PWHL Power Rankings: Week 5 (01/29-02/04)

Welcome to The Ice Garden’s weekly PWHL power rankings! This week is coming to you a little late due to content planning purposes, but check back for new installments every Monday, and remember: if you think your team is ranked too low, it’s definitely totally 100% because we hate them.

As expected, things are starting to settle down in the rankings. Every team stayed in their respective half of the standings from last week, although there was a fair amount of minor shuffling between them. Each team only played one game, so it was hard to glean too much from it. However, many of the results did follow patterns we’ve been seeing, so that factored into the rankings significantly. 

With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, love is in the air, so this week’s theme is every team’s Valentine’s Wish. There won’t be another installment of power rankings until after the holiday, so I’ve got to take advantage of the content when I can. Plus, I can’t let you get too spoiled with absurd themes every week, or I’m setting myself up for failure come April. Trust me, no one wants to see what happens if I have to start forcing wacky themes.

Lastly, every team is off this week as the PWHL takes an international break for the final leg of the U.S.-Canada Rivalry Series. So, there will be no rankings this Monday, which is a big part of why this week came to you late. But, see everyone again on February 19!

#1: Montréal (3-3-2-1, 17 points)

Last Week’s Ranking: 1 (-)

This Week’s Results:

• Sun, Feb 4 @ BOS- 2-1 OTW

Upcoming Schedule:

• Fri, Feb 16 @ TOR- 7 p.m. EST, Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, ON (TSN, RDS, PWHL Youtube Channel)
• Sun, Feb 18 vs MIN- 1 p.m. EST, Place Bell, Montréal, QC (Sportsnet, Bally Sports North Extra, SN+, RDS, PWHL Youtube Channel)

Valentine’s Wish: Less Overtime

Following their game against Boston, head coach Kori Cheverie was asked about her thoughts on her team going to overtime so often, as they’ve gone past 60 minutes in five of their nine games this season.

“I like our chances when we get to three on three,” said Cheverie. “It’s something that we practiced a lot early on, especially through our training camp, we worked on it quite a bit. We are getting comfortable with it, and we feel like we’ve got some good personnel for that style of game. We’d prefer to get three points, which every team would, but it’s really hard to do. This league is just so good that it’s hard to get three points every single night and a lot of games are going to overtime, so it is an area of the game that we’re seeing that every team has to pay more attention to because it’s happening so often.”

Let’s be real here: even if they like their chances, this league is running off a three-point system. Consistently losing at least a point because you’re going to overtime in over 50% of your games is not ideal. So, even though Montréal is good in extra time and are happy with where they are, surely they’d be even happier to get three points more often.

Montréal takes the top spot in the rankings again this week, and for good reason. They continued their winning ways in a hard-fought game against Boston on Saturday, and the team continues to roll. Both Elaine Chuli and Ann-Renée Desbiens are brick walls in goal, and the rest of the team continues to be solid. The only question mark with this team right now is why they can’t seem to string together regulation wins, but given they’re #1 in both these highly important power rankings and the league standings, it’s not that big of a deal at the moment.

#2: Boston (2-2-1-2, 11 points)

Last Week’s Ranking: 3 (+1)

This Week’s Results:

• Sun, Feb 4 vs MTL- 2-1 OTL

Upcoming Schedule:

• Weds, Feb 14 vs TOR- 7 p.m. EST, Tsongas Center, Lowell, MA (NESN, TSN, PWHL Youtube Channel)
• Sat, Feb 17 vs NYC- 4 p.m. EST, Tsongas Center, Lowell, MA (NESN, MSG, PWHL Youtube Channel, GEM)

Valentine’s Wish: Consistent Offense

Boston’s offensive woes returned on Saturday after a two-game reprieve where it looked like they had it figured out. For a team with as much apparent firepower as they have, they’re awfully reliant on Alina Müller right now. Sure, she’s a superstar who’s tied for second in the league in points (9) despite playing two fewer games than everyone around her, but they need more players to get and stay going. So, right now, consistent offense is their heart's greatest desire.

Despite dropping their game this week, Boston earned the right to move up a spot. They took the league’s best team to overtime, and their offensive struggles are the team’s only major concern at the moment. Defensively, they’ve been solid, and their goaltending has been excellent. They’ve shown us flashes of what their offense can do, but we just haven't seen it consistently enough. They’re already a tough out, with all but one of their games decided by a single goal, so just imagine what they’ll be able to do if/when they figure out how to score.

