Surrey’s own Jenn Gardiner scored 4 goals to help secure the Vancouver Goldeneyes 6-5 overtime victory over the Seattle Torrent Saturday. She also made history as the first PWHL player to score four goals in a game.
Despite winning, the Goldeneyes were eliminated from the race in securing fourth and the final playoff spot. They needed to win in regulation to earn enough points.
Seattle hosted Vancouver at the Climate Pledge Arena in front of 12,719 fans. This was the first time that they had played in Seattle’s arena, as the other games were at home at the Pacific Coliseum or part of the PWHL Take Over Tour.
Vancouver was down 2-0 after the second period, but Gardiner responded just over 19 minutes into the second period, and Hannah Miller scored for Vancouver 3 minutes into the third, tying the game.
Gardiner scored again just over 9 minutes into the third, giving Vancouver the lead for the first time in the game.
Seattle responded by scoring three goals in six minutes, including an empty-netter, giving them the lead again.
With the playoffs still on the line, this did not stop Vancouver from driving to the net, and Gardiner scored again.
With less than 2 seconds left in the third period, Hannah Miller scored to tie the game, forcing it into overtime.
Just under a minute into overtime, Gardnier scored again, securing the 6-5 win for her team.
Miller also made PWHL history during Saturday’s game with two four-point performances by becoming the first player in league history with two career four-point games after scoring two goals and two assists on Feb. 19, 2025, with Toronto.
Goldeneyes Captain Ashton Bell said on winning the game but being eliminated from playoff contention, “It’s a bittersweet moment. Heading into that third, we knew we had to get a regulation win in order to keep moving on. That’s obviously a tough pill to swallow, just knowing that this group won’t be the same next year with expansion. But I’m just proud of the group and how we came back and we kept believing. To see Jenn get not only a hat trick, but four goals and to see that line do so well was pretty cool to watch.”
Vancouver’s Izzy Daniel was not on the roster Saturday after a puck hit her in the side of the head during Tuesday’s game against Seattle. Gabby Rosenthal was also not in the lineup for Tuesday’s game as she is listed day-to-day with an upper-body injury.
Carly Jackson had their first-ever start as a member of Torrent and they made 36 saves of 42 shots.
CJ Jackson, on their first start, said, “That was a crazy hockey game. And although it feels pretty heartbreaking right now, I know that the thing I’m going to remember is all the love I felt during that game. That was pretty special, and I just feel really honoured to play for this city. I wish we got a win, but that was really special to get to experience.”
Kristen Campbell came in as relief for Emerance Maschmeyer at the start of the second period and saved 14 of 17 shots, while Maschmeyer saved 7 of 9 shots on net.
Seattle was eliminated from playoff contention on Tuesday during its game against the Goldeneyes and is the first team to start collecting points towards the “gold plan.”
“In the PWHL’s ‘Gold Plan’, the non-playoff team that accumulates the most draft order points will earn the first overall pick in the 2026 PWHL Entry Draft,” noted a PWHL news release April 15.
Seattle earned one point with the overtime loss Saturday (April 18). Vancouver can start collecting points on Tuesday when they face Montréal and on Saturday against Minnesota.
About the Author: Anna Burns
I cover breaking news, health care, court, Vancouver Rise FC, Vancouver Goldeneyes and social issues-related topics for the Surrey Now-Leader. anna.burns@surreynowleader.com Follow Anna on Twitter.