Charge complete chaotic comeback over Sceptres for holiday classic

By Francesco Cautillo

The Ottawa Charge defeated the Toronto Sceptres in dramatic fashion at Coca-Cola Coliseum on Tuesday night, turning a 3-0 deficit into a 4-3 overtime victory.

Former Sceptre Rebecca Leslie iced the game, earning Ottawa their first back-to-back wins of the season with her fourth goal of the season and second of the night. While glad to make a difference against her former team, her focus remained on taking the Charge to a new level.

“I’m so proud to play for the Charge, and I think that every game in this league is just a battle every night,” said an encouraged Leslie. “I’m focused on bringing a championship to Ottawa.”

Heading into the matchup, the Sceptres were riding the wave of a 4-3 road victory over the New York Sirens on Sunday but an up-and-down start to their season overall. With the one point earned with Tuesday’s overtime loss, the Sceptres jumped into a tie for second in the league—yet they have fewer wins (three) than losses (two in regulation and two in overtime).

With the Charge ranked last in the league, the main point of focus for Toronto was to emphasize on offence early. 

“Focusing on trying to come out swinging from the start and maintaining that for 60 minutes will be super important,” said Sceptres rookie Kiara Zanon. 

Come out swinging they did, as captain Blayre Turnbull led one of many promising Toronto attacks off the opening faceoff. 

Less than two minutes into the game, the Sceptres opened the scoring. After a swift zone entry, Maggie Connors deflected Hannah Kjellbin’s shot from the point, placing the puck short side over Charge goalie Gwenyth Philips for an early Toronto lead.

The first five minutes of the game looked like a scrimmage for the home team, as it felt like every other offensive opportunity was an odd-man rush. The Charge found themselves relying on desperation defence or a potential missed shot to keep the lead at one.

Discouraged by giving up the lead early, chaos ensued in the Ottawa zone, while Toronto looked to build momentum out of any event. After a save by Philips produced a scrum, Ottawa defender Stephenie Markowski and Sceptres forward Clara van Weiren were each awarded a roughing penalty.

Clearly unphased by the scrap, Toronto utilized the open ice provided by the 4-on-4 situation. Less than eight minutes into the game, Daryl Watts doubled the home lead with a precision shot that found the netting past Philips.

A slashing call against Sceptres forward Emma Gantry gave the Charge a chance to fight back, but they were unable to alter the scoreboard. The Sceptres’ offence never missed a step, however, as they dominated the next two minutes before Philips’ earned a stoppage and a line change with a big save.

“I think we came out well. We had a good forecheck and started to push and play aggressively,” Connors said of her team’s performance in the opening period.

Toronto’s positive vibes were cut down late in the period when defender Allie Munroe collided heavily with the boards following an intense challenge. She went to the dressing room and did not return, an unfortunate sight for head coach Troy Ryan’s lineup, already missing Renata Fast and now down to five defenders.

“It’s difficult to play when you don’t have Renata [Fast], but then to lose someone like Allie [Munroe], who has been unbelievable in Renata’s absence…it’s just a big loss,” Ryan said post-game.

Ottawa persevered through Toronto’s possession play with hopes to regain even a small crumb of momentum, but were met every time with a save by Sceptres netminder Raygan Kirk. Stopping 15 shots and multiple two-on-one opportunities in the opening frame reflected a strong start for Kirk, who finished the game with 33 saves, her highest mark of the season.

The action passed right through to the second period, which kicked off with a hooking penalty against Charge forward Gabbie Hughes, giving the Sceptres a chance for their long-awaited third goal. The Coliseum would need to wait to roar again, as Philips retained control, settling the sizzling Sceptres and increasing her save count to 24.

The wait was not long though, as defender Ella Shelton fired a shot into the top corner from the high slot, marking her second goal of the season.

The Sceptres’ three-goal lead turned out to work against them, with Ottawa stealing control from that point on. 

The Charge caught the Sceptres slacking immediately after the Shelton goal, as Rebecca Leslie finished a quick play by sliding the puck between Kirk’s legs, putting Ottawa on the board at 3-1.

At this point, in an effort to enter the offensive zone more cleanly, Toronto forwards began to sit high in the neutral zone. Their provincial rivals were quick to catch on, adapting to a quicker counter attack and forcing the Sceptres to take their third penalty of the game.

Kirk picked up her thirtieth save of the night in incredible fashion, sticking out her pad in desperation to save a sure Ottawa goal. However, she was not as successful the second time around, as a cross ice pass found the stick of Hughes, decreasing Toronto’s lead to a single goal with five minutes left in the second period.

With the first of two power play goals for Ottawa, the story of the game had quickly shifted from Sceptres blowout to Charge comeback, as two unanswered goals provided all the momentum Ottawa needed.

“We gave them life,” stated Ryan. “I thought the energy in this building was unbelievable for the first half of the game and with some of the decisions and plays we made, we took ourselves out of it.”

After forty minutes of play finished, Toronto held a narrow 3-2 lead, outshooting their opponents 31-27.

Fresh ice only helped the Charge, who evened up the score in just five minutes.  Brooke Hobson entered the zone, cut past the Sceptres and ripped a shot off the crossbar and in to tie the game at three.

“It’s amazing when you can gain speed in the neutral zone, it allows you to get some chances and we generate quite a few two-on-ones,” said Charge head coach Carla MacLeod on the tactic that sparked her team’s resilience.

The next ten minutes went in Ottawa’s favour and the Sceptres knew that they needed to swing the fans back into faith. As the clock showed five minutes to play, the Sceptres looked reborn, inspiring chants on every offensive opportunity.

Tides quickly turned as Sceptres forward Jesse Compher picked up a holding penalty with less than twenty seconds remaining, providing the Charge with an advantage heading into overtime.

After over sixty minutes of hockey and a chaotic turn of events, it was Leslie who buried the winner against her former team, as the Charge completed a historic holiday comeback to end the game in overtime. 

Leslie praised her squad’s "character" after the Charge’s second straight overtime victory.

“We continue to battle and push the play to the very end,” she said.

NEXT: The Sceptres head to Montreal to take on the league-leading Victoire at Bell Centre on Saturday, Dec. 27.