Saturday, December 20, 2025 | 12 p.m. PT | Pacific Coliseum
WATCH LIVE: CBC, CBC Gem, cbc.ca, ICI TÉLÉ & ICI TOU.TV, PWHL YouTube & thepwhl.com (U.S. / International), More
EN: James Cybulski (Play-by-Play), Blake Bolden (Analyst), Brianne Foley (Reporter); Perdita Felicien (CBC Studio Host), Hailey Salvian (CBC Studio Analyst), Saroya Tinker (CBC Studio Analyst);
FR: Claudine Douville (Play-by-Play) Roseline Filion (Host), Stéphanie Poirier (Analyst), Isabelle Leclaire (Analyst), Christine Roger (Reporter)
MONTRÉAL VICTOIRE
2-1-0-1 | 8 PTS | 3RD PLACE (TIED)
Top Scorers: Poulin, Roque, Stacey, Tabin–4 GP, 1-2-3 PTS
Last Game: 2-1 SOW at TOR (Halifax) on Dec. 17
VANCOUVER GOLDENEYES
2-1-0-3 | 8 PTS | 3RD PLACE (TIED)
Top Scorer: Claire Thompson – 6 GP, 2-3-5 PTS
Last Game: 2-1 W vs. OTT on Dec. 16
2025-26 HEAD-TO-HEAD SEASON SERIES:
Dec. 20 at VAN | Jan. 11 at MTL (QUÉBEC CITY) | Apr. 1 at MTL | Apr. 21 at VAN
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW
Montréal is coming off a 2-1 shootout victory over Toronto in the first Takeover Tour game of the season in Halifax and first shootout decision leaguewide. Prior to Wednesday, the Victoire had lost all four of its all-time road shootouts with two losses in both the inaugural season and in 2024-25.
This is Montréal’s first game at Pacific Coliseum but second time playing in Vancouver following last season’s Takeover Tour on Jan. 8 at Rogers Arena, a 4-2 win over Toronto. Victoire captain Marie-Philip Poulin scored two goals in that game, 15 years after scoring both goals in Canada’s 2-0 win over the U.S. to capture gold at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver.
Ann-Renée Desbiens earned a win last season in Vancouver with a 29-save performance that launched a career-high six-game winning streak for the Goaltender of the Year. She’s backstopped Montréal’s three-game win streak and ranks second with a 0.99 goals-against-average and third with a .966 save percentage.
Maya Labad, Montréal’s fifth-round draft pick, scored her first career goal in her PWHL debut on Wednesday in Halifax. She’s the sixth Victoire forward to score a goal in the team’s last three wins with offensive production coming from all four forward lines. Labad spent the last four seasons at Quinnipiac University with Vancouver rookie Madison Samoskevich.
Kati Tabin is riding a career-high three-game point streak (1G, 2A), which is tied for the longest streak in the PWHL this season and best among defenders.
Laura Stacey fired off seven shots on goal in Wednesday’s win after having six SOG the game prior. Stacey has 17 career regular-season games with at least six shots on goal while no other player in league history has even 10 such games.
Hayley Scamurra will follow in her father’s footsteps when she hits Pacific Coliseum ice. Peter Scamurra played for the Washington Capitals between 1975-80 with four games against the Canucks at the Rink on Renfrew, contributing one assist. Hayley can earn bragging rights with a goal, already one of two players (Abby Boreen) to score for three teams in her career.
Vancouver has won all three of its games at Pacific Coliseum this season (two in regulation, one in overtime). The Goldeneyes are averaging 3.33 goals per game in three contests at home compared to 0.67 goals per game in their three road games.
Jenn Gardiner and Boreen will face their former team for the first time as Goldeneyes after finishing third and fourth with 18 and 14 points, respectively, for Montréal last season. Gardiner’s 13 assists were tied for the team lead in the category last season with Erin Ambrose, who is tied for the most assists this season by a Victoire player with two.
Gardiner has scored in two straight games for the first time in her career. The Surrey native was one of three BC players to record a point in Tuesday’s win, following a first career goal by Richmond’s Katie Chan and an assist by North Vancouver’s Hannah Miller.
Claire Thompson was the only other Goldeneye to produce offensively Tuesday and has notched one assist in each of Vancouver’s three home games. She started last season with at least one assist in four straight Minnesota home games, which is her only other streak of 3+ home games with an assist.
Kristen Campbell backstopped Vancouver to Tuesday’s win over Ottawa with 33 saves. She’s the only goaltender with a longer career win streak than Desbiens, having won 11 straight during the inaugural season with Toronto.
Vancouver has not had more shots on goal than its opponent in any of its six games. Montréal has had a positive SOG differential in just one of its games this season (+8 vs. Toronto on Dec. 7). The Victoire’s best shot differential is in the first period (+10), while the Goldeneyes’ worst shot differential is in the opening frame (-25).
Both teams are 2-0-0-0 when scoring the game’s first goal. Neither team has lost a game this season when scoring in the first period.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
“It's a good test for our group to come out after being on the East Coast, coming all the way to the West Coast, to put together a full 60 minutes. The group responded really well with our practice Friday. We've been seeing different contributions from different people throughout every game this season.” – Victoire Head Coach Kori Cheverie
“I've been encouraged by practice and the development of the team and I think we're starting to shape up a little bit in regards to playing as a group of five and being more comfortable with each other and what we're trying to accomplish. Everyone in our league is a powerhouse, and everyone has players that are at an elite status and level. No different [Saturday]. Our depth is something that we've talked about, and we've got to make sure that we're consistently having fresh legs going and making smart decisions and smart plays.” – Goldeneyes Head Coach Brian Idalski
SATURDAY’S GAME: Vancouver takes on Montréal for the first of two meetings at home this season as the Goldeneyes play a third straight game at Pacific Coliseum before embarking on the Takeover Tour in Edmonton next Saturday. It’s the team’s Holiday Season Game presented by Air Canada with themed presentation elements like an Ugly Sweater Cam, Mistletoe Kiss Cam, and ‘All I Want for Christmas’ Sing-along planned to get fans into the holiday spirit. The Goldeneyes will welcome the Honourable Anne Kang, BC’s Minister of Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport to the game along with three Members of the Legislative Assembly including Susie Chant, Paul Choi and Jennifer Blatherwick. It’s also the first ‘Nursey Night’ of the season, an initiative launched by Goldeneyes alternate captain Sarah Nurse, in partnership with Rogers, to introduce more young girls to the sport and help make hockey a more inclusive space. Nurse will welcome a group of 20 from Girls Forward, Canada’s leading organization dedicated to empowering girls through sport and physical activity, for an exclusive pre-game meet and greet.