RALEIGH, NC (March 7, 2025) – Maddie Rooney backstopped the Minnesota Frost to a 5-0 shutout victory over the Ottawa Charge on Friday night Lenovo Center in Raleigh, NC. The game saw 10,782 fans attend PWHL Takeover Tour ™ Raleigh Presented By Ally, the seventh of nine games of the tour. The Frost’s offensive spark ignited early, as captain Kendall Coyne Schofield found the twine just under six minutes into the game to open the scoring. Brooke McQuigge doubled the lead with a gritty effort, tapping in her own rebound while lying on her stomach. Shortly after, Denisa Křížová got on the scoresheet, finishing a two-on-one rush with Coyne Schofield to give Minnesota a commanding three-goal cushion heading into the first intermission.
Rookie goaltender Gwyneth Philips came into the game in relief for Emerance Maschmeyer to start the second period, and an ensuing scoreless middle frame saw teams battling back and forth for momentum. Minnesota continued their offensive dominance just 47 seconds into the third period with a goal from Sophie Jaques. Michela Cava added an empty-net tally in the game’s final minutes to cap the win for Minnesota, marking the end of Ottawa’s five-game point streak.
Rooney recorded her second shutout of the season, stopping all 19 shots she faced. On the other end, Maschmeyer made four saves in the first period before Philips took over, turning aside 17 of 18 shots to close out the game for Ottawa. Minnesota remains in fourth place in the league standings and sits at 33 points with the win, now only one point behind third-place Boston while extending their lead over fifth-place Ottawa to six points.
QUOTES
Minnesota Head Coach Ken Klee: “It started with a great atmosphere. Thank you, for sure, to the City of Raleigh and the Hurricanes for hosting and doing such a great job. It was a home game on our schedule, and it felt like a home game. The first period was outstanding–– we were good on the forecheck, got on pucks and were able to bury a couple of them and it really helped our cause.”
Minnesota defender Sophie Jaques: “I think it was a great start for us. Everyone was doing what they do best and that’s when we’re successful – when everyone does their own roles. We were using each other well, moving pucks, and getting bodies in front of the net. We did a good job of capitalizing on the chances we had early and that gave us momentum going into the rest of the game.”
Minnesota goaltender Maddie Rooney: “Honestly that was a team shutout. The team kept their (Ottawa’s) chances really minimal. They shut it down in front of me, cleared rebounds and capitalized on our offensive opportunities. It was a team win.”
Ottawa Head Coach Carla MacLeod on her team’s rough start: “We struggled today. The start wasn’t ideal by any stretch of imagination. It’s never easy to dig out when you are down three goals in the first period. Minnesota is a great team. They are the reigning Walter Cup champions. It felt that we had some momentum in the third period with some high-quality chances at least. We know we have to be better and grittier. Our passing has to be a lot better. There were some mismanaged pucks that hurt us. This is a league that as quick as you win, as quick you can lose. We gave them a lick a couple of games ago. Now, they gave us a lick tonight and we go back at it again on Tuesday.”
Charge goalie Gwyneth Philips on being a role model for young girls who can aspire to play professional hockey: “It’s still surreal. I’m living the dream, and we are someone’s dream. That is so cool. A little girl in the stands can look at us and say that it could be her in the future. That’s the best out of these Takeover Tour games. It gives the girls a chance to see what this league is about.”
NOTABLES
Attendance through the first seven PWHL Takeover Tour™ games is 100,735.
Minnesota leads the league with four games with five or more goals scored. The team with the next most such games is Ottawa with two.
Tonight was the third five-goal margin of victory in the PWHL this season – the last one recorded by Ottawa against Minnesota (8-3) on Feb. 13.
Maddie Rooney becomes the first goaltender to record multiple shutouts in each of the league’s first two seasons. Her two shutouts this season are tied with New York’s Corinne Schroeder for the league lead. She has allowed two or fewer goals against in her last four starts.
Kendall Coyne Schofield netted her ninth goal and career-high 11th assist in her fifth multi-point performance this season. The Frost captain now sits tied for fourth in the league scoring race – and first among Frost skaters – with 20 points (9G, 11A) in 22 games.
