Highlights and Press Conferences available on Minnesota and Toronto YouTube channels
ST. PAUL, MIN (April 19, 2026) – The Toronto Sceptres picked up a critical three points in the playoff race with a 2-0 victory over the Minnesota Frost before a Sunday afternoon crowd of 8,530 at Grand Casino Arena. Savannah Harmon and Daryl Watts both scored on the power play and Raygan Kirk turned aside all 24 shots faced for her third shutout and eighth win of the season. Toronto snapped a two-game losing streak to climb within two points of fourth-place Ottawa for the final playoff berth heading into the final week of the PWHL regular season, while Minnesota’s second straight loss solidifies the team in third place in the standings. Harmon’s winning goal was scored at 4:25 of the opening frame, just three seconds into the advantage, sniping off a faceoff win by Emma Maltais. Watts’ insurance didn’t come until the game’s final two minutes, finding a Blayre Turnbull rebound at the edge of the crease behind Maddie Rooney at 18:02. In between, the Sceptres denied the Frost’s top scoring power play on five opportunities and kept the high-powered offense without a shot on goal for a stretch of nearly 14 minutes in the final frame. Rooney made 22 saves, including one shorthanded stop early in the third period aided by a goal-saving play by rookie defender Kendall Cooper who batted the puck out of midair before it crossed the line.
Toronto will have a chance to eliminate New York from playoff contention on home ice Tuesday with the hopes of earning a third straight playoff berth in a final showdown with Ottawa on the road Saturday. Minnesota will finish the regular season on the West Coast in Seattle Wednesday and Vancouver Saturday before facing either Boston or Montréal in the PWHL Walter Cup Playoffs to begin their back-to-back title defense.
QUOTES
Sceptres goaltender Raygan Kirk on the game: “Really proud of how the girls came out today. I think we had two tough losses where we knew we needed to win, and coming in here today, we knew that we needed some points. Coming down the stretch here with only two games left, I’m really proud of our special teams. I thought that was huge today. The penalty kill especially with a really good [Minnesota] power play to take on, everyone came to play.”
Toronto Head Coach Troy Ryan on holding off the Minnesota offense: “Strong goaltending definitely helps. I think on the penalty kill, it’s managing your decisions. When you think you can clear a puck versus when you’ve got to get a penalty kill breakout going and make a small play. I think that’s some of the key things on the 5-on-5 play is just getting under sticks and making sure you’ve got good numbers. I thought our line changes for the first half of the game weren’t where they needed to be. If you let them transition, they’ll make you look really bad. As the game went on, we tidied up our line changes and at least had good numbers defensively, so we at least could play a set defensive zone against a set offensive zone.”
Minnesota Head Coach Ken Klee’s overall thoughts of the game: “We did play really well, I thought. We did a lot of things. We created a lot, a lot more than in Boston the other day. I liked our game, our tenacity, our second efforts, everything. We just have to figure out how to bury [the pucks]. Usually, [when] we have that many opportunities, we're going to score more goals. It's just one of those days. Their goalie played really well, and we just missed the net more often than we should have, maybe trying to be too perfect with our shots, versus just making the shots. It was a good hockey game. I thought we had it there, we’ve just got to figure out a way.”
Frost Alternate Captain Kelly Pannek on reaching 100 careers games played: “I had no idea until Kendall [Coyne Schofield] after the game had mentioned it, but it's pretty cool. I think I pride myself in being available to our team and being someone who can play if I'm feeling great, if I'm not. There was a stretch, I think it was last year, I was pretty sick and trying to battle through it because my team needed me to. I am always very proud to be a member of this team and obviously we've accomplished a lot, which helps you get to that milestone when you're playing the max number of games pretty much both years. I know looking back on it, these first three years, just seeing the growth of this league, but also being able to be a part of it, and have the success that we've had has been really special.”
NOTABLES
Toronto wins the season series 7-5 in points despite being outscored by Minnesota 9-7 overall. All four games were won by the visiting team.
The Sceptres have scored two goals in each of their last five road games, earning wins in four of them. Today was the 22nd time in 28 games they have scored two or fewer goals, most in the PWHL, while their eight wins in such games is second only to Boston’s nine.
Toronto has earned 10 or more regulation wins in all three PWHL seasons, joining Montréal as the only teams to accomplish the feat.
Minnesota finished the home portion of its 2025-26 regular-season schedule today, posting an 8-0-1-4 record for 25 points in 13 games, not counting their overtime loss in Chicago and regulation win in Denver where they served as the home team in Takeover Tour action. The 25 points at Grand Casino Arena is a new team record, surpassing their 16 points in 13 games in 2024-25 and the 20 points they recorded in 11 games at the primary home venue during the inaugural season.
