PWHL Toronto

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PWHL Toronto
CityToronto, Ontario
LeaguePWHL
Founded2023 (2023)
Home arenaMattamy Athletic Centre
Scotiabank Arena
ColoursBlue, black and white
     
Owner(s)Mark Walter Group
General managerGina Kingsbury
Head coachTroy Ryan
CaptainBlayre Turnbull
Websitetoronto.thepwhl.com
Current season

Toronto are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are one of the six charter franchises of the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL).

History[edit]

On August 29, 2023, it was announced that Toronto would be home to one of the PWHL's first six franchises.[1] The league announced on September 1 that Gina Kingsbury, the former vice president of hockey operations at Hockey Canada and general manager of the Canadian women's national team, would be the team's general manager.[2][3] On September 15, Troy Ryan, the head coach of the Canadian women's national team, was announced as the team's head coach.[4][5]

Toronto's first three players—Canadian national team members Sarah Nurse, Renata Fast and Blayre Turnbull—were signed to three-year deals on September 5, 2023.[6] The team selected 15 players at the inaugural PWHL draft on September 18; the team's first pick, at second overall, was veteran Canadian national team member Jocelyne Larocque.[7] Ahead of the start of the inaugural 2024 season, Turnbull was named team captain, with Fast and Larocque serving as assistant captains.[8]

In November 2023, it was announced that the team's colours would be blue, black, and white.[9] The same month, it was announced that the Mattamy Athletic Centre in the old Maple Leaf Gardens would become the home of Toronto's PWHL team.[10] On January 1, 2024, Toronto hosted the first ever PWHL game at Mattamy, with visiting New York posting a 4–0 victory over Toronto.[11] The teams faced each other again on January 5, with Toronto securing its first win by a score of 3–2; Natalie Spooner scored the first goal in team history in the second period.[12]

On February 16, 2024, Toronto hosted its first game at the Scotiabank Arena against Montreal dubbed by the league as "The Battle on Bay Street".[13] The game set a league and women’s hockey attendance record with a sellout crowd of 19,285, beating the previous record of 18,013 at the 2013 IIHF Women's World Championship.[14] Two months later, on April 20, Montreal hosted Toronto at the Bell Centre (the home of the NHL's Canadiens), selling out the arena and setting another new attendance record (21,105).[15] This game was known as "The Duel at the Top."[16]

Team[edit]

Current roster[edit]

As of March 20, 2024[17][18][19]
No. Nat Player Pos S/G Age Acquired Birthplace
51 Canada Victoria Bach F L 27 2023 Milton, Ontario
50 Canada Kristen Campbell G L 26 2023 Brandon, Manitoba
17 Canada Samantha Cogan F L 26 2023 Ottawa, Ontario
18 United States Jesse Compher F R 24 2023 Northbrook, Illinois
22 Canada Maggie Connors F L 23 2023 St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador
14 Canada Renata Fast (A) D R 29 2023 Hamilton, Ontario
6 United States Kali Flanagan D R 28 2023 Burlington, Massachusetts
41 Canada Brittany Howard F R 28 2023 St. Thomas, Ontario
37 Canada Erica Howe G L 31 2023 Ottawa, Ontario
70 Canada Carly Jackson G L 26 2023 Amherst, Nova Scotia
7 Canada Olivia Knowles D R 25 2023 Campbell River, British Columbia
3 Canada Jocelyne Larocque (A) D L 35 2023 Ste. Anne, Manitoba
19 Canada Rebecca Leslie F R 27 2023 Ottawa, Ontario
27 Canada Emma Maltais F L 24 2023 Burlington, Ontario
34 Canada Hannah Miller F L 28 2023 North Vancouver, British Columbia
12 Canada Allie Munroe D L 27 2023 Yarmouth, Nova Scotia
20 Canada Sarah Nurse F L 29 2023 Hamilton, Ontario
76 Canada Maude Poulin-Labelle D L 24 2023 Sherbrooke, Quebec
5 Canada Lauriane Rougeau D L 33 2023 Beaconsfield, Quebec
24 Canada Natalie Spooner F R 33 2023 Scarborough, Ontario
40 Canada Blayre Turnbull (C) F R 30 2023 Stellarton, Nova Scotia
10 Canada Alexa Vasko F L 25 2023 St. Catharines, Ontario
28 Canada Kaitlin Willoughby F R 29 2023 Prince Albert, Saskatchewan

Reserves[edit]

As of March 20, 2024[17][18][19]
No. Nat Player Pos S/G Age Acquired Birthplace
23 Canada Jess Jones F L 33 2024 Picton, Ontario
21 Canada Emma Keenan D L 26 2023 Calgary, Alberta
55 Canada Jessica Kondas D R 24 2023 Calgary, Alberta

Draft history[edit]

The 2023 PWHL Draft was held on September 18, 2023, using a "snake draft" format with the selection order reversing after each round; Toronto's first pick was second overall.[20] Toronto made the following selections:

