Montreal Victoire choose 1st-round opponent in PWHL playoffs

The Montreal Victoire will face the Ottawa Charge in the opening round of the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) playoffs.

Montreal general manager Danièle Sauvageau announced the selection of Ottawa as its first opponent on Sunday on the league's Jocks in Jills podcast. 

The regular-season PWHL champion has the option of selecting either the third seed or the fourth seed to face in a best-of-five first-round series. The Charge finished third, ahead of the fourth-place Minnesota Frost through a tiebreaker. 

The Victoire's decision means the second-seeded Toronto Sceptres will face the Frost in the first round for the second straight year.

The Charge, who are in the playoffs for the first time, won their last two regular-season games against the Victoire after losing the first four.

In the inaugural 2024 season, the regular-season champion Sceptres elected to face the fourth-seeded Frost in the first round. Minnesota went on to upset Toronto before defeating the Boston Fleet in the final to claim the first Walter Cup.