Montreal Victoire

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Montreal Victoire
Victoire de Montréal (French)
CityLaval, Quebec
LeagueProfessional Women's Hockey League
Founded2023
Home arenaPlace Bell
ColoursBurgundy, sand, storm
     
OwnerMark Walter Group
General managerDanièle Sauvageau[1]
Head coachKori Cheverie[2]
CaptainMarie-Philip Poulin
Websitemontreal.thepwhl.com
Championships
Regular season titles2 (2024–25, 2025–26)
Walter Cups1 (2025–26)
Current season

The Montreal Victoire (French: Victoire de Montréal) are a professional ice hockey team based in the Greater Montreal area that competes in the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL). They are one of the six charter franchises of the league. The team plays its home games at Place Bell in Laval, Quebec. The Victoire are the current Walter Cup champions, having won the championship in 2026.[3]

History

Founding and inaugural season (2023–24)

On August 29, 2023, it was announced that one of the PWHL's first six franchises would be located in Montreal.[4] On September 1, Danièle Sauvageau, the one-time coach for Canada's national team, was announced as the team's general manager.[5] Kori Cheverie, a former assistant coach with the Canadian national team and the first woman to have coached a Canadian men's hockey team, was named the team's inaugural coach on September 13.[6][7] Montreal's first three players—Canadian national team members Marie-Philip Poulin, Laura Stacey, and Ann-Renée Desbiens—were signed on September 5, 2023.[8] At the 2023 PWHL Draft on September 18, the team selected 15 players; their first pick, at sixth overall, was Canadian national team member Erin Ambrose.[9]

The team colours were officially announced on November 14, 2023, as burgundy, "sand", and "storm".[10] Later that month, it was revealed that the team would host the majority of its games at the Verdun Auditorium, with four games at Place Bell.[11][12] On December 29, the team announced that Poulin would serve as team captain, with Stacey and Erin Ambrose serving as assistant captains.[13]

Montreal celebrating a victory over PWHL Minnesota in 2024.

Montreal's first ever game took place on January 2, 2024, against PWHL Ottawa; the 8,318 fans in attendance at Ottawa's TD Place Arena set a new attendance record for professional women's hockey.[14] Claire Dalton scored the first goal in franchise history. Although Montreal twice trailed in the game, Ann-Sophie Bettez scored in overtime to secure the team's first win by a score of 3–2.[14] The team hosted its first home game on January 13, with PWHL Boston securing a 3–2 overtime win in front of a sold-out crowd at Verdun Auditorium.[15]

On February 16, 2024, Montreal played a match hosted by PWHL Toronto at Scotiabank Arena in a game dubbed "The Battle on Bay Street".[16] The game set a league and women's hockey attendance record with a sell-out crowd of 19,285, beating the previous record of 18,013 at the 2013 IIHF Women's World Championship.[17] Two months later, on April 20, Montréal hosted Toronto in its first-ever home match at the Bell Centre, selling out the arena and setting another new attendance record at 21,105.[18] This game was known as "The Duel at the Top", with the two teams vying for first place in the standings.[19] Montréal managed to draw large crowds throughout the season.[20]

Montreal clinched a berth in the inaugural PWHL playoffs on March on April 24 with a 5–2 win over PWHL New York.[21] They faced Boston in the first round of the playoffs, and lost three straight games in overtime—including a triple-overtime affair in the second game of the series—to get eliminated from contention.[22][23] After the season, Erin Ambrose was named the league's top defender for its inaugural year.[24]

Regular season titles and Walter Cup (2024–present)

In September 2024, the team announced that Place Bell would serve as its primary home venue for the 2024–25 season.[25] The Victoire enjoyed success in the regular season, finishing first in the league.[26] Team captain Poulin led the league in goals,[27] and subsequently became the first Victoire player to receive the PWHL's Billie Jean King Most Valuable Player honour.[28] As well, the International Ice Hockey Federation named her the IIHF Female Player of the Year for her feats with both the Victoire and the Canadian national team.[29] The Victoire faced the Ottawa Charge in the semi-finals of the Walter Cup playoffs, but were ousted in four games.[30]

