The Ice Garden 2025 Walter Cup Final Prediction Roundtable

For the second year straight in the PWHL the Walter Cup Final will be a battle between the three seed (Ottawa) and the four seed (Minnesota)!

Let’s get right into it off the top, who is taking the series and in how many games is it going to take?

Elisha: I'm taking Ottawa in five. I have a hard time believing this series will go less than 5 games and think Ottawa has played better playoff hockey. They've shown they can win low-scoring, tight-checking games and they’re getting elite goaltending from Gwyneth Philips. If they stay disciplined enough I think they can outlast Minnesota.

LJ: Ottawa in five. I admit this is more vibes than anything else, but the Charge have displayed a kind of scrappy tenacity that I think can take them all the way. Call it the “you chose us” effect. Ottawa may technically be the higher seed, but they feel like the underdogs coming into this final against last season’s champions. It’ll be close, and definitely a good series, but I’m picking the Charge to hoist the Walter Cup.

Mike: I'd love to see Ottawa take the Cup here, but I feel like Minnesota has the edge in this series. Minnesota’s blue line is on another level and they have more game breaking forwards than the Charge. However, I do think this will be close because Carla MacLeod has a lot of momentum on her side and Brianne Jenner is exactly the leader you want to have in the finals. 

Let's call it Minnesota in five.

Sierra: This is a tough one. Every time I’ve counted Minnesota out over the past two years, they’ve found a way. Ottawa has displayed the kind of scrap that a winning team needs in addition to Gwyneth Phillips having hit another gear in Round One, stepping up in a huge way in the absence of Emerance Maschmeyer. At the end of the day, I think it’s a toss-up…but that Minnesota will ultimately come out on top. Frost, in five, in OT. 

Maya: I cannot believe I have to say that I think Minnesota will win their second straight Walter Cup, but here we are. It’ll be close, but aside from goaltending, I do think that the Frost have a stronger team than the Charge. Defensively speaking, with Stecklein, Jaques and Thompson, I think they’ll be able to hold off even the top of Ottawa’s offense. Plus, if Roese is still out, that’s a big blow to Ottawa’s defense. Offensively, we’ve seen Cava and McQuigge put up big numbers under pressure against the Sceptres, on top of the usual offensive talent of Heise and Coyne Schofield. I just don’t see the same firepower from the Charge. But, I’d love to be wrong, so I’m excited to see how this ends. I think it goes to five games, but the Frost will have to win in Ottawa’s barn, which I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. 

Geremy: The way Ottawa has been playing has been peak Ottawa. Offensively chaotic and overall just full of energy. They’ve been playing great hockey since Maschmeyer went down to the point where if you look at the stats it’s as if two different Charge teams have existed this season. The one Maschmeyer had to start for then the one Gwyneth Philips had to step in to be the 1G for. Everything is going well. They’ve been shutting teams down, limiting shots/scoring opportunities, and getting just enough goals to win. Toronto had been playing that way all season though and Minnesota turned their defence into swiss cheese. I think people forgot just how good Campbell was heading into the playoffs and Minnesota made her a non-factor. That’s not to say Philips will suffer the same fate but Minnesota is walking in with the better offence, better top end blueliners, and more experience. The league has too much parity for Minnesota to waltz to an easy sweep and Ottawa will fight hard. Boston fought hard too with Aerin Frankel being peak Frankel last year. I can see a future where Ottawa wins but I think it’s more likely Minnesota takes it in four games. 

Giselle: I say Minnesota takes the cup in 5 games and in like double OT as well. I see this as Minnesota being the team with more to their game than the Charge. Ottawa has been entertaining but it feels to me they need to clean up their game a bit while the Frost can answer back in games when needed to as they did with scoring in this past round against Toronto. Though I don't trust the goaltending in Minnesota as I do Gwyneth Phillips with Ottawa, I do believe more in the Frost blueliners which I believe will carry them to the cup.

For the semi-final fans were treated to almost two completely different series. In MIN/TOR you had a high flying, high scoring series whereas with OTT/MTL you had a low scoring, trench warfare battle on the ice. What should fans be expecting between MIN/OTT? 

Maya: This is a hard one. I don’t have a lot of faith in the Frost goaltending duo, at least not like I did last time, so I could see it being a higher scoring series. But then again, Ottawa didn’t rack up the goals in their first series. I’ll say we might see a bit of both. I expect it to be very physical and for the games to be close, but I’m not sure we’ll see only low-scoring vs only high-scoring. I think it will depend on the day. 

Elisha: The Charge and Frost had a very inconsistent regular season series that included some shutouts, but also the single game scoring record. I'd expect something in between the two semi-final series with lots of physicality from both teams. I think it will be closer than the regular season and come down to which team wins the details and makes less mistakes every game.

LJ: I’m going to echo Maya and Elisha, I think this will be a close, physical series. I’m expecting to see games won by one goal, whether due to a lack of offense, good goaltending, or a little bit of both. Maybe we’ll even get some overtime heroics, though hopefully for everyone’s sake it won’t take as long as Montreal-Ottawa’s 4OT Game 2. 

Ticket punched. 🎫

Here's the highlights from the @pwhlcharge.bsky.social’s series-ending win over first seed Montréal Victoire last night!

