost inactive.
Heyyyy, PWHL fans! There’s another power rankings to discover. After diving into a classic artist’s catalog for the last musical power rankings, it’s time to go modern. Even if you don’t seek out EDM, chances are you’ve heard Avicii’s songs blasting in arenas or on the radio. So, settle in for some hockey talk with a side of dance music lyrics (that I was definitely not chair-dancing along to while writing)!
#1. Montréal Victoire (7-3-1-2, 28 points)
Last Week’s Ranking: 1 (-)
This Week’s Results:
- Wed, Jan 29 vs OTT- 4-1 W
- Thu, Jan 30 vs TOR- 4-3 SOW
Upcoming Schedule:
- Sun, Feb 2 @ NYS- 1 p.m. ET, Prudential Center, Newark, NJ (TSN, RDS, MSG, PWHL Youtube Channel, thepwhl.com)
Lyrics: From “Levels” (2011)
“Oh, sometimes I get a good feeling, yeah.”
This one is less about the lyrics since there aren’t many, although the Victoire certainly feel good right now. But "Levels" is one of the most iconic EDM songs of all-time and you can’t really help but bop along when you hear it. Its anthemic, party vibe fits the Victoire perfectly.
Montréal had an odd schedule this week, playing the first back-to-back games of the PWHL season after nine full days between games. However, that didn’t slow them down. First, they walked away with a decisive win over the Charge on the back of a Marie-Philip Poulin hat trick, who now leads the league in goals. Then, Elaine Chuli’s excellent play and Laura Stacey’s three points in her return from injury helped them beat the Sceptres in a shootout despite getting outshot 40-29. This team is comfortable playing in any type of game, and I’m not sure much can slow them down now.
#2. Minnesota Frost (5-4-2-4, 25 points)
Last Week’s Ranking: 2 (-)
This Week’s Results:
- Sun, Jan 26 vs BOS- 5-2 W
- Tue, Jan 28 vs TOR- 4-3 SOW
Upcoming Schedule:
- No games this week.
Lyrics: From “The Days” (2014)
“These are the days we've been waiting for/Days like these, who could ask for more?/Keep them coming 'cause we're not done yet/These are the days we won't regret/These are the days we won't forget.”
Grace Zumwinkle, Dominique Petrie, and Natalie Buchbinder all practiced yesterday. The light at the end of the injury tunnel is finally bright, and they’ve won two straight to boot. These are the days they’ve been waiting for, and they're certainly not done yet.
The Frost had a big bounce-back week after losing three straight. They soundly defeated the Fleet on Sunday before pulling off a shootout win over an iffy-but-improving Sceptres club. Sure, they probably wish it was two regulation wins, but with the parity in this league, overtime is bound to happen sometimes. They currently sit in second place with 25 points (although they've played 1-3 more games than everybody else), so overall, it’s a good time to be a Minnesota fan.
#3. New York Sirens (4-3-1-4, 19 points)
Last Week’s Ranking: 3 (-)
This Week’s Results:
- Sat, Jan 25 @ TOR- 4-2 L
- Mon, Jan 27 @ OTT- 3-0 W
Upcoming Schedule:
- Fri, Jan 31 @ BOS- 7 p.m. ET, Tsongas Center, Lowell, MA (MSG, NESN, TSN, PWHL Youtube Channel, thepwhl.com)
- Sun, Feb 2 vs MTL- 1 p.m. ET, Prudential Center, Newark, NJ (MSG, TSN, RDS, PWHL Youtube Channel, thepwhl.com)
Lyrics: From “The Nights” (2014)
“One day my father he told me/’Son, don’t let it slip away’/…He said, ‘One day you’ll leave this world behind/So live a life you will remember'/My father told me when I was just a child/'These are the nights that never die.’”
I said the Sirens shouldn’t let this week slip away without at least one win, and they listened. Nights like Monday are the ones you will always remember, with rookie Kayle Osborne securing her first shutout in just her second start. However, like the Victoire, this pairing is not as much about the lyrics as it is about the overall vibe. The Sirens aren’t perfect, but they’re a fun team to watch and it’s easy to believe they'll keep improving. Likewise, "The Nights" is just a fun song about living life to the fullest, and who doesn’t want to do that?
