Latest news with #DanièleSauvageau
New York Times
04-06-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
PWHL expansion signings tracker: Vancouver adds Defender of the Year finalist Claire Thompson
The Professional Women's Hockey League is expanding to Seattle and Vancouver. Now it's time for the league's newest franchises to start building their first-ever rosters. A five-day signing window officially opened on June 4, where each team can sign up to five players — either pending free agents or players left unprotected — ahead of the expansion draft on June 9. Advertisement With only three protection slots available for the PWHL's six existing teams, star players will be on the move. As Montreal Victoire general manager Danièle Sauvageau said, 'It's a great buffet that those expansion teams have.' This story will be updated as signings are announced this week before the window closes on Sunday at 5 p.m. ET. Claire Thompson, 27, Defense (Minnesota Frost) Vancouver's historic first signing is a foundational — truly elite — player. Thompson is a dynamic offensive defender, an Olympic record holder, Walter Cup champion and a Defender of the Year finalist. She was also Minnesota's third-overall pick 12 months ago. Despite her credentials, it's not a surprise that Thompson was left unprotected — the Frost protected shutdown defender Lee Stecklein, and forwards Taylor Heise and Kendall Coyne Schofield — which really highlights how favorable the expansion rules are for the new teams. Thompson is an offensive threat who can bring speed and a dynamic ability to the blue line. She finished third in scoring among defenders and had a league-leading 15 primary assists through the regular season and playoffs. Thompson's instincts are truly what set her apart from other offensive defenders — she can make plays on the blue line that others might not even attempt, but also has the speed and defensive ability to get back if the play goes the other way. Vancouver is a natural fit for Thompson. She's Canadian and played for four years under former Princeton coach Cara Morey, who is now Vancouver's general manager. Thompson put medical school on hold to return to the PWHL and the 2026 Milan Olympics, so there's a chance that she might only play for one season and return to NYU when her contract expires in 2026. That Vancouver would use one of its five signing slots on potentially one year of Thompson is a testament to how talented she is.
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Montreal Chooses Ottawa Setting PWHL Playoff Match Ups
The first place Montreal Victoire made their official playoff pick for their opening round opponent choosing the Ottawa Charge. It's a rule in the PWHL that the first overall team can select from the third and fourth place finishers, choosing who they'd like to play first. 'Ever since the league implemented this rule in the first year, we had discussed how we would reflect about the decision if we ever had the privilege to finish a season in first place, and we have stuck to this plan," said Montréal Victoire General Manager, Danièle Sauvageau. "We followed our process, we had thoughtful discussions, and we kept our emotions out of the decision making, which will give us a series close to home." Montreal outscored Ottawa 15-12 this season and won the season series 4-2. Ottawa however, won their final two games of the season against Montreal. Montreal's choice was between the third seed Charge and the fourth place Minnesota Frost. Logistically, playing Ottawa gives Montreal more rest and shorter travel. Minnesota and Ottawa finished tied in the standings with 44 points each, but Ottawa finished third on account of having more regulation wins than Minnesota. Montreal had an identical 4-2 record against Minnesota this season as well. Last year the Toronto Sceptres chose the Minnesota Frost, this season they had the Frost chosen for them. Finishing first in year one, the Sceptres chose the Frost for their opening round opponents, but ended up losing in five games. Minnesota went on to win the inaugural Walter Cup title.
CBC
04-05-2025
- Sport
- CBC
Montreal Victoire choose 1st-round opponent in PWHL playoffs
The Montreal Victoire will face the Ottawa Charge in the opening round of the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) playoffs. Montreal general manager Danièle Sauvageau announced the selection of Ottawa as its first opponent on Sunday on the league's Jocks in Jills podcast. The regular-season PWHL champion has the option of selecting either the third seed or the fourth seed to face in a best-of-five first-round series. The Charge finished third, ahead of the fourth-place Minnesota Frost through a tiebreaker. The Victoire's decision means the second-seeded Toronto Sceptres will face the Frost in the first round for the second straight year. The Charge, who are in the playoffs for the first time, won their last two regular-season games against the Victoire after losing the first four. In the inaugural 2024 season, the regular-season champion Sceptres elected to face the fourth-seeded Frost in the first round. Minnesota went on to upset Toronto before defeating the Boston Fleet in the final to claim the first Walter Cup.