With the arrival of the PWHL's first expansion teams, the Seattle Torrent and Vancouver Goldeneyes, the Victoire lost four players in the 2025 expansion draft, including defender Cayla Barnes to the Torrent.[31] The 2025–26 season would see further success, despite the loss of Poulin to injury for much of March and April.[32] The Victoire were notably dominant on home ice, with an 11–2–1–1 record at Place Bell and the Bell Centre,[33] and finished with a 17–5–2–6 record overall. They tied the Boston Fleet to lead the league with 62 points, winning their second consecutive regular season title on the tiebreaker after a shootout victory over the Torrent in the final game of the season.[34] The Victoire achieved their first postseason series victory, defeating the Frost in five games to reach the Walter Cup Finals for the first time.[35] Facing the Ottawa Charge in the finals, the Victoire prevailed in a four-game series, becoming the first Canadian team to hoist the Walter Cup.[36]

Season-by-season record

Key of colours and symbols
Colour/symbol Explanation
† Indicates League Championship
* Indicates Regular Season Championship
Year by year results
Season GP RW OW OL RL Pts GF GA GD Finish Playoffs
2023–24 2410356416057+32ndLost Semifinal, 0–3 (PWHL Boston)
2024–25* 3012738537767+101stLost Semifinal, 1–3 (Ottawa Charge)
2025–26* † 3016626627841+371stWon Walter Cup, 3–1 (Ottawa Charge)

Team identity

Inaugural season logo for PWHL Montreal.

Montreal operated without league branding during the PWHL's inaugural season, along with the other charter franchises. The team was known as PWHL Montreal and wore a league-wide jersey template that featured the city's name diagonally on the front.[37] The team did have its own colour scheme, featuring burgundy, black, and beige. In October 2023, the league registered a trademark for the name Montreal Echo.[38] Ultimately, when the league unveiled franchise names in September 2024, the team was given the name Victoire; it is a nod to the city's history of success in ice hockey.[39] According to a report from The Hockey News, other names in contention for the team included the Lumieres and Metro.[40] In addition to the Victoire name, the team's logo was unveiled, featuring "MV" initials and a fleur-de-lis, Quebec's national symbol.[39] The team retained its colour scheme.

Players and personnel

Current roster

As of 20 June 2026[41][42][43]
No. Nat Player Pos S/G Age Acquired Birthplace
30 Germany Sandra Abstreiter G L 27 2024 Freising, Germany
35 Canada Ann-Renée Desbiens G L 32 2023 La Malbaie, Quebec
22 Canada Jessica DiGirolamo D R 27 2025 Mississauga, Ontario
26 Canada Jade Downie-Landry F L 30 2025 Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec
Canada Jessie Eldridge F R 28 2026 Barrie, Ontario
91 United States Maggie Flaherty F L 26 2025 Lakeville, Minnesota
12 Canada Tamara Giaquinto D L 24 2025 Toronto, Ontario
13 Canada Alexandra Labelle F L 30 2024 Saint-Louis-de-Gonzague, Quebec
Canada Emma Maltais F L 26 2026 Burlington, Ontario
93 Italy Nadia Mattivi D L 26 2026 Baselga di Pinè, Italy
29 Canada Marie-Philip Poulin (C) Injured Reserve F L 35 2023 Beauceville, Quebec
11 United States Abby Roque F R 28 2025 Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan
7 Canada Laura Stacey (A) F R 32 2023 Mississauga, Ontario
9 Canada Kati Tabin D L 29 2023 Winnipeg, Manitoba
1 Canada Megan Warrener G L 22 2025 Stoney Creek, Ontario
19 Canada Kaitlin Willoughby F R 31 2025 Prince Albert, Saskatchewan

Reserves

As of January 4, 2026[44][45][46][47][48][49]
No. Nat Player Pos S/G Age Acquired Birthplace
4 Canada Maya Labad F L 24 2025 Mascouche, Quebec
51 Canada Kelly-Ann Nadeau D R 28 2024 Mont-Laurier, Quebec

