The players of the Professional Women’s Hockey League intend to do everything to ensure that the enthusiasm of the first season continues during the second campaign which will begin in the coming months.
After a year of discovery, even for the players, expectations have been greatly exceeded. If during year one, they were looking for a form of identity, they now want to consolidate the achievements under new colors and especially with a name, which defines each of the six LPHF formations.
Marie-Philip Poulin and Laura Stacey of the Montreal Victoire are already training with the hope of continuing to conquer the hearts of fans and continue to make little girls dream.
“It exceeded our expectations week after week and month after month,” Poulin admitted to the microphone of RDS. We thought it was a kind of honeymoon at first, but the more it went on, the more people got on board. The crowds were bigger each time. It was remarkable.”
“It’s like we lived five years in one year. It was both incredible and historic,” said Stacey. “It was a year of great emotions, but our elimination in the playoffs was a big disappointment for us. That’s why we resumed training in Verdun with great motivation.”
The importance of making sure the team, the league and women’s hockey progress is at the heart of the concerns of both players. “We’re going to continue to grow. We have such a good team behind us with management and everyone pushing together for women’s hockey. We’ve seen how people have worked with us, we just hope it continues,” added Poulin. “We want people to get on board and see how important it is. For little girls to be able to dream of being part of this team.”
“I don’t know how we can keep going higher, but that’s our goal,” Stacey said. “How can we push the envelope and continue to break the glass ceiling? It’s important to keep that enthusiasm going into Year 2.”
Both players love the new colours and names that define the teams Poulin and Stacey said that everyone was excited to receive the new names. They believe in the importance of having a name, a logo and to develop a form of attachment. At the start of the season, it will be like living a historical moment a second time. “This sense of belonging to this logo and this name is remarkable,” believes Poulin. “The Montreal Victory defines the team aspect and the sports teams. For us, it’s a state of mind.”
In addition, Poulin and Stacey will play a final series of the rivalry against the Americans this winter and a final world championship before the 2026 Olympic Games. Olympic preparation has begun, and it is also different from the last times because of the arrival of the LPHF. “For me, I have done four Olympic Games, and we always did centralizations in Calgary where we are together for six months. This year, it will be completely new. It will be up to us to do zooms, to meet when we can be together to improve, because it will happen pretty quickly.”
The Beauceronne believes that the creation of the league last year will just make the national teams better. “Having a league and playing full time, I think it’s just going to improve our game. Every team is going to be better and the level of play is going to be even better.”
Related News :