With today’s 6-5 win over the Vancouver Goldeneyes, the back-to-back PWHL Walter Cup champion Minnesota Frost have clinched a third straight playoff berth.
“It’s a huge accomplishment for our whole group to be able to say that we’re going to be in the Walter Cup Playoffs again and giving ourselves a chance,” head coach Ken Klee told reporters after todays win over Vancouver. “It’s nicer with five games left, that way we can clean up some small details.”
The Minnesota Frost have won with offense this season. Through 25 games, the Frost have scored 78 goals, tops in the PWHL. Minnesota has a .613 points percentage, putting them on pace for their best regular-season performance in franchise history. In the last two seasons, Minnesota has entered the playoffs as the fourth seed.
The Frost are the third team to clinch a PWHL playoff berth. The Boston Fleet clinched a playoff spot last weekend, and the Montréal Victoire punched their ticket earlier this week.
Currently, the Minnesota Frost sit in third place in the PWHL standings with 46 points. The Frost are five points behind the Boston Fleet in second place. Minnesota has a 12-point cushion on the Toronto Sceptres in the fourth and final playoff spot.
What’s ahead:
If the season ended today, the Frost would play either Boston or Montréal in the first round of the playoffs. In the PWHL, the team that finishes in first place in the regular season gets to choose between the third-place and fourth-place finishers for their first-round opponent.
This season, Minnesota has struggled against the PWHL’s best. The Frost are 1-2 against the Boston Fleet and 0-4 against the Montréal Victoire. Three of the Frost’s four losses against Montréal have come in regulation, and the Victoire have outscored Minnesota 12-3 in those four games.
The Frost have five games remaining this season, including one more against the Fleet. Minnesota will try to catch Boston or Montréal to secure home ice for the first round of the PWHL playoffs.