The Montreal team of the new Professional Women’s Hockey League (LPFH) does not yet have a name, but it does have its first three players. Forwards Marie-Philip Poulin and Laura Stacey, as well as goaltender Ann-Renée Desbiens, will wear his colors… whatever they are.
The information was reported Tuesday evening by journalist Jeff Marek, of Sportsnet. The team has yet to make an official announcement, however; the details of the contracts are therefore not known.
Let’s take a look at these signatures, which offer, in a way, a first idea of the identity of this new team led by general manager Danièle Sauvageau.
Does Marie-Philip Poulin still need an introduction? The Quebecer, figurehead of women’s hockey in the country, has been one of the best players in the world for several years; his signature by the Montreal team makes sense. We bet that Poulin’s number was the first dialed by Sauvageau.
It wouldn’t be surprising if Poulin was named team captain; a title she has held for almost ten years with Team Canada. Wherever she went throughout her career, the Beauceronne dominated. All will remember, among other things, his two goals in the final of the Vancouver Olympics; Canada won 2-0 over the United States.
Over the years, Poulin led the Canadian team to three Olympic gold medals and one silver medal. She is also the only hockey player in history to have scored goals in four consecutive Olympic finals. His medal box, if such a thing exists, also contains nine medals (two gold, six silver and one bronze) in World Championships. The 32-year-old has also been a player development consultant for the Montreal Canadiens for the past year.
Poulin, whose humility and accessibility have often been praised, has been the face of his sport for several years. Now she will be the face of the new Montreal team.
Danièle Sauvageau has also secured the services of one of the best goalkeepers on the market in Ann-Renée Desbiens. La Presse also revealed on Monday that the Quebecer had received offers from four LPHF teams. She finally decided to stay home.
Desbiens, 29, allowed just 9 goals on 150 shots in the last Olympics, maintaining a .940 save rate and 1.80 goals-against average.
As for Stacey, a 29-year-old Ontarian, she had two goals and two assists in Beijing. The forward played for Dartmouth College in NCAA Division 1 before joining the national team in 2016-17. Her connection to Quebec is also evident: Stacey is married to Marie-Philip Poulin.
Remember that the free agent market has been open since last Friday. Teams have ten days to agree with a maximum of three players.
Forwards Emily Clark and Brianne Jenner, as well as goaltender Emerance Maschmeyer signed with Ottawa on Tuesday.
Also according to Jeff Marek, the Toronto team would have come to an agreement with forwards Sarah Nurse and Blayre Turnbull, as well as defender Renata Fast. It would also seem that attackers Abby Roque and Alex Carpenter are among the first players of the New York team.
The 23 players on each team will have to pocket an average sum of US$55,000, the equivalent of approximately C$75,000. A maximum of nine athletes will be able to earn the minimum wage of US$35,000 (just under C$48,000), and at least six female players must pocket US$80,000 and above (some C$109,000).
A 15-round expansion draft will be held on September 18.
