Sunday, January 12, 2025 | 1:00 p.m. MT | Ball Arena (Denver, CO)
WATCH LIVE: FanDuel Sports Network North, TSN 3, TSN.ca, TSN App, RDS Info, PWHL YouTube & thepwhl.com (U.S. / International)
EN: Clay Matvick (Play-by-Play), Alexis Pearson (Analyst), Rachel Tos (Reporter);
FR: Claudine Douville (Play-by-Play), Isabelle Leclaire (Analyst), Andrée-Anne Barbeau (Studio Host), Karell Émard (Studio Analyst).
MONTRÉAL VICTOIRE
4-2-1-1 | 17 PTS | 1ST PLACE
Top Scorers: Poulin, Boreen, Dalton, Grant-Mentis (5 PTS)
Last Game: 4-2 W at TOR (Vancouver) on Jan. 8
MINNESOTA FROST
3-3-1-2 | 16 PTS | 2ND PLACE
Top Scorer: Claire Thompson – 9 GP, 1-9-10 PTS
Last Game: 2-1 OTW vs. BOS on Jan. 8
2024-25 SEASON SERIES: MONTRÉAL LEADS 3-0 IN POINTS (MTL WON 10-5 IN 2024)
Dec. 28 at MIN: 3-2 MTL | Jan. 12 at MIN (DENVER) | Jan. 17 at MTL | Feb. 18 at MTL | Mar. 4 at MTL | Mar. 26 at MIN
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW
Leading up to the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver, Canada and the United States played at Denver’s Magness Arena on Dec. 12, 2009. Montréal captain Marie-Philip Poulin and Victoire assistant coach Caroline Ouellette scored 58 seconds apart in the second period of a 4-2 victory for Canada.
The Victoire scored a 3-2 road win when they took on the Frost last month. The first game ever between the teams was a 3-0 Minnesota win but since then each of the last five games in the matchup have been decided by one goal or in a shootout.
Montréal jumped out to a 3-0 lead in its 4-2 win over Toronto in Vancouver on Wednesday. That was the team’s largest lead since Apr. 24 when they led 4-0 in a 5-2 win over New York.
On Wednesday, Poulin notched her first multi-point game of the season with two goals against the Sceptres. It was the third game with two or more goals of Poulin’s PWHL career with all three coming in the month of January (Jan. 10 & 20, 2024).
The Victoire’s Erin Ambrose, Mikyla Grant-Mentis and Alexandra Labelle lead the league in plus-minus (+7).
Montréal has allowed 18 goals this season (excl. SO goals), the fewest allowed by any PWHL team. The Victoire have allowed no more than two goals (excl. SO goals) in four straight games, the longest such streak in team history.
Minnesota is coming off a 2-1 overtime win over Boston. Each of the last six times the Frost have held an opponent to one or zero goals, it has been Boston (including playoffs).
Taylor Heise scored the overtime game-winner for the Frost on Wednesday. Heise is the fourth Minnesota player with a game-winning goal this season (Britta Curl-Salemme (2), Dominique Petrie, Grace Zumwinkle), tied with Montréal and Ottawa for most this season.
Frost Goaltender Nicole Hensley is a native of Lakewood, CO and was inducted into the Sportswomen of Colorado Hall of Fame in 2015. In October, she brought the Walter Cup to The Edge Ice Arena in Littleton, where she played her youth hockey.
Frost Head Coach Ken Klee played one season with the Colorado Avalanche (2006-07) and never left, making his home in Denver at the end of his 16-season NHL career.
Frost defender Sophie Jaques returns to the lineup for the first time since suffering an upper body injury on Dec. 19.
Denver is the third of nine stops on the PWHL Takeover Tour and Ball Arena is the eleventh NHL venue to host a PWHL game all-time. Attendance in the first two games of the PWHL Takeover Tour totaled 31,646 including 12,608 at Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena and 19,038 at Vancouver’s Rogers Arena.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
“It's really special to be on this tour right now. No matter what city we've played in, we've had fans behind us in every city. The games, the crowds, it's a really great atmosphere. We're really excited to be playing in a third game here in Denver.” - Victoire forward Catherine Dubois.
“It’s just really exciting to be here in Colorado. My kids grew up playing here so I know what a passionate hockey community this is. We’re getting healthier and getting Sophie (Jaques) back will give us a big boost…and just in time because this is a big game for both teams and Montréal is playing great hockey, so we’ll need to bring our best.” – Frost Head Coach Ken Klee.
SUNDAY’S GAME: Today’s game of the PWHL Takeover Tour is presented by Woody Creek Distillers. Colorado Avalanche anthem singer, Amanda Hawkins, will perform ‘O Canada’ and ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’. The Mini Avs will hit the ice during the first intermission, followed by the Aspen Leafs 12U in the second intermission. The PWHL has partnered with local nonprofits, Black Girl Hockey Club, Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver, Girls Inc, Girl Scouts, Sportswomen of Colorado, and several K-12 public schools in the Denver metro area for today's game. The initiative aims to promote gender equity and empower the next generation of female leaders by offering access to live women's sports experiences. By partnering with organizations focused on youth development, the PWHL hopes to inspire confidence, break barriers, and encourage girls to see themselves in sports, whether as players or leaders.