Montréal Victoire Claims 2026 PWHL Walter Cup
6:53 pm Wednesday, May 20, 2026 The Montréal Victoire have won the 2026 Walter Cup after beating the Ottawa Charge 4-0 on Wednesday (May 20), taking the best-of-five series with a score of 3-1. Abby Roque kicked things off in the second period, thanks to assists from Marie-Philip Poulin and Laura Stacey. Roque added another goal in the third period during a jailbreak play, freeing captain Poulin from the penalty box. This rule is special to the PWHL and only applies to minor penalties. Poulin later commented during a media session, “That jailbreak goal was unbelievable. Honestly, I think I peed a little in the penalty box. I was so excited.” Maggie Flaherty and Lina Ljungblom also found the net for Montreal in the third period. Flaherty has now become the first three-time Walter Cup champion in league history. The Ilana Kloss playoff MVP trophy was awarded to Montreal’s captain, Marie-Philip Poulin, recognized as the playoffs’ most valuable player. The Charge hosted game four of this all-Canadian final at Canadian Tire Centre in Kanata, Ontario, where they played before an audience of 12,362 fans. The crowd went wild when Poulin lifted the cup. She then handed it over to goaltender Ann-Renée Desbiens, whose shutout performance was key in securing Montreal’s win. ALLEZ VICTOIRE 🤩🤩🤩 pic. twitter. com/9m SMAin H25 – PWHL (@thepwhlofficial) May 21, 2026 Poulin expressed her thoughts to a PWHL reporter post-game that Desbiens deserved the MVP award instead of herself; viewers could see her shaking her head and pointing at Desbiens as it was announced. “She was our brick wall all year long, but honestly, in the playoffs again, she did some stuff that we didn’t know was possible, and honestly, she’s an MVP,” she said. Poulin mentioned it felt “quite good” to win after all their challenges this season. “It hasn’t been easy-injuries, sickness-a lot of things-but we stuck together. We knew it wasn’t going to be easy in this building when we showed up today, but we remained patient with our game,” she said. Montréal Head Coach Kori Cheverie shared her experience: “I tried to live through every moment. There were highs and lows; we managed to get through those tough times as a team. Whatever group we had on ice worked well together for this win; it’s been absolutely amazing with this crew.” This marks a historic moment as it’s the first time a female head coach has led a team to win the Walter Cup. This also represents Canada hosting its first Walter Cup since Minnesota Frost won it for two consecutive seasons prior. The Walter Cup is crafted through collaboration with Tiffany & Co. Ottawa Head Coach Carla Mac Leod remarked on her team’s journey: “You wish for a better ending for them because they’re such a special group. But honestly? The biggest emotion I have right now is pride. I’m very proud of them.” The PWHL will return next season with four new expansion teams joining along with six original teams plus two expansion teams from last season. Rapper Flavor Flav invited Montreal Victoire players to attend “She Weekend” happening in Las Vegas from July 16-19th; this event started as recognition for Team USA female athletes who participated in the upcoming Milan-Cortina Olympics set for 2026. About the Author: Anna Burns I cover breaking news related topics like health care court updates Vancouver Rise FC Vancouver Goldeneyes and social issues for Surrey Now-Leader. anna. burns@surreynowleader. com Follow Anna on Twitter.Source link
