The Toronto Sceptres paid a visit to the Montreal Victoire on Wednesday night (Jan. 28) at Place Bell in Laval, Quebec. It was the last night of action before the Olympic break, so Toronto badly needed to avoid a third-straight loss and head into the layoff on a high note.
Toronto won the last matchup between these two teams, a narrow 2-1 victory. A win in this one would even the season-series with Montreal if they could pull off another one.
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The Sceptres fell behind early and weren’t able to ever recover. Between penalties (which will be talked about) and some sloppy play, it was a tough way to go into the break. Montreal won this one 3-0.
Sceptres Have Penalty Troubles
Toronto couldn’t stay out of the box, and it definitely showed. Montreal’s first goal came off momentum from a good power play, and then their second and third goals both came with the Sceptres a player short in the second period. The penalties not only put the Sceptres down on the scoreboard, but it gave them almost zero chance to build momentum of their own and go on the attack.
The penalties had them playing from behind nearly all night. Their penalty-kill unit is improving despite being in the bottom half in most stat categories, but that’s no excuse to take so many penalties. It’s especially not a good idea to do so against a team like the Victoire, whose power play is one of the best in the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL).
Toronto’s Scoring Woes Continue
After being shut out in their last game against the Vancouver Goldeneyes 5-0, it was another disappointing showing on the offensive end for the Sceptres. It has now been six-straight periods without a goal for this team. They didn’t seem to be helping themselves either, with the penalties and lack of chances generated. Having 15 shots through two periods is one red flag to draw your eyes to.
This team has plenty of talent. Despite losing a few pieces in expansion and free agency, they looked like they had restocked well and could compete. So far this season, that is not the case. You can’t win if you can’t score, so something will need to change fast. This break is coming at a good time for Toronto.
Raygan Kirk Needs to Bounce Back
The Sceptres have been giving their goalie tandem equal opportunities, with both Raygan Kirk and Elaine Chuli alternating starts. It’s been Kirk that has come out in front in all the stat categories and has just generally looked better in net, which has gotten her a few extra starts. She has struggled lately, however, and Toronto will absolutely need her to bounce back in order to get back in the win column.
Kirk hasn’t looked necessarily bad this season, but her last string of starts has not been the most consistent. Last night made it nine goals allowed in two games, which is concerning. Regardless of how the offence plays, she will always be a stellar goaltender and needs to be the backbone of this team. She will likely be the goalie for the long run, so hopefully Kirk comes out of the break firing and shows some promise for the final games of the season.
The Sceptres’ next game is post-Olympic break. They will visit the Seattle Torrent at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, Washington, on Feb. 27 with puck drop set for 8 p.m. MDT.
