Sunday, January 25, 2026 | 4 p.m. MT | Ball Arena - Denver
WATCH LIVE: KTVD 20 Denver, FOX 13+, CBC, CBC Gem, cbc.ca, PWHL YouTube & thepwhl.com (U.S. / International), More
James Cybulski (Play-by-Play), Becky Kellar (Analyst); Anastasia Bucsis (CBC Studio Host), Hailey Salvian (CBC Studio Analyst), Saroya Tinker (CBC Studio Analyst)
VANCOUVER GOLDENEYES
4-1-2-7 | 16 PTS | 7TH PLACE (TIED)
Top Scorer: Claire Thompson – 13 GP, 3-5-8 PTS
Last Game: 5-0 W vs. TOR on Jan. 22
SEATTLE TORRENT
4-1-2-5 | 16 PTS | 7TH PLACE (TIED)
Top Scorer: Julia Gosling – 12 GP, 6-5-11 PTS
Last Game: 6-4 W vs. TOR on Jan. 20
2025-26 SEASON SERIES: VANCOUVER LEADS 2-1 IN POINTS
Nov. 21 at VAN: 4-3 VAN (OT) | Jan. 25 at SEA (Denver) | Apr. 14 at VAN | Apr. 18 at SEA
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW
The PWHL returns to Denver’s Ball Arena for the second time following a Takeover Tour game where Minnesota topped Montréal 4-2 on Jan. 12, 2025, in front of 14,018 fans.
Ten players from today’s teams competed in last season’s game. Vancouver defender Sophie Jaques was first star with a goal and an assist in the Frost win, with Goldeneyes forward Jenn Gardiner scoring for the Victoire and earning second star honors. Vancouver’s Abby Boreen also suited up for Montréal alongside Seattle’s Cayla Barnes (1A), Mikyla Grant-Mentis, Mariah Keopple and Anna Wilgren, while Vancouver defenders Mellissa Channell-Watkins and Claire Thompson played for Minnesota with Seattle forward Brooke Bryant.
This is the fourth of five Takeover Tour games this season for the Goldeneyes. They picked up a 4-3 win over the Fleet in Detroit and suffered losses to the Victoire in Québec (1-0) and to the Frost in Edmonton (2-1, OT). They will return to Edmonton to face the Fleet on April 7.
This is the third of four Takeover Tour games for Seattle. The Torrent fell to the Sirens 4-3 in Dallas on Dec. 28 before beating the Sceptres 3-2 in a shootout in Hamilton on Jan. 3. Seattle has scored at least three goals in just three of their 10 non-Takeover Tour games this season.
These teams opened their inaugural season against each other with a 4-3 Goldeneyes overtime win in Vancouver. That game is one of eight across the entire PWHL this season in which both teams scored at least three goals. Seattle has been involved in two others (4-3 Takeover Tour loss to the Sirens in Dallas, 6-4 home win over Toronto), and Vancouver has been in one other such game (4-3 Takeover Tour win over the Fleet in Detroit).
Sarah Nurse made history scoring Vancouver’s first-ever goal against Seattle on Nov. 21 and has tallied in each of her three games this season, including two in Thursday’s 5-0 win over Toronto to bring her goal total to four.
Julia Gosling scored Seattle’s first two goals in team history against Vancouver on Nov. 21. She leads the team with six goals and is on a two-game goal streak after tallying in Tuesday’s 6-4 win over Toronto.
Both Seattle and Vancouver made history in games this week against Toronto. The Torrent’s six goals set a team record, and the 10 combined goals made it the highest scoring game in the PWHL this season. The Goldeneyes’ five goals set a team record, and the five-goal margin of victory was the largest of the PWHL season heading into Sunday’s action.
Five players between both teams had multiple points against the Sceptres including Goldeneyes Nurse (2G) and Tereza Vanišová (1G, 1A), and Torrent forwards Jessie Eldridge (1G, 2A), Hannah Bilka (1G, 1A) and Alex Carpenter (2A).
Izzy Daniel scored in Vancouver’s last game, her third goal of the season. Each of her other two goals this year came in Takeover Tour games (one in Detroit, one in Edmonton).
