Watts nets OT winner to help Sceptres snap skid, top Goldeneyes 2-1
Nurse scores in return for Goldeneyes
Daryl Watts scored the winner at 2:16 in overtime as the Toronto Sceptres defeated the Vancouver Goldeneyes 2-1 on Saturday at Scotiabank Arena in Professional Women's Hockey League action.
Savannah Harmon also scored for Toronto (4-1-3-5), which snapped a four-game losing streak. Raygan Kirk made 23 saves.
Sarah Nurse scored for Vancouver (3-1-2-7), which had its losing streak extended to three games. Emerance Maschmeyer stopped 42 shots.
Harmon scored on the power play off a Blayre Turnbull centring pass intended for Maggie Connors, who didn't get her stick on the puck. Harmon corralled the puck, lined herself up and wired a shot over Maschmeyer's right shoulder for her first of the year at 12:43 of the second period.
Nurse returns
Nurse suffered an arm injury and missed eight weeks after scoring in the Goldeneyes' season-opening win over fellow expansion team, Seattle Torrent, on Nov. 21. It was the first time Vancouver and Toronto met this season.
"I think the first shift is the one that you're kind of like, 'I want to get out there,"' she said. "And so I'm sitting on the bench, I'm waiting for (head coach Brian Idalski) to call my name and he didn't call it for a little bit.
"I think probably my second or third shift once I realized it's tough playing your former team, this is only my second game for Vancouver. And so looking at all these Sceptres jerseys that I played with for the last two years and I'm making sure not to pass to the other team. And so, I think it was probably my third shift that I was like, 'OK, I'm relaxed. I feel good."'
Nurse tied the game at 1-1 29 seconds after Savannah Harmon broke the scoreless tie in the second period for the Sceptres.
"It's a little dramatic to come back after two months in Toronto at Scotiabank," Nurse said. "So I knew that I wanted to make an impact on the ice. And I mean, that doesn't necessarily mean on the scoresheet, but you have to go to where goals are scored.
"And so I wanted get to the net front. We had a great play from our D, Nina (Jobst-Smith), and it ended up going in the net. And so it was great to get that goal for the girls."
Nurse was one of the first three players Toronto signed before the inaugural PWHL draft back in 2024. She spent two years with the team as a fan favourite and key part of the core.
However, she wasn't included on the protected player list when the expansion process began last summer. Nurse, who was shown plenty of love Saturday, was signed by Vancouver during the exclusive signing window in June before the expansion draft.
"It's so cool. The fans here, whenever we come to Scotiabank, it gets electric," she said. "There are a lot of Nurse signs out there, a lot Nurse jerseys, which meant a lot to me. Obviously, this is such a small league, and so everybody knows what's going on.
"And so all the signs saying, welcome back meant a lot to me, and I mean this was such a great game. We gave the fans a good show."
Nurse had another reason to show off her skill level on Saturday. The 31-year-old from Hamilton was named to the Canadian Olympic team last Friday despite having only played one game in the PWHL up to that point.
Although she's been a key member and mainstay on the national team, she knew she had to play to that elite level.
"I knew today coming back, I'm named to an Olympic team and I played one game this year and so I knew they were going to be watching me like a hawk," Nurse said. "So I wanted to come on and make sure that I showed them why I deserve to be on that team and how I can make an impact on this team (Vancouver) and get us back to a winning record."
The Goldeneyes have fallen well short of pre-season expectations, sitting seventh in the eight-team standings. Vancouver is just one point ahead of Seattle, having played three more games.
Idalski credited Nurse's return as providing a boost for his team.
"The process has been way slower than everyone's thought, but obviously having Sarah back was a bit of a lift and I thought it had a real impact just on the bench and locker room, the whole feeling in and around the club," he said.
Four former Sceptres suited up for the Goldeneyes on Saturday. Forwards Nurse and Izzy Daniel were signed away during the expansion process, Hannah Miller joined Vancouver through free agency and goalie Kristen Campbell, who was traded on draft night, backed up Maschmeyer.
Takeaways
Sceptres: Toronto dominated the opening period, tilting the ice and outshooting Vancouver 20-4. Things turned left for the Sceptres in the second. They were outshot 6-1 in the first 10 minutes of the period before Harmon broke the scoreless tie. Toronto made good on creating chances throughout the game but struggled to finish.
Goldeneyes: Nurse returned from an eight-week absence due to an arm injury and proved to be an immediate help for the struggling Goldeneyes. Vancouver was tied with Toronto for the worst scoring offences in the PWHL entering the game at 22 goals through 12 games.
Key moment
Watts missed her initial shot coming down the right side, but got the puck back, circled around the defence to get to her spot by the left faceoff circle and wired it past Maschmeyer to the delight of 17,856 in attendance.
Key stat
Toronto's four-game losing streak (0-0-1-3) entering Saturday's game was tied for the worst in franchise history.
Up next
Sceptres: Visit the Seattle Torrent on Tuesday.
Goldeneyes: Host the Sceptres on Thursday.
