Rebecca Leslie’s two-goal performance sparked the comeback at 6:22 of the second period, then sealed the victory against her former team with the overtime goal scored on the power play just 1:24 into overtime.
Gabbie Hughes brought the Charge within one goal at 14:12 of the middle frame with her first of the season on the power play, and defenseman Brooke Hobson got her first as a member of the Charge to tie the game at 4:36 of the third period. Maggie Connors scored her first of the season at 1:38 of the first period to give the Scepters their fastest lead of the season.
Daryl Watts made it 2-0 at 7:32 of the first period, then defenseman Ella Shelton made it 3-0 at 6:08 of the second period. The shots were tied 37-37, season highs for both teams, with Gwyneth Philips getting the win with 34 saves versus Raygan Kirk, who stopped a season high 33.
Ottawa’s victory marks the biggest comeback of the PWHL season and in team history after a thrilling victory over Minnesota in Chicago on the Takeover Tour on Sunday. Toronto had an opposite result in their first Takeover Tour match in Halifax, losing to Montreal in a shootout on Wednesday, but has points in three straight games after a win on Sunday in New York.
Both teams return to action on Saturday afternoon after a short break with Ottawa at home in Boston and Toronto in Montreal for the Duel at the top in the Call Center.
QUOTES
Ottawa head coach Carla MacLeod on what was said after the first period to spark the comeback: “My goodness, you’re giving coaches way too much credit. We’re not saying anything! We tried to make some adjustments and adjustments, but in the end it was the team for me, our group of players. They’re just motivated and they didn’t hesitate. Obviously we had some adversity after three goals, but we just stayed together and found our legs, and I thought our speed had an impact tonight and we found a way to win it.”
Load ahead Rebecca Leslie on her comeback goal: “I think at that point in the game we were just trying to get pucks on net. I was trying to do that any way I could and hoping for a rebound or a goal. But yeah, playing with Brianne Jenner and Sarah Wozniewicz made it a lot of fun tonight and we’re just excited to continue to build and grow as a team.”
Scepter’s defender Savannah Harmon on how the defense faced adversity: “Absolutely nothing you ever want to see – Allie (Munroe) is such an important part of this team. I think one of the strengths of our team is our depth. We have a lot of players in the lineup that we can rely on, they can step in and play a role every night.”
Toronto head coach Troy Ryan about the game: “It was a series of events that turned the game against us. We just have to be better. The game is full of highs and lows, you have to learn to reset when something bad happens and go back to what makes you successful earlier in the game. We brought them to life. I thought the energy in this building was unbelievable for the first half of the game and I honestly think that some of our decisions and some of the plays we made, we took ourselves out of the game, took our fans out and let Ottawa getting back into the game.”
NOTES
Three of the last four games between these teams have gone to overtime, with Ottawa also winning in Toronto on the final day of the 2024-2025 regular season on May 3. The Charge has now won four straight overtime games dating back to last season, while the Scepters have lost three straight out-of-season games.
Ottawa is 4-1-0-0 all-time against Toronto when scoring at least three goals. Prior to Sunday’s 4-3 win over New York, the Scepters had lost 18 straight games when they allowed three or more goals.
The Charge have scored two power play goals in consecutive games and lead the PWHL with six goals scored. Ottawa has scored three or more goals in consecutive games after scoring one goal in each of the four games during the team’s losing streak.
Ottawa became the first team to erase a 3-0 deficit since New York returned to the nation’s capital on March 25 to beat the Charge 6-3 with six goals in the third period.
Rebecca Leslie recorded the first game-winning goal and multi-goal game of her career and has her first-ever three-game streak (3G, 1A). Her third and fourth goals of the season set a new career-high and with seven points (4G, 3A) in eight games, she has more than doubled her point total (1G, 2A) in 27 games with her hometown team in 2024-2025.
Gabby Hughes‘ goal was her first of the season, breaking a 15-game goalless drought in the regular season that started on March 7 of last season. Tonight’s goal was scored in her sixth game of the campaign, having gone fourteen games without a goal to open the 2024/25 season. Her five goals last season came in a five-game span between Feb. 13 and Feb. 26, including one power-play tally.
Brooke Hobson scored her first goal and point in her eighth game as a member of the Charge. The defenseman scored once in each of her first two PWHL seasons with New York.
Maggie Connors has scored points in consecutive games (1G, 1A) for the first time since scoring in consecutive games during the inaugural season (March 2-6, 2024). Her two points in seven games to start this season have already equaled her 2024-2025 total (2G) through 30 games.
Daryl Watts has scored both of her goals at home against Ottawa this season and has scored points in consecutive games for the first time this season (1G, 1A). Last season, the Scepters leading scorer collected four different point streaks, including a five-game stretch from January 25 to February 11 with seven points (2G, 5A).
Ella Shelton scored her second goal of the season and first on home ice as a member of the Sceptres. Five of her 17 goals, the most ever by a defender, have come in games played in Toronto, the first four of which came as a member of New York. 
Brianne Jenner recorded two assists for the second time this season following her four-point performance (2G, 2A) on Nov. 26 against Vancouver. With three points (1G, 2A) in her last two games, the Charge captain has moved into a tie for first in the league with eight points (3G, 5A) in eight games.
Gwyneth Phillips has made 30 or more saves in four of her seven starts so far this season, the most of any PWHL goaltender, with Raygan Kirk next in line with three such games.
Rory Guilday recorded an assist for the third straight game, the longest point streak of her career, and leads all rookies with six points and five assists in eight games. Her four power play points (1PPG, 3PPA) are two more than the next highest rookie.
Anna Kjellbin picked up a primary assist for her third point in the last five games, representing the best offensive stretch of her career. The Swedish defender’s three points (1G, 2A) in seven games matches the three points (3A) she recorded in 25 games between Montreal and Toronto last season.
Emma Maltese recorded her third assist of the season and has points in consecutive games (1G, 1A) for the first time since compiling a three-game streak in the playoffs (1G, 3A). Her last regular season point streak was a five-game, eight-point streak (1G, 7A) during the inaugural season (March 23 to May 1, 2024).
Kali Flanagan picked up her first point of the season with a secondary assist on Watts’ goal. The defender finished the 2024-2025 season with a career-high four assists in 30 games, finishing third among the Sceptres backline.
Natalie Spooner collected her third assist of the season in her seventh game, surpassing the two assists she recorded in fourteen games last season. Her six shots on goal led all Scepters skaters and brings her season total to a team-high 26.
Sarah Wozniewicz led the Charge with a career-high six shots on goal, playing on the team’s top line, one game after scoring Sunday’s overtime winner in Chicago.
Allie Munroe left the game during the first period with a lower-body injury and did not return to the Scepters blue line.
Renata Quick missed a second straight game for the Scepters and is listed as day-to-day with a lower-body injury.
Fanuza Kadirovawho scored her first career goal in Toronto on December 4, missed a second straight game for the Charge with an upper-body injury.
THREE STARS
1. Rebecca Leslie (OTT) 2G
2. Brianne Jenner (OTT) 2A
3. Daryl Watts (TOR) 1G
STANDINGS
Toronto (3-0-2-2) – 2nd place (tied)
Ottawa (1-2-0-5) – 6th place (tied)
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