The Ottawa Charge are heading back to the Walter Cup Finals, and they did it in dramatic fashion. Michela Cava scored her first goal as a member of the Charge in double overtime, lifting her team to a thrilling 4-3 victory over the Boston Fleet in Game 4 of their semifinal series. The win secures Ottawa's second consecutive trip to the finals, where they'll await the winner of the Montreal-Minnesota matchup.

It's a remarkable achievement for a team that, on paper, probably shouldn't have made it this far. Throughout the four-game series, the Charge were consistently outplayed and outshot by the league's second-best team. Yet here they are, standing tall with another shot at bringing the Walter Cup north of the border for the first time in league history.

The biggest story of this series—aside from the thrilling finish—has been the sheer volume of shots Ottawa surrendered and the incredible response from goaltender Gwyneth Philips. Over four games, the Charge were outshot 142-94, including a 46-33 disadvantage in Game 4 alone. That's an average of 35.5 shots against per game. Under normal circumstances, that kind of defensive gap spells the end of a playoff run. But Philips has been anything but ordinary. She finished the series with 135 saves and a .951 save percentage—just one point below her playoff MVP performance from last year. It's safe to say Ottawa's season would have looked very different without her steadying presence between the pipes.

While the Charge celebrate their advancement, there's still work to be done. The power play, in particular, needs attention—not just the results, but the structure. Ottawa went 1-for-1 in the series-clinching game, but finished just 2-for-13 (15.4%) overall. While that's only slightly below their regular-season rate of 17.8%, the concern lies in how they're setting up with the man advantage. With the finals looming, tightening that unit could be the difference between a runner-up finish and making history.