Victoire clinch playoff spot, set PWHL point streak record in win over Goldeneyes

The Montreal Victoire are playoff-bound again in the Professional Women's Hockey League.

They're also surging with the post-season on the horizon — and doing it without their most valuable player.

Hayley Scamurra scored twice and Ann-Renee Desbiens made 18 saves as the Victoire blanked the Vancouver Goldeneyes 3-0 on Wednesday night in Laval, Que., extending their point streak to a league-record 12 games.

"I'm really proud of this group," coach Kori Cheverie said. "We've done it through a lot of adversity, through a lot of injuries, and it just seems like whoever we put on the ice and put in the lineup, they're able to get it done for us.

"That's a gritty team. That's a team that plays with character."

The Victoire (13-4-2-5), second in the eight-team PWHL with six regular-season games remaining, are 4-0-1-0 since captain Marie-Philip Poulin exited a 4-3 overtime loss to Boston with a lower-body injury on March 15.

The 12-game run has also included eight straight contests without top defender Erin Ambrose, who returned in a limited role Wednesday.

"It really shows the depth that this team has," said Desbiens, who recorded her sixth shutout of the season. "Important pieces can be out of our lineup, but we still manage to get points, to fight, to be difficult to play against. It helped us to break that record, and we take a lot of pride in that."

Victoire clinch playoff spot with shutout win over Goldeneyes

Laura Stacey, who assisted on both of Scamurra's goals to give her six points in five games without Poulin, highlighted contributions from across the lineup.

Catherine Dubois jumped from 13th forward to first-line winger in recent games, scoring four goals in a four-game stretch. On Wednesday, Scamurra slotted in as the