PWHL Minnesota has taken the lead back in the Walter Cup Finals. Their 4-1 win over usually-red-hot Boston in Game 3 leaves the team with one win left in the best-of-five series to hoist the cup, as they now lead the series 2-1. A combination of offensive star power and a roaring at-home crowd helped Minnesota secure their victory on Friday night.
Are the curtains beginning to draw for Boston, or will they continue to put up a competitive fight to push for a deciding Game 5?
Electric Minnesota Top Line Aids In Game 3 Victory
MICHELA CAVA! 🗣
Combining for 2 goals, the Cava 🤝 Heise connection is on FIRE tonight! pic.twitter.com/yMSjpAp4iW
— PWHL (@thepwhlofficial) May 25, 2024
We all know how star-studded this Minnesota team is. We also know how well they’ve been able to produce during these playoffs, especially in the past three games of this series. Game 3 saw an incredible performance from their offensive top line of top-overall draft pick Taylor Heise, Michela Cava, and Kendall Coyne-Schofield. These three have been a showcase of how well an offensive line should click.
Taylor Heise needs no introduction. We have talked in the past about her talent not only in the PWHL but as a hockey player in general, providing heaps of evidence as to why she was drafted first overall in the 2023 PWHL Draft. She’s made quite an impact during this series, leading the league in playoff goals. Heise scored just under a minute into the first period, sending the Xcel Energy Center crowd of almost 10,000 to their feet.
Her linemate Michela Cava is following close behind in her footsteps. She not only assisted on Heise’s fifth goal of the postseason, but she had a goal of her own in Game 3. Cava scored her third goal of the postseason early in the third period off a pass from none other than linemate Taylor Heise.
These two are clearly something else when it comes to producing offense, and none of it would have been possible without Coyne-Schofield’s phenomenal puck movement in the offensive zone.
Former Teammate Puts Up Tough Competition
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Susanna Tapani has made quite a name for herself on PWHL Boston during her first postseason. Not only did she score two of the overtime winners in the first round against Montreal, but she also has not put out the fire in the Finals series.
Tapani, who was involved in the first-ever PWHL trade from Minnesota to Boston, knows the ins and outs of her former team. She assisted on the Alina Müller goal with less than two seconds left in the second period to keep Boston from another shutout in the series.
Despite the end result of Game 3, Tapani has proved to be a valuable asset for this Boston team when it matters.
Minnesota One Game Closer To The Cup
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It’s crunch time. The inaugural PWHL season is going to officially draw to a close within a week, and one of these two teams will make history as the first-ever Walter Cup Champion. Will Minnesota fully close the drawing curtains for Boston in Game 4, or will the competitive rally continue to a deciding Game 5, where it will be anybody’s game?
Game 4 of the Walter Cup Finals will take place on Sunday, May 26 at 7 p.m. EST at Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The game will be streamed live on the league’s YouTube channel as well as the Women’s Sports Network and will be locally broadcast on NESN and Bally Sports North for Boston and Minnesota fans respectively. Game 5, if necessary, will go back to Boston.
PWHL Minnesota currently leads the series 2-1.