#3: Minnesota (3-2-2-2, 15 points)

Last Week’s Ranking: 2 (-1)

This Week’s Results:

• Sat, Feb 3 @ TOR- 4-1 L

Upcoming Schedule:

• Weds, Feb 14 vs OTT- 7 p.m. CST, Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul, MN (Bally Sports North Extra, PWHL Youtube Channel, TSN+)
• Sat, Feb 17 @ OTT- 1 p.m. CST, TD Place, Ottawa, ON (Bally Sports North Extra, Sportsnet, PWHL Youtube Channel, SN+)
• Sun, Feb 18 @ MTL- 12 p.m. CST, Place Bell, Montréal, QC (Bally Sports North Extra, Sportsnet, PWHL Youtube Channel, SN+, RDS)

Valentine’s Wish: A Time Machine

After starting the season red-hot with wins in four of their first five games (and points in all five of them), Minnesota has slowed down considerably. They sit 0-1-1-2 in their last four games after getting thumped by Toronto on Saturday 4-1. They are looking vulnerable and closer to the team many expected heading into the season instead of the unbeatable powerhouse that initially arrived. Perhaps a trip back in time to the start of the season will help them figure out how to return to that form.

Minnesota is heading down a bad path. They may still sit in second place in the standings, but that’s only because of how strong they started the season. They have just three points in their past five games, and things are unraveling. It’s good they’re still managing to get to overtime, and because of their prior success I’ll still keep them in the top half of the rankings, but going too long without a regulation win is a recipe for disaster in this league. It is not entirely shocking to see this happen, given there were serious questions about the offensive and defensive depth of this team going into the season, but they did show us they’re capable of more. They need to get back on track soon, or they could be in trouble.

#4: Toronto (3-1-0-5, 11 points)

Last Week’s Ranking: 5 (+1)

This Week’s Results: 

• Sat, Feb 3 vs MIN- 4-1 W

Upcoming Schedule:

• Weds, Feb 14 @ BOS- 7 p.m. EST, Tsongas Center, Lowell, MA (TSN, NESN, PWHL Youtube Channel)
• Fri, Feb 16 vs MTL- 7 p.m. EST, Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, ON (TSN, RDS, PWHL Youtube Channel)

Valentine’s Wish: A Balanced Offense

Toronto has won three of their past four games, but they’re fully doing it on Natalie Spooner’s back. Spooner leads both the league and team with seven goals this season. Meanwhile, Hannah Miller has the second-most goals this season for Toronto with just two. No one else has more than one. Spooner is an excellent player, but one player cannot be responsible for a whopping 41% of a team’s goals, especially in a league with goaltending this good. So, right now, Toronto is dreaming of a balanced offense.

Toronto has finally strung together consecutive wins for the first time this season. They’re feeling pretty good about themselves right now after resoundingly beating second-place Minnesota. That said, there are still serious concerns about this team. They’re scoring the fewest goals per game in the league at just two, and letting up the most at 2.7. They are way too reliant on Spooner at the moment, and if more players don’t start figuring out how to score soon, this little win streak will soon be a distant memory.

#5: New York (2-2-1-4, 11 points)

Last Week’s Ranking: 6 (+1)

This Week’s Results:

• Sun, Feb 4 @ OTT- 4-3 OTW

Upcoming Schedule:

• Sat, Feb 17 @ BOS- 7 p.m. EST, Tsongas Center, Lowell, MA (MSG, NESN, PWHL Youtube Channel, GEM)

Valentine’s Wish: Consistency

I feel like a broken record continuing to say this, but this is truly one of the most Jekyl-and-Hyde teams I’ve ever seen. One night they’re outstanding, and the next they look scattered. There’s nothing they’d love more than some consistency. 

New York is fresh off a huge comeback win against Ottawa. After going down 3-0 before the halfway point of the game, they roared back from a 4-3 overtime win. That’s a welcome sight for New York fans, but the fact of the matter is Corinne Schroeder continues to carry this team on her back. They have still yet to win a game without her in net, and she made 39 saves in the comeback win. As good as Schroeder is, no one can carry a team to the playoffs on their own in a league this competitive. New York needs to start helping her more consistently, or they’re going to ride this rollercoaster of a season all the way to a playoff miss.

#6: Ottawa (2-0-4-1, 10 points)

Last Week’s Ranking: 4 (-2)

This Week’s Results:

• Sun, Feb 4 vs NYC- 4-3 OTL

Upcoming Schedule:

• Weds, Feb 17 @ MIN- 8 p.m. EST, Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul, MN (Bally Sports North Extra, TSN+, PWHL Youtube Channel)
• Sat, Feb 17 vs MIN- 2 p.m. EST, TD Place, Ottawa, ON (Sportsnet, Bally Sports North Extra, SN+, PWHL Youtube Channel)

Valentine’s Wish: A Win

Ottawa is currently mired in a three-game skid. Two of those losses came in overtime, which they have yet to win a game during despite going past 60 in four of their seven games. This team is good, but their lack of finish is mind-boggling. They desperately need to figure it out and get some sort of win, or it’s going to be a long season.

This photo is a perfect encapsulation of Ottawa’s season so far: so close, and yet so far. After weeks of giving them the benefit of the doubt because they were playing well despite the losses, this team deserves to be in the basement. It doesn’t matter how well you play if you can’t find a way to finish games. Hopefully, blowing a three-goal lead to New York is enough to wake them up, and they take this international break to re-evaluate things. By points percentage, they’re still fourth in the overall standings, but that means nothing if they keep dropping games like they have been. It’s officially crunch time in Ottawa.