2023 PWHL Draft
Rd Pick Player Nationality Position Previous team
1 2 Jocelyne Larocque  Canada Defence Team Adidas (PWHPA)
2 11 Emma Maltais  Canada Forward Ohio State Buckeyes (WCHA)
3 14 Kristen Campbell  Canada Goaltender Team Scotiabank (PWHPA)
4 23 Natalie Spooner  Canada Forward Team Scotiabank (PWHPA)
5 26 Jesse Compher  United States Forward Wisconsin Badgers (WHCA)
6 35 Kali Flanagan  United States Defence Boston Pride (PHF)
7 38 Victoria Bach  Canada Forward Team Scotiabank (PWHPA)
8 47 Brittany Howard  Canada Forward Toronto Six (PHF)
9 50 Allie Munroe  Canada Defence Connecticut Whale (PHF)
10 59 Mellissa Channell  Canada Defence Team Harvey's (PWHPA)
11 62 Maggie Connors  Canada Forward Princeton Tigers (ECAC)
12 71 Rebecca Leslie  Canada Forward Team Sonnet (PWHPA)
13 74 Hannah Miller  Canada Forward Shenzhen Kunlun Red Star (ZhHL)
14 83 Alexa Vasko  Canada Forward Team Sonnet (PWHPA)
15 86 Olivia Knowles  Canada Defence Minnesota Whitecaps (PHF)

References[edit]

  1. ^ Wyshynski, Greg (August 29, 2023). "Six inaugural franchises revealed for new PWHL". ESPN. Archived from the original on September 1, 2023. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  2. ^ "PWHL names six general managers as teams begin roster construction". Sportsnet. CP. September 1, 2023. Archived from the original on September 5, 2023. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  3. ^ Kennedy, Ian (September 1, 2023). "Gina Kingsbury To Step Away From Role With Hockey Canada". The Hockey News. Archived from the original on September 19, 2023. Retrieved September 17, 2023.
  4. ^ "Ryan, MacLeod headline PWHL coaches". Sportsnet. The Canadian Press. September 15, 2023. Archived from the original on September 17, 2023. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
  5. ^ Ngabo, Gilbert (September 15, 2023). "Team Canada coach Troy Ryan adds Toronto PWHL job". Toronto Star. Archived from the original on September 16, 2023. Retrieved September 17, 2023.
  6. ^ "Sarah Nurse, Blayre Turnbull and Renata Fast sign with Toronto's PWHL franchise". The Globe and Mail. CP. September 6, 2023. Archived from the original on September 7, 2023. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  7. ^ Kennedy, Ian (September 18, 2023). "Jocelyne Larocque Goes Second Overall To Toronto In PWHL Draft". The Hockey News. Archived from the original on September 21, 2023. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  8. ^ Martin, Curtis (December 30, 2023). "Turnbull Named Toronto's Captain". The Hockey News. Archived from the original on January 5, 2024. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
  9. ^ Kennedy, Ian (November 23, 2023). "PWHL Releases Jersey Designs". The Hockey News. Archived from the original on November 14, 2023. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
  10. ^ Glennie, Drew-Anne (November 3, 2023). "MAC Confirmed as PWHL Toronto's Home Rink". ontherecordnews.ca. Archived from the original on December 15, 2023. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
  11. ^ Donkin, Karissa (January 1, 2024). "New York shuts out Toronto in 1st PWHL game as Canada's Shelton leads the way". CBC Sports. Archived from the original on January 4, 2024. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
  12. ^ "Maltais' short-handed goal lifts Toronto over New York for 1st PWHL win". CBC Sports. AP. January 5, 2024. Archived from the original on January 8, 2024. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
  13. ^ "Scotiabank Arena to host PWHL's 'Battle on Bay Street' between Toronto, Montreal". CBC Sports. The Canadian Press. January 25, 2024. Archived from the original on January 26, 2024. Retrieved January 26, 2024.
  14. ^ Ibrahim, Abdulhamid (February 16, 2024). "PWHL Toronto tops Montreal 3-0 in front of record-setting crowd at Scotiabank Arena". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. Archived from the original on February 17, 2024. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
  15. ^ Rainbird, Daniel (April 20, 2024). "PWHL-leading Toronto clinches playoff berth, wins in OT before record crowd in Montreal". CBC Sports. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  16. ^ Rowe, Daniel J. (April 20, 2024). "Nurse OT winner breaks Montreal hearts as Toronto wins PWHL 'Duel at the Top'". CTV News. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  17. ^ a b Donkin, Karissa (December 12, 2023). "PWHL teams release final 23-player rosters ahead of Jan. 1 season opener". CBC Sports. Archived from the original on December 16, 2023. Retrieved December 28, 2023. Teams will also carry 3 reserve players for 2024 season
  18. ^ a b "PWHL Toronto Roster 2024 Regular Season". ThePWHL.com. Professional Women's Hockey League. Archived from the original on December 28, 2023. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  19. ^ a b "Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) Roster Updates". March 19, 2024.
  20. ^ Burgess, Melissa (September 2, 2023). "PWHL Introduces General Managers, Announces Draft Order". The Victory Press. Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved September 17, 2023.

External links[edit]

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