Sceptres View ‘Battle on Bay Street’ as a Must-Win Game

The Toronto Sceptres’ leadership and coaches looked at their 2024-25 schedule and decided to break it into “series” of five games, simulating what a playoff series could be like.

As it turns out, after a set of seven games, then five more, the game at Scotiabank Arena (the second “Battle on Bay Street”) lands as a ‘game five’ scenario for the team that is as desperate as you can be at this point in the season.

Coach Troy Ryan said, “Instead of allowing everybody else to put the pressure on you and the pressure of the environment, they've decided to put a little bit of it on themselves. So I think it's actually really smart. I think it's creative. It puts the control more in your hands instead of letting the environment and the atmosphere take over the game for you.”

With the Sirens rolling into town feeling good after a ten-day break and two wins in a row, the Sceptres don’t have to manufacture the emotions necessary for a significant game atmosphere.

Sceptres’ captain Blayre Turbull stressed that the game itself is huge.

“It's a big game. Just the fact that it's at Scotiabank and we're expecting a really good crowd. It'll be a lot of fun and the atmosphere will be great. But it’s a must-win game for us, and that's our approach.”

The solution to the team’s current predicament is in the room, with the players.

“A lot of it is is putting some onus back on them instead of me,” said Ryan.

“Often what can happen is [when] your team's not getting wins, you can over-control it sometimes and you try to over-manage it, micromanage it. I think in a game like this, if they've taken this step to say, it's game five — you know, there's not a lot of coaches in the game five situation winning that game for them.”

Sirens’ captain Micah Zandee-Hart echoed the sentiment of playing in a big game being a good motivation.

“I think it's perfect to go into a game like this where we know it's going to be loud. It's going to be high energy right off the hop with both teams. Obviously it’s really exciting for them too — it's a home game for them at Scotiabank. So I think it's a great way to just get right into it.”

Ella Shelton, the Sirens’ assistant captain and native of Ingersoll, Ontario, said, “There's been lots of times that I've been to Scotiabank to watch the Leafs play, so to be there and to be around family members and friends, it's really exciting.

“This is just amplifying the women's game and seeing how many people are really supporting us.”

Last year’s game between Toronto and Montreal was an early historic moment for the league.

”I love the emotion that comes with it because there's just a different feel. This is what they've been fighting for their whole lives and this is what they've been looking forward to,” said Ryan.

“Obviously, Toronto against New York or Toronto against Montreal, are pretty special rivalries in sport in general. I'm just excited to be part of it.

“I'm optimistic that it could be that little jolt or that little lift that helps our group through what we're going through right now.”