Larocque ‘Charges’ into PWHL finals with Ottawa

The Ottawa Charge are the first Canadian team to compete for the Professional Women’s Hockey League championship after they defeated the Montreal Victoire in a best-of-five semi-final series.

Ste Anne’s Jocelyne Larocque plays for Ottawa after a mid-season trade from Toronto. Fan support in Ottawa has been strong, as the team enjoys their first-ever playoff run.

“I stand on the ice after the game, and I kind of forget that there’s so many fans behind our bench,” Ottawa head coach Carla MacLeod said after the decisive game.

“And those players are really lucky because it’s quite an advantage to be able to see the support in this journey that we have, trying to win a Walter Cup.”

The Victoire finished first overall in the league standings, and got to choose which of the remaining three teams to face in the playoffs. Selecting Ottawa was the wrong move, as the Charge won the series 3-1, capping off the upset with a 2-1 win in front of more than 8,000 fans on home ice.

“It’s a different mentality when you go into games with nothing to lose, you’re able to play more free and more confidently,” Ottawa forward Mannon McMahon said in a post-game interview following game two.

“It’s been nice going into these games having a little chip on our shoulder.

Montreal won game one on home ice in a record-setting four-overtime thriller, but couldn’t manage another victory in the series.

“We just play for each other, it’s so great to be a part of,” Larocque said after game one.

“I just love this team.”

The third-ranked Charge actually enjoy home-ice advantage in the best-of-five finals against the fourth-ranked Minnesota Frost, who upset the Toronto Sceptres in the league’s other semi-final. Game one took place May 20, with Ottawa coming out with a dramatic 2-1 victory in overtime.

Emily Clark scored the winning goal for the Charge just a couple minutes into the extra frame, charging down the wing after an errant Minnesota pass before slipping a shot past the goaltender.

Game 2 is in Ottawa May 22, with games three and four in Minnesota, at the Xcel Energy Center May 24 and 26 at 5 p.m. If a game five is needed it will be in Ottawa May 28. Games in the best-of-five final are broadcast on TSN.

Larocque, and fellow Ste Anne player Raygan Kirk, who plays for Toronto could be on the move this off-season, even if they aren’t traded, as the PWHL is set to expand to Vancouver and Seattle next season. Each of the original six franchises will lose four players through the expansion draft process.

Protection lists are due June 3, with the expansion draft taking place June 9.