A Miracle in Laval: Roque Plays The Hero

“A miracle in Laval,” as Kori Cheverie called it, as Montreal takes a 1-0 series lead with a dramatic 3-2 overtime victory.

When it came time for the Victoire to choose their semi-final opponent, they shied away from picking the Ottawa Charge, but have inevitably found their way to face them in the Walter Cup Final. A big goalie battle was expected heading into this final series, with Gwyneth Philips standing between the pipes for Ottawa, making the challenge that much tougher for this Montreal team.

When Kori Cheverie headed into Game 5 of the Minnesota series, she promoted Catherine Dubois to the first line. While it was clearly the right decision in that game, throughout this first game of the finals, Cheverie probably realized she needed to bring her powerhouse top line back together. “I wanted to see if I could maybe just spark something,” shared Cheverie postgame. It was definitely a move the head coach didn’t regret when Abby Roque scored to tie the game in the third.

Did It For Stacey

The final two minutes of the third period were pure madness. It started when Laura Stacey went down hard after a hit that was very clean, but the pain she appeared to be in looked excruciating. A sense of concern was felt all around Place Bell as she even seemed to be spasming on the ice. With 20 seconds left on the clock, Montreal was angry, desperate, and hungry to tie the game. And with only 2 seconds left, that is exactly what they did. Rookie Nicole Gosling saved the day, sending Place Bell, even though it was less crowded than usual, sounding like the Bell Centre.

And to everyone’s surprise, even her teammates’, Laura Stacey came back onto the ice in overtime. “She’s a fighter, willing to do anything it takes to help her team.” And then, the cherry on top: 2:29 into overtime, Abby Roque scored the game-winning goal off a shot that deflected off her head. Yes, her head. Place Bell felt like it was shaking. “Definitely a crazy sequence of events,” laughed Roque. “When Stacey goes down, everyone knew they wanted to put their best foot forward.” It remains quite unclear how badly Stacey is hurt, especially considering the way she returned to the ice, but for now, all Kori Cheverie shared was that there was “nothing medically” she was aware of yet.

Playoff Abby Roque Has Been Unlocked

When Montreal acquired Abby Roque during the offseason, part of the excitement was finally getting to see her play playoff hockey. And tonight, she proved exactly why Victoire fans had every reason to be pumped. “Abby’s a player with a lot of character. She’s someone who loves these moments,” said Desbiens. “She eats hockey every day, her vision of the game makes a huge difference, and I love having her on my team because, if not, she can be really annoying,” laughed Desbiens. As the answer was given in French, Abby laughed at the fact she couldn’t understand what was just said. But when Desbiens turned to her and said, “I just said I like having you on my team,” Abby smiled back: “Me too.”

Ottawa Charge forward Rebecca Leslie, one of Ottawa’s most prolific scorers during the regular season, was definitely not kept off the scoresheet tonight, scoring the only two goals for her team.

Game 2 at Place Bell is set for Saturday at 2 p.m., with Montreal leading the series 1-0.