One of the youngest players on the ice on Monday night just happened to be one of the most important ones in keeping the Ottawa Charge alive in the Walter Cup final. Just three days after celebrating her 23rd birthday, rookie forward Peyton Hemp was celebrating the biggest goal in her hockey career alongside her Charge teammates.
“I don’t think anything comes close,” Hemp said when asked if she’s ever scored a more important goal. “That was just such a good team win, and we’re still in it, staying alive.”
With a 2-1 victory over the Montreal Victoire in front of a raucous 16,894 fans at the Canadian Tire Centre on Monday, the Charge is still alive and has started to claw its way back into this series, which now sits at 2-1 Montreal. That momentum shift all started with the hard work of Hemp.
Hemp helps keep Charge alive
With just seven minutes to go and Ottawa playing from behind 1-0 for the first time this series, Ronja Savolainen’s shot tipped off the stick of Gabbie Hughes in front of the net and found Hemp right on the doorstep. Her first goal of her young post-season career ended up being one of the most pivotal moments for the Charge in this series, tying the game and then ultimately paving the way for Rebecca Leslie’s game-winner just five minutes later.
But even though it’s the first time the Andover, Minn., native has been in the post-season spotlight after scoring two goals and nine points in the regular season, this gritty forward’s contributions are felt every time she steps on the ice.
“You just watch her and she’s just relentless on the ice, she’s obviously a tremendous skater, and obviously she’s doing a lot of the little things that sometimes you don’t see on the score sheet,” said Charge head coach Carla MacLeod.
The Charge got exactly what it was asking for when selecting the University of Minnesota captain in the fourth round of the 2025 draft: a player who wins puck battles in the corners, thinks defensively and exemplifies a strong hockey IQ. Those are characteristics which may not always be noticed or recognized, until moments like this one when Hemp drove hard to the net and found herself in the right place at the right time.
“She just won her race to the net, and it’s thrilling when players are rewarded for doing the right things, and she’s a great player for us and has been all season,” MacLeod said.
Never expected to be playing on the top line
But at draft time last June, the Charge probably never expected the 23-year-old fourth rounder to be playing 20 minutes a game on the team’s top shutdown line in the post-season. Playing alongside Emily Clark and Gabbie Hughes, this line has routinely been matched against some of the world’s best players during the playoffs, including Montreal’s top line of Marie-Philip Poulin, Laura Stacey and Abby Roque in this series. It’s a big role for a first-year player in this league when being asked to constantly defend against some of the players you idolized growing up. But Hemp has routinely shown she’s up to the task.