This week started with a whimper for the Sirens after they fell to then-last-place Sceptres in regulation. However, that game was in front of a rowdy sold-out Scotiabank Arena crowd, so it's no surprise Toronto had some extra juice. So, that loss is really nothing to be concerned about and they followed it up with a regulation win over the Ottawa Charge, who they were trailing in the standings. You can’t win every game, but so far the Sirens have only lost consecutive games once this season, and one of those was in a shootout. You can’t ask for much more than that.
#4. Boston Fleet (3-2-2-5, 15 points)
Last Week’s Ranking: 4 (-)
This Week’s Results:
- Sun, Jan 26 @ MIN- 5-2 L
Upcoming Schedule:
- Fri, Jan 31 vs NYS- 7 p.m. ET, Tsongas Center, Lowell, MA (NESN, MSG, TSN, PWHL Youtube Channel, thepwhl.com)
Lyrics: From “Waiting for Love” (2015)
“Monday left me broken/Tuesday I was through with hopin’/Wednesday my empty arms were open/Thursday waiting for love, waiting for love/Thank the stars it’s Friday/I’m burning like a fire gone wild on Saturday/Guess I won’t be coming to church on Sunday/I’ll be waiting for love/Waiting for love to come around.”
This verse seems to sum up the Fleet’s season. It started bad, then things looked like they were turning around, but now they’re still waiting for consistency to come around. Will it ever? Who knows!
It’s safe to say this week wasn’t the Fleet’s favorite. They gave up five goals and lost by a three-goal margin, both for the first time this season, as their five-game, 24-day point streak came to an ugly end. The Frost simply wanted to win a lot more than the Fleet did, which is not something you want to say after a game. The Fleet are currently in the basement of the standings by raw points, but they sit in fourth by points percentage. They won’t play those games in hand until after the break, but they are absolute must-wins. Tonight's is also important, as it's a chance for them to show some resiliency and go into the break on a high note. Plus, the Charge and the Sceptres play each other on Saturday, so a Fleet regulation (or possibly an overtime one) would get them out of the basement even before they play those games in hand.
#5. Toronto Sceptres (4-0-4-6, 16 points)
Last Week’s Ranking: 6 (+1)
This Week’s Results:
- Sat, Jan 25 vs NYS- 4-2 W
- Tue, Jan 28 @ MIN- 4-3 SOL
- Thu, Jan 30 @ MTL- 4-3 SOL
Upcoming Schedule:
- Sat, Feb 1 vs OTT- 2 p.m. ET, Coca-Cola Coliseum, Toronto, ON (CBC, PWHL Youtube Channel, thepwhl.com)
Lyrics: From “Without You” (2017)
“I’ve gotta learn how to love without you/I’ve gotta carry my cross without you/Stuck in a riddle and I’m just about to/Figure it out without you.”
The Sceptres knew they had to learn how to function without Natalie Spooner for a large portion of this season, and it turned out to be quite a riddle for them. However, it appears they may finally be figuring it out (just in time for her to come back soon).
The Sceptres finally did enough this week to crawl out of the power rankings basement. Considering how long they were in last, I couldn’t justify elevating them two spots this week, but it was close. Five out of a possible nine points is still not ideal, but considering they took the league’s top two teams to a shootout, it could be worse. There are still a bunch of issues defensively with this team, but Hannah Miller has been a force offensively and they’re finding ways to get points now, so it’s something. Their last game before the break is a great chance for them to keep building on this recent stretch, as they play a struggling Ottawa club who they trail by just one point in the standings.
#6. Ottawa Charge (5-0-2-7, 17 points)
Last Week’s Ranking: 5 (-1)
This Week’s Results:
- Mon, Jan 27 vs NYS- 3-0 L
- Wed, Jan 29 @ MTL- 4-1 L
Upcoming Schedule:
- Sat, Feb 1 @ TOR- 2 p.m. ET, Coca-Cola Coliseum, Toronto, ON (CBC, PWHL Youtube Channel, thepwhl.com)
Lyrics: From “Wake Me Up” (2013)
“Well life will pass me by if I don't open up my eyes/Well that's fine by me/So wake me up when it's all over/When I'm wiser and I'm older.”
Wake me up when this team stops letting points pass them by and learns to score.
The Charge failed to get a point in their two games this week. They’re still in fourth place, but they’re only one point ahead of the Sceptres and two in front of the Fleet, who have two games in hand. They’ve scored just six goals in their past six games while allowing 15. To say that's not good is an understatement. They have to do something to fix their offense ASAP, or the losses will continue to pile up. They play the Sceptres in the last game before the international break, and they'll have to bring their very best if they want to snap this skid.
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