Vancouver Goldeneyes' Sarah Nurse (20) takes a shot on Montreal Victoire goaltender Ann-Renee Desbiens (35) during second period PWHL action in Laval, Que., Wednesday, April 1, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes

By The Canadian Press

Scamurra, Desbiens lead Victoire past Goldeneyes 3-0 to clinch PWHL playoff berth

Apr 1, 2026 | 7:48 PM

LAVAL — Hayley Scamurra scored twice and Ann-Renée Desbiens made 18 saves as the Montreal Victoire blanked the Vancouver Goldeneyes 3-0 on Wednesday night to clinch a playoff berth in the Professional Women’s Hockey League.

Desbiens, last season’s goalie of the year, registered her sixth shutout of the season as Montreal (13-4-2-5) won its third consecutive game. Laura Stacey and Skylar Irving added two assists each before 9,176 at Place Bell.

Emerance Maschmeyer stopped 25 shots for Vancouver (7-1-4-12) in a low-event game. The Goldeneyes were coming off a 3-2 win at Toronto on Sunday.

The Victoire will head to the post-season for a third straight year after exiting in the semifinals the past two seasons.

They rank second in the eight-team PWHL standings with six games remaining. The Goldeneyes, meanwhile, sit seventh in their inaugural season.

Scamurra, who later added an empty-net goal, finally broke the deadlock 8:28 into the third period after more than 40 minutes of disjointed play, with several offsides and missed power-play opportunities.

From behind the net, Stacey found Scamurra alone in the slot and the U.S. national team forward hammered a one-timer past Maschmeyer.

Desbiens held the pressing Goldeneyes off the board in the second period, denying scoring chances from Anna Meixner on two occasions as well as Sarah Nurse and Hannah Miller off the rush.

The Victoire dominated the shot count 9-4 in the first period without producing dangerous looks. They went 0-for-4 on the power play in the game.

Takeaways

Victoire: Erin Ambrose, the PWHL’s defender of the year in 2024, returned from an eight-game absence after sustaining a lower-body injury in Canada’s loss to the United States in the Olympic gold-medal game on Feb. 19. She played 14:29 in a limited role Wednesday. Captain Marie-Philip Poulin (lower body) remained on long-term injured reserve until at least Sunday.

Goldeneyes: Forwards Jenn Gardiner and Abby Boreen were back at Place Bell after spending last season with the Victoire. Gardiner, a Surrey, B.C., product and member of Canada’s Olympic team, had five goals and 13 assists across 30 games as a rookie before signing with Vancouver in the expansion window last summer.

Key moment

Scamurra scored an empty-net goal with 1:37 remaining. Maggie Flaherty iced the win with another empty-netter with 42 seconds left.

Key stat

Montreal set a league record by extending its point streak to 12 games (8-2-2-0).

Up next

Victoire: Visit the Ottawa Charge on Friday at Canadian Tire Centre, home of the NHL’s Senators.

Goldeneyes: Visit the Minnesota Frost on Saturday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 1, 2026.

Daniel Rainbird, The Canadian Press