The PWHL regular-season champion Montreal Victoire bucked the standings on Sunday in selecting to open the playoffs facing the third-place Ottawa Charge.
In making the announcement, general manager Danièle Sauvageau said the team followed a process that included consulting with her staff and players. Sauvageau, otherwise, didn’t go into detail in choosing to face Ottawa over fourth-place Minnesota.
“There was a lot of considerations that went into it, there wasn’t just one ingredient,” she said.
The best-of-five semifinals open Wednesday, with second-place Toronto hosting defending champion Frost. Montreal will open its postseason on Thursday against the Charge, who are making their first postseason appearance.
There was very little to differentiate between Ottawa and Minnesota, given the teams finished in a three-way tie with Boston in having 44 points. Boston finished fifth based on having fewer regulation wins.
Montreal finished the season series going 4-2 against both Ottawa and Minnesota — though the Charge won the final two outings, including a 3-2 victory on April 26.
Since its launch in 2024, the six-team league adopted a rule in which the first-place team chooses whether to play the third- or fourth-place team rather than following the standings order.
Last year, Toronto finished first and went with the 1 vs. 4 matchup in selecting Minnesota as its first-round opponent. The Frost rallied from a 2-0 series deficit to eliminate the Sceptres before going on to claim the first Walter Cup in winning a five-game series over Boston.
The Victoire closed this season 4-4-2 and clinched first place on Saturday by virtue of Toronto’s 2-1 overtime loss to Ottawa.
Similar to how the PWHL’s inaugural regular season ended last year, the playoff race came down to the final day with Ottawa and Minnesota clinching the final two spots along with Montreal securing first place.
Ottawa secured its first playoff berth on Katerina Mrazova’s goal to seal the Charge’s 2-1 overtime win over Toronto. Minnesota clinched its berth while also eliminating Boston with an 8-1 win over the Fleet.
The New York Sirens finished last for a second straight season. The PWHL is expanding to eight teams next season with the additions of Vancouver and Seattle.
AP Women’s Hockey: https://apnews.com/hub/womens-hockey
Montreal Victoire's Laura Stacey (7) celebrates with teammates after scoring the winning goal in overtime during PWHL hockey game action against the Boston Fleet in Laval, Quebec, Monday, April 28, 2025. (Peter McCabe/The Canadian Press via AP)
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Richard “Dick” Codey, a former acting governor of New Jersey and the longest serving legislator in the state's history, died Sunday. He was 79.
Codey’s wife, Mary Jo Codey, confirmed her husband’s death to The Associated Press.
“Gov. Richard J. Codey passed away peacefully this morning at home, surrounded by family, after a brief illness,” Codey's family wrote in a Facebook post on Codey's official page.
"Our family has lost a beloved husband, father and grandfather -- and New Jersey lost a remarkable public servant who touched the lives of all who knew him," the family said.
Known for his feisty, regular-guy persona, Codey was a staunch advocate of mental health awareness and care issues. The Democrat also championed legislation to ban smoking from indoor areas and sought more money for stem cell research.
Codey, the son of a northern New Jersey funeral home owner, entered the state Assembly in 1974 and served there until he was elected to the state Senate in 1982. He served as Senate president from 2002 to 2010.
Codey first served as acting governor for a brief time in 2002, after Christine Todd Whitman’s resignation to join President George W. Bush’s administration. He held the post again for 14 months after Gov. Jim McGreevey resigned in 2004.
At that time, New Jersey law mandated that the Senate president assume the governor’s role if a vacancy occurred, and that person would serve until the next election.
Codey routinely drew strong praise from residents in polls, and he gave serious consideration to seeking the Democratic nomination for governor in 2005. But he ultimately chose not to run when party leaders opted to back wealthy Wall Street executive Jon Corzine, who went on to win the office.
Codey would again become acting governor after Corzine was incapacitated in April 2007 due to serious injuries he suffered in a car accident. He held the post for nearly a month before Corzine resumed his duties.
After leaving the governor’s office, Codey returned to the Senate and also published a memoir that detailed his decades of public service, along with stories about his personal and family life.
“He lived his life with humility, compassion and a deep sense of responsibility to others,” his family wrote. “He made friends as easily with Presidents as he did with strangers in all-night diners.”
Codey and his wife often spoke candidly about her past struggles with postpartum depression, and that led to controversy in early 2005, when a talk radio host jokingly criticized Mary Jo and her mental health on the air.
Codey, who was at the radio station for something else, confronted the host and said he told him that he wished he could “take him outside.” But the host claimed Codey actually threatened to “take him out,” which Codey denied.
His wife told The Associated Press that Codey was willing to support her speaking out about postpartum depression, even if it cost him elected office.
“He was a really, really good guy,” Mary Jo Codey said. “He said, ‘If you want to do it, I don’t care if I get elected again.’”
Jack Brook contributed reporting from New Orleans.
FILE - New Jersey State Sen. and former Democratic Gov. Richard Codey is seen before New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy delivers his State of the State address to a joint session of the Legislature at the statehouse, in Trenton, N.J., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)
