Montreal Victoire's depth brings team 1 win away from 1st Walter Cup

Montreal Victoire defender Maggie Flaherty was shouting for the puck for what felt like minutes.

Plunked alone in front of Ottawa Charge goaltender Gwyneth Philips during overtime, Flaherty had plenty of real estate with the rest of the Charge players in the corner, surrounding Montreal captain Marie-Philip Poulin.

There were too many bodies for Poulin to muscle through with the puck. But out of the corner of her eye, she saw an opening, utilizing the vision that has helped her score in some of the biggest games this sport has seen.

She sent the puck to Flaherty's tape, and it was off her stick as soon as it touched it. Flaherty's one-timer beat Philips to give Montreal the 2-1 overtime win.

It put Montreal up 2-0 against the Ottawa Charge in the best-of-five Walter Cup final, just one win away from the franchise's first PWHL championship.

Montreal head coach Kori Cheverie was beaming on the bench after the overtime goal. On her mind was pride for how the team won, which looked a lot like how Montreal has been winning all season long.

This is a team that's built around its stars. But it's the depth this team has added that has gotten it to this point, the ingredient the Victoire had been missing on previous postseason runs that ended in the first round.

Flaherty's overtime winner puts Victoire 1 win away from a PWHL Walter Cup title

"There’s a lot of character," Poulin said about her team this season. "There’s a lot of people that are here for the right reason. They want to win. They want to do it for each other. They want to make a difference day in and day out."

That includes Flaherty, who signed with the Victoire as a free agent last summer.

She's a two-time Walter Cup champion with the Minnesota Frost who Cheverie