Ottawa Charge snaps four-game losing streak with OT win over defending PWHL champs

Not much has gone right for the Ottawa Charge this season, but it can at least now claim to being the only PWHL team to win a game in the Windy City.

Rookie Sarah Wozniewicz scored her first goal as a pro at 3:55 of overtime to give the Charge a 3-2 victory over the two-time defending champion Minnesota Frost at Chicago’s Allstate Arena on Sunday.

Wozniewicz, a third-round draft pick out of the University of Wisconsin who hails from Cochrane, Alta., took a shot from the high slot that deflected off a defender’s stick and went over the blocker-side shoulder of goalie Nicole Hensley to end a four-game losing streak for the last-place Charge.

The win, in front of 7,238 fans attending the first Takeover Tour game played at the 16,700-seat Rosemont, Ill. arena, bumped Ottawa’s points total to five with a record of 1-1-0-5 (wins, overtime wins, overtime losses and losses). Minnesota is tied for third in the eight-team league 10 points (3-0-1-2).

Ronja Savolainen’s first goal of the season gave the Charge a 1-0 lead after 20 minutes before Britta Curl-Salemme and Ottawa captain Brianne Jenner (with her third) exchanged goals in the second.

Mae Batherson, the younger sister of Ottawa Senators winger Drake Batherson, sent the game to overtime with her first of the season with just more than 16 minutes left in regulation time.

Gwyneth Philips was once again outstanding in the Charge net as Minnesota held a commanding 43-25 edge in shots on goal.

It was the 11th of 17 games between the teams to be decided by one goal.

The Charge concludes a stretch of five straight games on the road with a visit to Toronto to face the Sceptres on Tuesday.

Ottawa plays its first post-Christmas game at TD Place against the first-place Boston Fleet next Saturday at noon.