Ann-Sophie Bettez’s scrum was winding down, and the player would then be able to return to the locker room to prepare for her first game in Living Sisu, a three-on-three summer hockey league. It was there that a journalist asked her, quite simply, what she knew about what awaited her in 2024.
His half-amused, half-confused pout said everything you needed to understand. Fortunately for radio colleagues and La Presse readers, Bettez put his thoughts into words.
” It’s a good question. What I do know is that it will be 2024! she says laughing. I don’t know, we really don’t have any information, I’m not trying to hide things from you. But hopefully it will be a league that will grow for the best in women’s hockey. »
Almost two weeks after the creation of a new unified women’s league was announced, very few details are still known. What seems increasingly clear, however, is that very little will be left of the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF) and the seven teams that formed it.
La Force de Montréal was one of those seven teams. However, according to our information, practically all the staff members of the team have had their contracts canceled in recent days.
In fact, The Hockey News reported Sunday that this was the case for all PHF teams, even though the new entity had promised “relatively similar roles” for staff members in the new league.
This information does not exclude that the new league, which plans to launch its activities in January 2024, has a storefront in Montreal. Even according to Karell Émard, who played in the Professional Hockey Players Association (PWHPA), it would be very “surprising” if the metropolis was not one of the six markets where the league wishes to begin its activities.
“The collective agreement provides certain criteria for the six cities, so that they have an arena, an operational organization, all of this in a market that supports women’s hockey. In Montreal, we had the best Les Canadiennes fans, and those fans were great for the Force. Montreal should stand out in the markets that will meet the criteria. »
It is unclear, however, who will lead this potential team. Kevin Raphaël was president of the Force and obviously has the experience of having created an organization. He still hasn’t spoken publicly on the case.
Bettez also explained how she was saddened to see the adventure of the Force come to an end after only one year. “Last year, Kevin had a month or two to put together a team. We had such a structured schedule in a very short time. La Force was one of the best managed teams in the PHF. That’s the side that I find flat, all the effort that Kevin has put into the Force. »
It remains to be seen whether Raphaël will have the ear of the new entity, whether Montreal should indeed be one of the six targeted markets.
Sarah Lefort, another Force alum, put it most clearly: “We’re all in this together. Otherwise, whether they are from the PHF or the PWHPA, the players are swimming in the dark. “We can’t wait to get the information,” she added.
Bettez explained that the captains of the seven defunct PHF teams had created a committee “to be in contact with the commissioner and the ex-owners of the teams. We expect a communication from the league for the details.”
What do players want to know? “The target markets, how many teams there will be, the start date of the camp, she lists. Will there be a selection camp or a draft? It would be a good start. »
The way the transition is done could suggest that the players of the PHF start from further than those of the PWHPA, but Lefort does not agree. “I know what I have to do, I have to prepare, and they’ll just pick the best ones,” she insists.
“From what we heard, everyone is going to have a chance, no matter who you are. Then the reality is going to be that the best players are going to play,” adds Bettez.
“We’re on a level playing field,” also said Karell Émard, who played for Team Harvey’s in the PWHPA. “But it’s expected there will be six teams and once that’s done, there’s a camp, there won’t be any benefit for the PHF or PWHPA girls. »
In the meantime, the players are keeping in shape at the Hockey Etcetera complex, where Zachary Fucale is once again organizing the Living Sisu league.
“Three against three, the cardio works pretty well!” recalls Bettez. With the new league, we will have to change the time when we will be at the top of our form. Before, we were aiming for September or October and then it will be later. »
Within this summer league are players who until recently represented two different leagues and who will now have to fight for some 130 positions in the future entity.
“It brings a lightness, it brings us back to the ice as friends,” says Sarah Lefort. We will compete. We like that, pushing each other. Laughing, having fun, playing hockey, it will help. »
