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Ottawa Charge

How Gwyneth Philips Became the League’s Most Valuable Goalie

From backup to backbone, Gwyneth Philips proved she’s not just the future of Ottawa Charges’s crease, she’s the franchise.

How Gwyneth Philips Became the League’s Most Valuable Goalie
(Graphic by Elisha Côté | Photo Credit: PWHL)

In a league built on stars, few shined brighter than Ottawa’s rookie netminder Gwyneth Philips during the 2024–25 PWHL season.

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She didn’t start the year as a headliner. She wasn’t a top draft pick or a national team fixture. But by the end of the season, Philips was the name on everyone’s lips as a first-year pro who ended her campaign with the Ilana Kloss Playoff MVP trophy, a nomination for both Goaltender and Rookie of the Year, and the unshakable respect of her teammates and opponents.

“It’s been a whirlwind past, like, two months,” Philips said after returning to Ottawa. “Coming in as the second goalie, learning from Masch… and then when she went down, I had to step in. I think my game just got a lot more comfortable and confident.”

Ottawa entered their inaugural PWHL season anchored by veteran Emerance Maschmeyer. But when Maschmeyer was injured midseason, the net opened up for Philips, a 25-year-old rookie from Northeastern University.

She ran with it.

Philips played in 15 regular season games and logged 795 minutes, posting a 2.11 goals-against average, a .919 save percentage, and an 8–5–1 record. She earned two shutouts and made 316 saves total.

Her second-half surge stood out, highlighted by a shutout against Boston on April 2 and a composed, 27-save victory in the final week of the regular season to help clinch Ottawa’s playoff berth.

Dominance in the Postseason

If her regular season was impressive, her playoff run was unforgettable.

Philips played every minute of Ottawa’s postseason, backstopping the Charge through an eight-game gauntlet that included five overtime contests. She allowed just 13 goals on 270 shots and recorded a 1.23 GAA and .952 save percentage across 635 minutes, including a shutout in Game 3 against Montréal.

“Most of the time, a goalie wins an accolade like that, it’s a testament to the people in front of them,” she said about winning Playoff MVP. “I had so much confidence in my teammates. We were playing our best defensive hockey all series.”

Philips stood tall as Ottawa upset the top-seeded Montréal Victoire and pushed the defending champion Minnesota Frost to the brink in the Walter Cup Final. Though Ottawa fell in four games, each was decided by a single goal, and all four went to overtime.

Philips credited not only her teammates, but her fellow goaltenders—Logan Angers, Maschmeyer, and midseason addition Lucy Morgan—as sources of support.

“Angers is one of my closest friends now,” she said. “Lucy was a great add. She brings like a funness to the locker room and is always pushing really hard in practice.”

The Charge’s team-first mentality echoed through Philips’ comments.

"I think people kind of counted us out pretty early and I think we took that and looked at each other and did it for each other and not for anyone else," she said. And I think that's what pushed us so far."

She even pointed to Ottawa’s high number of jailbreak (shorthanded) goals as proof. “That’s a character thing,” she said. “It shows we were always pushing that much harder, for each other.”

With the expansion draft looming and teams facing tough decisions, one thing feels certain in Ottawa: Gwyneth Philips isn’t going anywhere.

Emerance Maschmeyer (left) and Gwyneth Philips (right). (Photo Credit: PWHL)

While veteran Emerance Maschmeyer could be exposed and selected by one of the new franchises, it’s hard to imagine the Charge letting go of the goalie who just delivered one of the best rookie seasons in hockey history. You don’t part ways with a franchise goalie, and that’s exactly what Philips has become.

“We’re never going to be the same team,” she said. “So I really just wanted to play for the girls beside me this series.”

She may have started the season in the background, but she finished it as the Charge’s backbone, and one of the most valuable players in the entire league.

Because Gwyneth Philips isn’t the future. She’s already here.

Editor's note: The original version of this piece incorrectly listed Philips' age as 23. She is 25.

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