All-time players

Team captains

Alternate captains

Head coaches

First-round draft picks

Franchise milestones

Milestone Player Date Opponent
First penalty Marie-Philip Poulin for Holding January 2, 2024 PWHL Ottawa
First goal Claire Dalton

Assisted by Jillian Dempsey and Kennedy Marchment

 January 2, 2024 PWHL Ottawa
First win Ann-Renée Desbiens January 2, 2024 PWHL Ottawa
First hat-trick Marie-Philip Poulin January 10, 2024 PWHL New York
Longest goal streak (4) Laura Stacey February 22, 2025 – March 5, 2025 Ottawa Charge, Toronto Sceptres, Boston Fleet, Minnesota Frost
Players in the 50-Point-Club (3) Marie-Philip Poulin, Laura Stacey, Abby Roque November 26, 2025, February 26, 26, April 07, 2026 New York Sirens, New York Sirens, Seattle Torrent
Longest point streak (7) Abby Roque, Laura Stacey December 20, 2025 – January 4, 2026

March 28, 2026 - April 17, 2026

 Vancouver Goldeneyes, Seattle Torrent, Toronto Sceptres, New York Sirens, Minnesota Frost

New York Sirens, Vancouver Goldeneyes, Ottawa Charge, Seattle Torrent, Boston Fleet, Boston Fleet

300 career shots on goal (1) Laura Stacey March 22, 2026 Ottawa Charge
First playoff hat-trick Laura Stacey May 02, 2026 Minnesota Frost

Awards and honours

  • Ann-Renée Desbiens – 2025–26 PWHL Second Team All-Star[54]
  • Laura Stacey – 2025–26 PWHL Second Team All-Star[56]
  • Nicole Gosling – 2025–26 PWHL All-Rookie Team[57]

References

  1. "PWHL names six general managers as teams begin roster construction". Sportsnet. Rogers Media. September 2023. Archived from the original on September 5, 2023. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  2. Kennedy, Ian (September 13, 2023). "Kori Cheverie To Coach PWHL Montreal". The Hockey News. Archived from the original on September 21, 2023. Retrieved September 13, 2023.
  3. Nazareth, Dylan (May 21, 2026). "Victoire crowned 2026 Walter Cup champions with dominant 4-0 win over Charge". The IX Hockey | Powered by The Ice Garden. Retrieved May 21, 2026.
  4. 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.
  5. "PWHL names six general managers as teams begin roster construction". Sportsnet. Rogers Media. September 1, 2023. Archived from the original on September 5, 2023. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
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  7. "Kori Cheverie to become 1st woman to coach a Canadian men's hockey team". CBC Sports. The Canadian Press. April 14, 2022. Archived from the original on December 28, 2022. Retrieved September 17, 2023.
  8. Laframboise, Kalina (September 7, 2023). "'Women's hockey is growing': Poulin, Desbiens and Stacey sign with PWHL's Montreal team". globalnews.ca.
  9. Donkin, Karissa (September 19, 2023). "New beginnings and dreams coming true: 3 stories from the inaugural PWHL draft". CBC Sports. Archived from the original on September 19, 2023. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  10. Kennedy, Ian (November 23, 2023). "PWHL Releases Jersey Designs". The Hockey News. Archived from the original on November 14, 2023. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
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  29. Podnieks, Andrew (June 18, 2025). "Poulin voted IIHF Female POTY". International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved April 26, 2026.
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  41. https://www.thepwhl.com/en/teams/montreal-victoire
  42. https://www.thepwhl.com/en/teams/montreal-victoire/2026/june/23/MONTREAL-VICTOIRE-SIGN-FORWARD-EMMA-MALTAIS-TO-TWO-YEAR-CONTRACT
  43. https://www.thepwhl.com/en/teams/montreal-victoire/2026/june/25/MONTREAL-VICTOIRE-CAPTAIN-MARIE-PHILIP-POULIN-TO-UNDERGO-ACL-AND-MENISCUS-SURGERY
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  54. https://www.thepwhl.com/en/awards
  55. https://www.thepwhl.com/en/awards
  56. https://www.thepwhl.com/en/awards
  57. https://www.thepwhl.com/en/awards