Denisa Křížová tallied a goal and an assist for her second multi-point game of the season, bringing her to seven points (4G, 3A) through 22 games. She has now surpassed her goal and point tallies from the inaugural season, where she recorded six points (3G, 3A) in 24 games.
Brooke McQuigge scored her sixth goal of the season, pulling her into a tie for second among all PWHL rookies in the category.
Sophie Jaques tallied her fourth goal and 12th assist in her fifth multi-point game of the season and ranks second among defenders in scoring with 16 points (4G, 12A) through 17 games.
Michela Cava netted her ninth goal of the season and now sits tied for the team lead in the category with Coyne Schofield. The Frost forward has now recorded points in three straight games (2G, 1A) and has tallied nine points (4G, 5A) in her last nine games.
Dominique Petrie recorded her first multi-point game of her career with two assists and now has four helpers in her last four games. With six points (3G, 3A) in 11 games, the Frost fifth-round pick ranks fourth among rookies with a 0.64 points-per-game average.
Grace Zumwinkle recorded her second assist of the season and first point since Dec. 22. Three of the Frost forward’s five points have come against Ottawa (2G, 1A), following a two-goal performance on Dec. 19 in a 5-2 win.
Charge forward Emily Clark’s six-game point streak (4G, 5A) came to an end.
Rebecca Leslie missed a second straight game for the Charge with an upper-body injury.
Minnesota is one of two teams to have scored the game’s first goal in 13 of their games this season, alongside Ottawa. The Frost have picked up points in 10 of 13 games when hitting the score sheet first.
The Frost scored three goals in the first period for the first time this season.
Ottawa has allowed four or more goals in back-to-back games for the second time this season, following a 5-4 overtime win against New York on Feb. 26. The first time the Charge reached this mark was in a pair of losses to Montréal and Toronto on Jan. 29 and Feb. 1, respectively.
Minnesota will play in the eighth stop of the PWHL Takeover Tour™, in Detroit vs. New York on Mar. 16. Ottawa will play in the ninth and final stop of the tour, in St. Louis vs. Boston, on Mar 29.
The Frost join the Fleet and the Victoire with two wins so far in this season’s PWHL Takeover Tour™.
SCORESHEET RECAP
Ottawa 0 0 0 - 0
Minnesota 3 0 2 - 5
1st Period-1, Minnesota, Coyne Schofield 9 (Křížová, Petrie), 5:47. 2, Minnesota, McQuigge 6 (Jaques, Zumwinkle), 15:33. 3, Minnesota, Křížová 4 (Coyne Schofield), 17:23. Penalties-Vanišová Ott (tripping), 8:18.
2nd Period- No Scoring.Penalties-Curl-Salemme Min (high sticking), 1:38; Jaques Min (tripping), 8:38; Knoll Min (boarding), 15:19.
3rd Period-4, Minnesota, Jaques 4 (Petrie), 0:37. 5, Minnesota, Cava 9 18:27 (EN). Penalties-McQuigge Min (interference), 15:11.
Shots on Goal-Ottawa 3-5-11-19. Minnesota 7-5-14-26.
Power Play Opportunities-Ottawa 0 / 4; Minnesota 0 / 1.
Goalies-Ottawa, Maschmeyer 6-6-2-1 (7 shots-4 saves); Philips 2-2-1-0 (18 shots-17 saves). Minnesota, Rooney 7-4-1-2 (19 shots-19 saves).
Attendance-10,782
THREE STARS
Maddie Rooney (MIN) 19/19 SV
Sophie Jaques (MIN) 1G, 1A
Denisa Křížová (MIN) 1G, 1A
STANDINGS
Minnesota (7-4-4-7) - 33 PTS – 4th Place
Ottawa (7-1-4-9) - 27 PTS – 5th Place
UPCOMING SCHEDULES
Minnesota: Sunday, March 9 at Toronto at 1 p.m. ET
Ottawa: Tuesday, March 11 vs Minnesota at 7 p.m. ET