3 Takeaways From Torrent’s 6-5 OT Loss to the Goldeneyes – The Hockey Writers –

On Saturday, April 18, the Seattle Torrent hosted the Vancouver Goldeneyes for the two teams’ final matchup of the 2025-26 Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) season. Heading into this game, the Goldeneyes had won the previous three games.

After 20 minutes, the Torrent held a two-goal lead. The Goldeneyes scored their first goal with less than a minute left in the second period, but Seattle still had a goal on them. 

The first half of the final frame kicked off with two goals for Vancouver, bringing them into the lead. Seattle answered with a goal less than a minute later and then went on to score two more, including one on the empty net. With the extra attacker on the ice, Jenn Gardiner scored her third of the game to record Vancouver’s first hat trick and bring them within one.

A second remained on the clock, and Hannah Miller scored to tie the game. Just 52 seconds into overtime, Gardiner scored her fourth of the game to hand the Torrent a 6-5 loss. The Goldeneyes performed the season series sweep. 

Torrent Had This Game in the Bag

This was a tough loss for Seattle, as they held the lead for the majority of the game. However, they should be proud of their performance and their full team effort. Eight different players put their names on the score sheet, with four of them recording multi-point games.

Hilary Knight opened the scoring and scored her first goal since Jan. 28, before the Olympic break. She also recorded an assist to give Knight her third multi-point game since joining Seattle. 

After Knight’s goal, Anna Wilgren scored her first as a member of the Torrent. However, she didn’t stop there and scored her second in the third period. That brought her points total to seven for the season, and it was her first multi-point game with Seattle. Even as a defender, Wilgren has been finding her scoring edge. 

She wasn’t the only defender to score in this game, as Cayla Barnes scored her third of the season. Both she and Knight also recorded the assist on Wilgren’s first goal of the game. Barnes plays on the first defensive pairing while Wilgren is on the second; however, both were on the ice for Wilgren’s goal. Even though both are defenders, the pair connected offensively in a great way. Barnes also earned the assist on Danielle Serdachny’s empty-net goal to give her a three-point night. 

This game was a full team effort, but it didn’t net the results Seattle wanted. They still scored an impressive five goals and pushed the Goldeneyes until the very end. 

Jackson Earned Their First Start of the Season

After Corinne Schroeder allowed four goals in the first 31 minutes in the last game, CJ Jackson (who uses they/them pronouns) came in to finish the game and allowed no goals. After a strong performance last time against Vancouver, it was time for them to get their first start of the season. 

Jackson did their best to keep Seattle in the game, making 36 saves on 42 shots. They earned a save percentage (SV%) of .857. Throughout three PWHL seasons, they have only played in three games, and this was their lowest SV% so far. 

Jackson proved they have what it takes to defend Seattle’s crease in the last game, and they had a good showing tonight as well. Hopefully, this won’t be the last time they get the chance to play in the 2025-26 season. 

Torrent Notch Their First Gold Plan Point 

The Torrent were eliminated from playoff contention in their last game, which means they are now competing for gold plan points. Every point they earn from now until the end of the regular season is converted into a gold plan point. The gold plan is important because whoever has the most points by the end of the season gets to select first overall in the 2026 Entry Draft. This is the PWHL’s way of keeping the games competitive throughout the season, rather than teams tanking to secure the first overall draft pick.

While the Torrent were close to picking up three points in this game, they ended up walking away with one. The Goldeneyes were eliminated from playoff contention in this game, but they cannot start racking up points until their next game. The Torrent already have a leg up on all the other teams who will fall into the gold plan. Although they only have one point, it’s one more than anyone else has. Both the Goldeneyes and the Torrent only have two more games left, but Seattle has already started collecting their gold points. 

Let’s hope the Torrent’s next game results in three full points; this will put them in a good spot to ensure they can select first overall. 

Torrent Stay at Home 

The Torrent will remain in Seattle and host the Minnesota Frost on Wednesday, April 22.