Lowell, Mass. — It was a night of firsts at the Tsongas Center on Wednesday night. In the same place where PWHL Boston and Minnesota began their seasons, their campaigns came to an end. At the conclusion of the longest playoff tournament in professional women’s hockey history, PWHL Minnesota became the first team to hoist the Walter Cup, beating Boston 3-0 at the Tsongas Center on Wednesday in front of a sold-out crowd.
PWHL Minnesota captain Kendal Coyne Schofield postgame spoke on what winning the Walter Cup means to her:
“There’s something very special about being the first to do something. For us to be the first Walter Cup champions is something that is extremely special.”
PWHL Minnesota captain Kendal Coyne Schofield postgame
The Feeling Out Process
Boston held the lion’s share of the momentum to begin the game, going hard to the Minnesota net from the drop of the puck. The opening phase of the game was six minutes of uninterrupted hockey, concluding with the first big Aerin Frankel save of the evening.
Tempers began to flare midway through the first. Boston’s Taylor Wenczkowski and Minnesota’s Maggie Flaherty got into a shoving match along the half-wall requiring the officials to step in to break up the scuffle. The two were each sent to the box for roughing minors.
The teams continued to match each other stride-for-stride to the buzzer. After 20 minutes, the score remained exactly where it began, 0-0. Minnesota held a marginal lead in shots on goal, registering 9 shots to Boston’s 7.
PWHL Minnesota Breaks Away
PWHL Boston started the period with a bang. Kaleigh Fratkin and Lexie Adjiza delivered a massive double body check to Minnesota’s Liz Schepers. The officials elected to take a look at the hit at the next whistle but determined that the hit was legal.
Minnesota took a 1-0 lead on a weird goal by Schepers. Aerin Frankel made an uncharacteristic charge out of her net allowing Sydney Brodt to skate past her. Brodt hit the far post with her initial shot but the puck found its way onto Schepers stick. The former Ohio State Buckeye tucked the puck past Frankel’s right skate to give Minnesota the lead:
“To put one in feels great. There’s a lot of ways that everybody contributes to this team and today I was the backboard for a really nice play by [Brodt]. It takes evertbody every single night and that’s no different tonight.”
PWHL Minnesota C/LW Liz Schepers postgame
Boston was hemmed in their zone for much of the second period. The hosts were able to make a few rushes up ice but were seldom able to make true progress in the attack zone.
For Boston, the buzzer was a mercy. The visitors thoroughly outplayed their opponents in the middle frame, outshooting them 16-7 for a two-period total of 25-14.
The PWHL Championship Rounds
Boston’s defense was, once again, poor to start the period. They allowed the visitors to have their way in the attack zone, bringing little pressure to the puck carrier.
Minnesota doubled their lead at the midway point of the period thanks to Michela Cava’s third tally of the postseason. After a nearly minute-long offensive zone possession, Cava skated her way around the back of the Boston net before roofing a backhand over the shoulder of Frankel to make the score 2-0 with under 12 minutes to play in regulation.
Fratkin added further insult to injury, giving Minnesota the game’s first powerplay of the game when she was called or tripping. Boston was able to kill the penalty, but the visitors were able to bleed the full two minutes off the clock.
At the under-10-minute timeout, Boston had still failed to register a shot on net in the period. In that same time, Minnesota had put 13 on target.
Courtney Kessel pulled her netminder in exchange for the extra attacker with just under five minutes to play in the third.
Kendal Coyne Schofield put the dagger into Boston’s heart with 2:06 to play. She shot into the empty net to make it 3-0. Minnesota held firm for the dying moments to win the game and the series becoming the inaugural Walter Cup champions.
What a night to remember for women's hockey and PWHL Minnesota! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/bfwAvW6p1N
— PWHL (@thepwhlofficial) May 30, 2024
On A Personal Note
Hi, all! Luca here.
I know this article is a little different than the other ones that I’ve written this year. It’s not as long as usual and there aren’t as many quotes as I’d like. Similar to the first PWHL game I covered back in January, it was a very emotional night for everyone involved. While I was officially a writer on Wednesday, I really wanted to soak it all in.
I cannot thank the incredible staff at the PWHL enough for their unbelievably hard work all year long. I also want to thank the players and coaches of all the PWHL teams for being so willing to work with the media this year. You made our jobs easy.
It was an honor and privilege to cover this team and this league and I cannot wait to see what year two of the PWHL will look like. Thank you all for joining me this year and I hope to see you all when the league reopens this winter!
Long live the Professional Women’s Hockey League.
Thanks for reading! For more sports content, visit Beyond Women’s Sports and follow me on X, @LucaTedesco712.