Lexie Adzija scored her second career shorthanded goal in Seattle’s last game (she also had one in 2024 with Ottawa). The goal was her third of the season, with her other two goals in Seattle’s two Takeover Tour games (one in each).
Hilary Knight scored on Tuesday to bring the Torrent captain one point away from reaching the 50-point milestone for her career (23G, 26A). Carpenter reached the milestone with a goal in Seattle’s Takeover Tour game in Hamilton.
Knight scored a goal in a 4-2 loss with Team USA against Canada at Denver’s Magness Arena on Dec. 12, 2009, leading up to her first Olympics in 2010. The rosters for that game featured 13 players with current ties to the PWHL.
Channell-Watkins and Nurse played at Dobson Ice Arena in Vail, CO, on Nov. 13, 2013. They both contributed assists for the Wisconsin Badgers in a 3-2 win over Northeastern.
There are 14 players between the teams who have been named to rosters for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026. Vancouver’s list includes Canadians Gardiner, Jaques, Nurse, Thompson and Emerance Maschmeyer, Czechia’s Vanišová, Finland’s Michelle Karvinen, and Germany’s Nina Jobst-Smith. Seattle’s list includes Team USA’s Barnes, Bilka, Carpenter and Knight, Canada’s Gosling, and Czechia’s Aneta Tejralová. A total of 61 PWHL players have been named to Olympic rosters, representing 30% of the league.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
“The city of Denver has been so welcoming. Our open practice was full with fans cheering us on. It's pretty cool and I'm excited for Sunday because I think there's going to be a good crowd. Last game we won 5-0 against Toronto, but I think beyond that we just had a very good 60 minutes all together. I think our forecheck, our breakouts, just being hungry on pucks in front of our net, in front of their net. Sticking to that game plan is important today.” Goldeneyes forward Jenn Gardiner
“We didn’t have the start we wanted against Toronto, but what I loved was how our group stayed together and kept believing. We didn’t have our best game, yet we found different ways to compete and win—at five-on-five, on the power play, and even shorthanded. That resilience says a lot about who this team is and how much they care about each other. Now, we’re really excited to bring the Takeover Tour to Denver. The passion this city has shown for women’s hockey and the PWHL has been incredible, and you can feel how much this community wants a team of its own. Playing in front of fans who are so invested in the growth of the game is special, and it’s going to be an amazing atmosphere for both teams.” – Torrent Head Coach Steve O’Rourke
SUNDAY’S GAME: It’s an all-expansion matchup in the PWHL Takeover Tour™ presented by Woody Creek Distillers as the Seattle Torrent take on the Vancouver Goldeneyes for just the second instalment of the PWHL’s new West Coast rivalry. This is the 10th game of the league’s 16-game Takeover Tour schedule and Denver is one of four returning markets along with Detroit, Edmonton and Québec City. It’s also one of five markets to host multiple Takeover Tour games this season along with Chicago, Detroit, Edmonton and Halifax, with the next game taking place Mar. 15 between the Minnesota Frost and New York Sirens. Ball Arena is one of 31 venues to host a PWHL game all-time, including one of 17 venues with a current NHL team. Last season’s game in Denver set a U.S. professional women’s hockey attendance record, which was broken two months later in Detroit (14,288). That record has been broken twice this season during Seattle’s inaugural home opener in November (16,014), and most recently with a crowd of 17,228 in Washington, D.C. during the ninth stop of the Tour at Capital One Arena last Sunday. The PWHL has partnered with local nonprofits including Fearless 6 Hockey and organizations through Kroenke Sports Charities for today’s game to promote gender equity and empower the next generation of female leaders by offering access to live women's sports experiences. Referee Sydney Harris is from Denver and will call today’s game with Buffalo’s Jared Cummins. On the lines, Anthony Lapointe recently returned from working the gold medal game at the IIHF World Junior Championship, and Erin Zach will work the Women’s Ice Hockey Tournament at the Olympics. The first 2,000 fans in attendance today, age 21 and older, will receive Woody Creek Distillers x PWHL branded koozies upon entry, while the first 500 fans under the age of 21 will receive PWHL koozies and bracelets.