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— PWHL (@thepwhl.com) May 17, 2025 at 10:46 AM

Mike: Here's some expert analysis for you: I honestly don't know. No idea. I am still somewhat shocked that Ottawa dismantled a Victoire team that looked so superior on paper to get here.

What I do know is that we're going to be treated to some fantastic playoff hockey. I wouldn't be shocked if the Frost’s offense blows up in one of these games but, for the most part, I think these games will be tight. Philips is in a zone and Ottawa is playing with a lot of discipline right now. I can't wait for Game One.

Sierra: I think these games will be tight, but not quite the 0-0 grinds we saw in the OTT-MTL series. Gwyneth Phillips managed to stand up to the best player in the world in Marie-Phillip Poulin, so I have to imagine she’ll continue to show up big against the Frost. The difference, though, is that while Minnesota doesn’t have a Pou-level superstar (who does?) they do have depth and excellent offensive production from their blueline. So, not to waffle, I think it will ultimately end up somewhere in the middle--a lot of 1-goal games with maybe 5 goals scored between the two teams. 

On their way to 2-peat? 👀

Four goals and twenty-six saves later, @pwhlfrost.bsky.social earn their place back into the PWHL Finals.

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— PWHL (@thepwhl.com) May 15, 2025 at 10:01 AM

Geremy: Ottawa is going to be forced to defend against a team that actually can push their way to the net and not have the ineffective Victoire offence taking shots from the perimeter all game or be uncontested in going for rebounds Philips lets out. They’re going to see more scoring against but Ottawa is going to find Minnesota often has some big defensive mishaps they can take advantage of. We’re going to see something in between the two semi-final series’. Ottawa is going to find offence a bit easier to come by but find their opponents will finish their chances better. Minnesota will find that their scoring is going to be harder to come by but it’ll be a tighter defensive battle. 

Giselle: I see this being a high scoring finals. I feel the Charge defense has their work cut out for them and the Frost will love finding ways to score and have Ottawa chase them throughout the games. I always say a player will produce and then I am wrong but I think Michela Cava will continue to play well in the finals as she has been doing in the playoffs so far.

At the end of the series one team is going home with the Cup and one team isn’t but one player will be taking home something extra, the Ilana Koss Playoff MVP Award. Who do you think will be recognized to be the hero of their team's playoff run?

Maya: I don’t think anyone has a stronger case for the playoff MVP than Gwyn Philips. She’s had a strong season in the games she played, but I don’t think very many people saw her stepping in and getting her team to the finals after the Maschmeyer injury (and if you did, you probably should buy a lottery ticket). Not only did she help her team beat the top seeded team, she also shut them out in the last game. Plus, she was facing the league’s top goalscorer in Marie-Philip Poulin, and held her to just one goal in four games. Barring a huge few games from one specific Frost player or a massive blowout of the Charge, I think Philips takes it. 

Elisha: Win or lose it will be hard to argue against Gwyneth Philips. She's been dialed in ever since stepping in for Maschmeyer and I don't think the Charge are in the finals without her. Holding Montréal to 6 goals in 4 games is no small feat, including 1 shutout. If Gwyneth keeps playing this way the MVP award should 100% go to her.

LJ: I have nothing new to add, it’s gotta be Gwyneth Philips. Unless someone else can match the caliber of breakout Philips has had or something goes horribly wrong, the MVP award is practically hers to lose. Her exceptional performance from the end of the regular season carried into the playoffs against quite a difficult opponent, and Philips was a huge part of both getting the Charge into the playoffs and keeping them on the path to the finals.

Mike: The Gwyneth Philips story is too good to ignore. If she makes this a series, she should get the nod even if Minnesota lifts their second Walter Cup. If Minnesota makes quick work of the Charge, my dark horse is Lee Stecklein, who enters the finals with three goals, three assists and 0 PIM. She's been a rock and is second only to Taylor Heise in playoff scoring.

Sierra: Not to beat a dead horse, but I’ll echo everyone else and say it has to be Gwyneth Phillips. Even if the Charge don’t ultimately win, unless she collapses against the Frost, I still think she wins. She has been more individually important to her team’s success, in my opinion, that any one Frost player has. Not to mention playing two full hockey games in one in the 4OT game against Montreal--I don’t think I would’ve been able to move for a week. 

Geremy: Going to lose my goalie guy status at this rate. If Ottawa wins then yes Gwyneth Philips will be named playoff MVP. The narrative is so strongly in her favour it’d take a big collapse for people to let go of it. If Minnesota wins though I believe it’ll be due to Sophie Jaques being the best blueliner in the PWHL at tilting the ice into the offensive zone. When she’s on the ice the puck goes one way and that’s towards the opposing net at a rate we don’t see with many others. She should have won playoff MVP last year but this year I believe everyone will finally see the impact she has in being a difference maker for Minnesota. 

Giselle: I totally want to say Gwyneth Phillips like everyone else, I do, but it doesn't go with what I'm saying about the Frost winning and having great offensive production so I would have to go with a sleeper pick with Taylor Heise. She's been playing very well so far and don't think it would be odd for her to put up some more points in the finals and take home that MVP trophy too.