OTTAWA — Gwyneth Philips has gained confidence from the confidence she's felt from her teammates in her capabilities.
Philips turned heads with her stellar goaltending throughout the Charge’s semifinal series, playing a pivotal role in eliminating the league-best Montreal Victoire and securing Ottawa’s spot in the Walter Cup final against the Minnesota Frost in the Professional Women’s Hockey League.
Phillips leads all goaltenders with a .956 save percentage and 1.14 goals-against-average through four playoff games. She’s also the first rookie goaltender to post a playoff shutout.
“I have felt a lot more confident because I can feel that my teammates are feeling a little bit more confident with me,” said Philips. “So, that’s been my key to success, personally, is just knowing, like, how much they’re getting trust in me.”
The 24-year-old started the season as Emerance Maschmeyer’s backup and got a couple starts to give her veteran partner a break, but was thrust into the starter’s role when Maschmeyer suffered a lower-body injury on March 11.
Philips was solid down the stretch and finished the regular season with an 8-5-0-1 record (wins, losses, overtime loss, shootout loss).
She held Montreal captain Marie-Philip Poulin, who led the PWHL with 19 goals, to just one goal through the four-game series.
Success isn’t new for the Athens, Ohio, native, though.
Philips spent most of her collegiate career at Northeastern University as Aerin Frankel’s backup, who now plays for the Boston Fleet, playing just 16 games through her first three years. But when she got her chance, she took full advantage.
In her first full season as a starter at Northeastern, she posted a 34-3-1 record with a .960 save percentage to earn NCAA goaltender of the year honours.
She also had a solid fifth and final season for the Huskies. Philips concluded her NCAA career with a .958 save percentage, the highest in NCAA women’s hockey history and managed to balance that while working toward her degree in industrial engineering.
Charge goaltending coach Pierre Groulx said the team saw Philips' comfort playing in big games from their scouting trips to Northeastern. From a technical standpoint, they could tell she was solid and just a “great athlete.”
“She just has such a willingness to learn,” Groulx said. “It’s her willingness to learn from the moments that are difficult and to move on. She had some tough moments this year, but she bounced back.”
The Charge suffered a 3-2 quadruple overtime loss in Game 2 last Sunday. Rather than drop her head, Philips came back and made 26 saves to earn her first playoff shutout in a 1-0 Game 3 win on Tuesday.
“I think her best quality is just no moment is too big and she’s got a short memory,” said Groulx. “Big save or goal or whatever happens, she’s just on to the next moment, the next save.”
Her teammates love her ability to take things in stride and keep things light.
“She’s calm, cool and collected and silly and goofy all the time,” said forward Gabbie Hughes. “It could be the most intense moment of the game and she’s gonna crack a joke when you skate past her in the net for a faceoff.”
Backup goaltender Logan Angers, who became close friends with Philips, says a lot of what you see is what you get with Philips.
“She’s not bothered by things,” said Angers. “I think that’s a huge part of, kind of, who she is and how she plays.”
Despite having never met prior, the two became fast friends last fall, were roommates on the road and have become known for their TikTok videos.
Asked to describe Philips in three words, Angers said, “you can’t describe her without saying she’s a little weird, but I also think she’s very funny and collected and I think that’s been a real key to success for her.”
The Charge will be looking for that and more as they begin the championship series Tuesday night in Ottawa.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 18, 2025.
Lisa Wallace, The Canadian Press