The Frost were shut out for the third time this season and second time at home, despite entering today’s game with 10 goals over their last two games at Grand Casino Arena. They scored at least four goals in eight home games, the most in a single season in PWHL history.
Toronto scored for the 10th time in the game’s first five minutes, most in the PWHL, ahead of the eight early goals scored by Minnesota.
The Sceptres went 2-for-3 on the power play, capitalizing twice on the player advantage for the first time this season. They entered today’s game 0-for-4 against the Frost and boosted their overall efficiency from 8.8% to 11.7% and still rank seventh in the league.
The Frost went 0-for-5 on the power play, despite entering the game 3-for-8 against the Sceptres in the series’ first three games. They continue to lead the league in overall efficiency with the player advantage dipping from 23.7% to 22.2%.
Toronto has conceded five power play opportunities in three straight games.
Raygan Kirk became the fourth goaltender to record three shutouts this season, earning each of her blanks by 2-0 scores in her last six starts dating back to Mar. 15. Her eight wins rank sixth in the league while climbing into third in both goals-against average (1.90) and save percentage (.933) behind the record-setting seasons compiled by Montréal’s Ann-Renée Desbiens and Boston’s Aerin Frankel.
Daryl Watts became the first player in PWHL history to score 10 or more goals in all three seasons. The Sceptres forward found the back of the net for the third time in four games against the Frost, and second time this season on the power play. She has goals in consecutive contests to bring her team-leading point total to 19 in 25 games.
Savannah Harmon scored her second goal for her sixth point of the season in 28 games, matching her 2024-25 point total in 30 games split between Toronto and Ottawa. Both of the defender’s goals this season have been scored on the power play, with today’s tally snapping a season-high 13-game pointless drought.
Emma Maltais snapped a career-high 10-game pointless drought with a primary assist today, her third on the power play this season. The third-year Sceptre has reached double digits in points for the first time since the inaugural season with her 10 points (3G, 7A) in 28 games surpassing the nine points (4G, 5A) she recorded in 30 games in 2024-25.
Blayre Turnbull picked up her team-leading fourth point on the power play with a primary helper. The Sceptres captain led her team with five shots on goal today and has five points in her last five games (2G, 3A), bringing her season total to 17 (9G, 8A) in 28 games, second-most on the team.
Jesse Compher’s sixth assist of the season was also her third on the power play for a share of the team lead with Maltais. The third-year Sceptre is third in team scoring with 12 points and was credited with a season-low time on ice of 12:36 in today’s game.
Maddie Rooney suffered her third loss in four starts after posting a seven-game winning streak. The third-year Frost netminder has limited the opposition to two or fewer goals in 11 of her 16 starts and has posted a save percentage of .917 or greater in 10 of those 11 games, with the only exception against Toronto in the 2-1 season-opening loss (.895).
Kelly Pannek led all skaters today with 15 faceoff wins on 20 attempts (75.0%), becoming just the second player in the league with over 300 wins at the dot (306), a new career high. The league’s top scorer, playing in her 100th game as a member of the Frost (including playoffs), has been held off the scoresheet in consecutive games for the second time this season.
Britta Curl-Salemme (13-for-16) and Taylor Heise (6-for-10) rounded out an effective day for Frost centers in the faceoff circle, helping the team achieve a 64.3% advantage. Curl-Salemme’s 13 wins are the most in her career, while her two-game goal streak came to an end. Heise, who led the season series with six points in four games, had her point streak snapped at five.
Grace Zumwinkle led all Frost skaters with five shots on goal, returning to the lineup after a one-game absence with an upper-body injury.
Natalie Buchbinder and Klára Hymlárová also returned to the Frost lineup today after being sidelined with upper-body injuries. The American defender saw action for the first time since Mar. 25 after missing the last five games, while the Czech forward missed Wednesday’s game.
Samantha Cogan faced her former teammates in her fourth game of the season for the Frost, previously playing 23 games with Toronto during the inaugural season and spending part of the 2024-25 campaign as a Sceptres reserve. She has logged more than nine minutes of action in consecutive contests.
Hanna Baskin of nearby Minnetonka played her first professional game in her home state, logging 7:10 with one shot on goal. The Sceptres sixth-round pick cracked the lineup on the blue line for the ninth time this season.
THREE STARS
1. Raygan Kirk (TOR) 24/24 SV
2. Savannah Harmon (TOR) GWG
3. Emma Maltais (TOR) 1A
STANDINGS
Minnesota: 49 PTS (13-3-4-8) – 3rd Place
Toronto: 37 PTS (10-1-5-12) – 5th Place
UPCOMING SCHEDULES
Toronto: Tuesday, Apr. 21 vs. New York at 7 p.m. ET
Minnesota: Wednesday, Apr. 22 at Seattle at 7 p.m. PT / 9 p.m. CT / 10 p.m. ET