Montreal Gazette
04-05-2025
- Sport
- Montreal Gazette
Victoire select Ottawa as first-round opponent in PWHL playoffs
Montreal Victoire The PWHL regular-season champion Montréal Victoire bucked the standings on Sunday in selecting to open the playoffs facing the third-place Ottawa Charge. In making the announcement, general manager Danièle Sauvageau said the team followed a process that included consulting with her staff and players. Sauvageau, otherwise, didn't go into detail in choosing to face Ottawa over fourth-place Minnesota. 'There was a lot of considerations that went into it, there wasn't just one ingredient,' she said. The best-of-five semifinals open Wednesday, with second-place Toronto hosting defending champion Frost. Montreal will open its postseason on Thursday against the Charge, who are making their first postseason appearance. There was little to differentiate between Ottawa and Minnesota, given the teams finished in a three-way tie with Boston in having 44 points. Boston finished fifth based on having fewer regulation wins. Montreal finished the season series going 4-2 against both Ottawa and Minnesota — though the Charge won the final two outings, including a 3-2 victory on April 26. Since its launch in 2024, the six-team league adopted a rule in which the first-place team chooses whether to play the third- or fourth-place team rather than following the standings order. Last year, Toronto finished first and went with the 1 vs. 4 matchup in selecting Minnesota as its first-round opponent. The Frost rallied from a 2-0 series deficit to eliminate the Sceptres before going on to claim the first Walter Cup in winning a five-game series over Boston. The Victoire closed this season 4-4-2 and clinched first place on Saturday by virtue of Toronto's 2-1 overtime loss to Ottawa. Similar to how the PWHL's inaugural regular season ended last year, the playoff race came down to the final day with Ottawa and Minnesota clinching the final two spots along with Montreal securing first place. Ottawa secured its first playoff berth on Katerina Mrazova's goal to seal the Charge's 2-1 overtime win over Toronto. Minnesota clinched its berth while also eliminating Boston with an 8-1 win over the Fleet. The New York Sirens finished last for a second straight season. The PWHL is expanding to eight teams next season with the additions of Vancouver and Seattle.
San Francisco Chronicle
04-05-2025
- Sport
- San Francisco Chronicle
PWHL regular-season champion Montreal opts to open playoffs against 3rd-place Ottawa over Minnesota
The PWHL regular-season champion Montreal Victoire bucked the standings on Sunday in selecting to open the playoffs facing the third-place Ottawa Charge. In making the announcement, general manager Danièle Sauvageau said the team followed a process that included consulting with her staff and players. Sauvageau, otherwise, didn't go into detail in choosing to face Ottawa over fourth-place Minnesota. 'There was a lot of considerations that went into it, there wasn't just one ingredient,' she said. The best-of-five semifinals open Wednesday, with second-place Toronto hosting defending champion Frost. Montreal will open its postseason on Thursday against the Charge, who are making their first postseason appearance. There was very little to differentiate between Ottawa and Minnesota, given the teams finished in a three-way tie with Boston in having 44 points. Boston finished fifth based on having fewer regulation wins. Montreal finished the season series going 4-2 against both Ottawa and Minnesota — though the Charge won the final two outings, including a 3-2 victory on April 26. Since its launch in 2024, the six-team league adopted a rule in which the first-place team chooses whether to play the third- or fourth-place team rather than following the standings order. Last year, Toronto finished first and went with the 1 vs. 4 matchup in selecting Minnesota as its first-round opponent. The Frost rallied from a 2-0 series deficit to eliminate the Sceptres before going on to claim the first Walter Cup in winning a five-game series over Boston. The Victoire closed this season 4-4-2 and clinched first place on Saturday by virtue of Toronto's 2-1 overtime loss to Ottawa. Similar to how the PWHL's inaugural regular season ended last year, the playoff race came down to the final day with Ottawa and Minnesota clinching the final two spots along with Montreal securing first place. Ottawa secured its first playoff berth on Katerina Mrazova's goal to seal the Charge's 2-1 overtime win over Toronto. Minnesota clinched its berth while also eliminating Boston with an 8-1 win over the Fleet. The New York Sirens finished last for a second straight season. The PWHL is expanding to eight teams next season with the additions of Vancouver and Seattle.
