PWHL’s Montreal, Ottawa battle in marathon playoff matchup

It took a while – a long while – but after a four-overtime battle between the PWHL’s Montreal Victoire and Ottawa Charge, they finally landed on a winner.

In Game 2 of the PWHL Playoffs Semifinal at Place Bell in Quebec on Sunday, the Victoire came away victorious after playing two full games of hockey and setting the record for the longest game in league history.

At 135:33, Victoire forward Catherine Dubois finally scored the game-winner in a dramatic 3-2 win to even the playoff series at one game apiece.

“I’m just happy we got a win and it’s over now,” said Dubois on the PWHL broadcast postgame.

Despite the five-and-a-half-hour runtime from puck drop until the game winner, fans stuck around for the whole ordeal, and Dubois made it worth their time.

For comparison’s sake, Sunday's game would be the ninth-longest game in the NHL's long history.

Montreal jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first two periods, only for Ottawa to tie the game with two goals of their own in the third.

Little did the players know at the time that at the end of regulation, they weren't even halfway through the game.

As the battle continued through the extra periods, Ottawa trainers started handing out mustard packets to players to help with muscle cramps (yes, apparently that’s a thing).

Both goalies stayed in from start to finish and, by the end of the night, each ended up with over 50 saves. Montreal goaltender Ann-Renée Desbiens tallied 63 saves while Ottawa goalie Gwyneth Philips finished at 53 saves.

All in all, the teams took 116 shots (65 for Ottawa, 56 for Montreal).

Monday is almost certainly a recovery day for both teams, as they meet again in Game 3 on Tuesday.