Just six more weeks until the playoffs, and all bets are off. The Montreal Roses have overtaken the Ottawa Rapids as the season leaders, with AFC Toronto squeezing into second place thanks to their goal differential. The Ottawa Rapids sit in third, no doubt eyeing retaking their spot at the top, while Vancouver and Halifax are fighting over fourth place. Last but not least, the Calgary Wild sit in last place, but there is no doubt they will leave their mark and cause mayhem in the standings.
Case in point: last week's matchups were complete chaos.
Montreal Roses 2-2 AFC Toronto (September 10, 2026)
Chippy was the theme of this high-energy game. Cloey Uddenburg, back from a three-game suspension, was called for grabbing the back of Mimi Allidou's shirt. Mina Solano earned a bloody lip from a headbutt scramble in front of the Roses' goal. Sarah Rollins punctuated the rivalry she has with Elyse Bennett with a hair tug during a scramble on the Roses' end of the field, earning a yellow card for her trouble.
Even with the carnage on the field, the Montreal Roses kept their focus and took every opportunity they had in the first half, with Lucy Cappadona and Anna Karpenko sending the ball downfield with a goal kick and allowing Hailey Whitacker to score the first goal of the night. The first half closed 1-0 with the Montreal Roses on top.
The second half continued the sharp physical contest, and it seemed like the Montreal Roses would scrape out the win with a second goal from A. Pierre-Louis. AFC Toronto, however, rebounded within the remaining 20 minutes, first with Lauren Rowe scoring in the 82nd minute, putting the score at 2-1, and then, with just two minutes before the 90-minute mark, Nikki Smalls tied the game. With seven minutes of stoppage time, the Montreal Roses did everything they could to get that critical third goal, but in the end, they walked out with a tied game, holding on to the top spot in the league, but now with AFC Toronto right on their heels.
Calgary Wild 1-0 Halifax Tides (September 12, 2026)
The Halifax Tides might have been hoping the NSL home-game curse would work in their favour in their match against the Calgary Wild. Meanwhile, with Teagan Stewart back from international duty, the Calgary Wild were no doubt ready to take the win in a trend that has shown the Wild not willing to hold back.
The first half was challenging for both teams as they fought to take control. The teams traded fierce exchanges down the field, keeping the ball moving. Anika Tóth had magnetic hands as she defended the goal and took a chance at diving for the ball just outside the goal to keep the Wild from a chance at scoring.
Calgary Wild's striker Jorian Baucom showed some fantastic footwork, weaving through the Halifax defence to nearly put it into the goal, but wasn't quite able to break the Halifax Tides' defence. A first half of both sides showing some real tenacity closed with a 0-0 tie.
In the second half, the Wild were eager to break the stalemate, and three minutes in, Teagan Stewart showed how dangerous she is: she got control of the ball as the defence rushed by and tapped it in for the first and only goal of the night. The challenges kept coming, but in the end, it was the Calgary Wild again demonstrating that they will not be ignored.
Vancouver Rise 4-0 Ottawa Rapid (September 13, 2026)
The Vancouver Rise shone bright in this game against the Ottawa Rapids. While their position in the standings is dire, the Rise always take the opportunity to remind everyone why they were the 2025 NSL champions.
It was bound to be a tough game for the Ottawa Rapids, as DB Pridham is still out with an injury, but it's unlikely anyone saw just how devastating the Vancouver Rise can be even when they are missing quite a few from their own roster. However, Audrey François, Jessica De Filippo, Latifah Abdu, and Josie Longhurst absolutely dominated in making the goals.
The Ottawa Rapids absolutely were making opportunities when they could, like Keera Melenhorst, who Jessica Wulf blocked in the first half. Unfortunately for the Ottawa Rapids, they never converted their shots into goals, ending the game 0 -4 against Vancouver.
Coming up: Week 22
Halifax Tides vs AFC Toronto at Wanderers Grounds (Saturday, September 19, 2026)
The Halifax Tides are just two points down from fourth place in the finals berth. As the games roll on, they will have fewer and fewer opportunities to climb back into fourth. Will they be able to score a win this week to get that critical spot, or will they dam their efforts?
Vancouver Rise vs Montreal Roses at Swangard Stadium (Saturday, September 19, 2026)
The Vancouver Rise versus the Montreal Roses. Just like the Tides, the Vancouver Rise need this win, and the Montreal Roses are going to have to pull out all the stops to hold off challengers to their first-place standing.
Ottawa Rapid vs Calgary Wild at TD Place (Sunday, September 20, 2026)
Coming from a crushing loss against the Vancouver Rise, the Ottawa Rapids are going to need to be on their toes as they face off with the Calgary Wild. Will the Ottawa Rapids wash out Calgary's streak, or will the Wild put the Tides out to dry?
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