Ottawa Scores 2-1 Overtime Victory Against Boston, Moving Closer To The Final Playoff Spot

Ottawa Charge fans, while you may have to wait a few more days to find out whether there will be playoff hockey in the nation’s capital, the team has done itself a huge favour following a 2-1 overtime win against the Boston Fleet. Despite being unable to clinch their second consecutive playoff berth, they have put themselves in a position in which a single point against the Toronto Sceptres on Saturday afternoon would clinch that coveted final playoff spot.

"It will be like a playoff game before the playoffs," said interim head coach Haley Irwin. "The mindset, in terms of how we play and how we're going to go about it, doesn't change. This is why these [players] trained so hard. These are the moments. These are the games that you want to be in."

Ottawa already appears to be in full playoff mode, delivering strong performances when it matters most. And their top players, led by Brianne Jenner, Rebecca Leslie, and Gwyneth Philips, have each found another gear, all contributing to their three-game winning streak, and each playing a role in tonight’s victory.

Credit: The PWHL

Now, there are certainly areas that will need to be addressed ahead of Saturday’s matchup, of that there is no doubt. The headliner there is the player advantage, which, following a game that saw the team score one power-play goal and two short-handed goals, saw them go 0-for-4 in this outing. Their power play dropped a percentage point following this win, and while it remains third in the league, the Charge need to ensure they take advantage of every opportunity and leave nothing on the table on Saturday.

Credit: The PWHL

In big moments, a team needs to be able to count on its best players, and that's what happened tonight. Leslie scored the game-tying goal for the second straight game, and Jenner scored the overtime game-winner while adding an assist for her second consecutive multi-point game.

Leslie's resurgence this season as an elite goalscorer in this league will be written about for some time, as she is someone who can, with one shift, grab the momentum for this team and skate with it. She's been treating this stretch of hockey as a playoff series, and it showed once again tonight. Jenner now has six points during the winning streak, maintaining her position as an .