Les Canadiennes

Les Canadiennes
City Montreal, Quebec
League CWHL
Founded 2007 (2007)
Home arena Centre Étienne Desmarteau
Colours

Blue, Red and white

              
General manager Meg Hewings
Head coach Dany Brunet
Captain Cathy Chartrand

Website
Les Canadiennes

Montreal Stars, a Champions' great team

Les Canadiennes are a professional women's ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 2007 as the Montreal Stars (Stars de Montréal), they have competed in the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL) since its inaugural season. The team has appeared in and won the Clarkson Cup the most times out of any CWHL teams, having won the league's championship three times since its inception.

In 2015, the team became an affiliate of the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League, with the franchise providing resources and marketing support to the team as part of their efforts to help promote women's hockey. This affiliation also led to its re-branding as Les Canadiennes for the 2015-16 CWHL season, adopting colors and jerseys resembling those of their men's counterpart. In December 2015, the Canadiennes and the Boston Pride played the first ever outdoor game in professional women's hockey as part of festivities for the 2016 NHL Winter Classic in Foxborough, Massachusetts.

Team history

Original Team logo as the Montreal Stars

The Montreal Stars have played in the CWHL since its formation in 2007. The team was formed from players from the Montreal Axion a team that played in the National Women's Hockey League before its demise.[1] Through the team's young history they have seen success in every season that it has played. In their first season, 2007–08, Montreal won 23 games out of 30 regular season contests and finished first overall in the regular season,[2] but lost to Mississauga Chiefs in the playoffs that year in a two-game contest. In 2008–09 the Stars won the Clarkson Cup on March 19, 2009 in Kingston Ontario, the first year that the Clarkson Cup was openly played for between competitive professional women's hockey clubs rather than National teams such as before with Team Canada and Team Sweden in 2006. The Clarkson Cup was won by Montreal by defeating the Minnesota Whitecaps in the final. The game was competitive, with the score close. Initially the game was tied at one goal apiece until Montreal flared with offence scoring two goals. Sabrina Habrec ultimately scored the game winner, in a 3–1 final score. Former Canadian Governor General Adrienne Clarkson was on hand to present the trophy to team captain Lisa-Marie Breton-Lebreux.[3] It was Adrienne Clarkson's hope that The Clarkson Cup be the women's equivalent to the Stanley Cup.[4] That same season, three players were named to the First and Second team all stars; Caroline Ouellette, Kim St.Pierre and Sabrina Habrec.[5] In 2009–10, the team finished in first place but did not defend the Clarkson Cup in the playoffs.

The team has had much success with league awards to its players. Kim St. Pierre has won the CHWL's award for top goaltender two season's running (2008, 2009), Caroline Ouellette was the CWHL MVP for the 2008–09, Marie-Phillip Poulin was the CWHL's rookie of the year in 2007–2008 at the age of 16 scoring over 40 points in 16 games, and finally Sabrina Harbec lead's the CWHL in scoring with 54 points in 29 games this season.[6]

During the 2013–14 CWHL season, three members of the Stars reached the milestone of 100 career points during the season. It marks the first time in CWHL history that three players from the same franchise reach the century mark in the same season.[7] It began on January 11, when CWHL co-founder Lisa-Marie Breton registered the 100th point of her career.[8] On February 8, Vanessa Davidson earns the 100th point in her CWHL career.[9] Emmanuelle Blais would become the third in a March 8 match against the Boston Blades.

Montreal Canadiens partnership, outdoor game

In March 2015, the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League entered into a resource-sharing and marketing partnership with the Stars. Team CEO Geoff Molson explained that given the Canadiens' support of minor hockey in Quebec and the growth of Women's hockey, he felt that it "[was] the right time to concretely support women who play professional hockey, and, at the same time, promote the sport among up-and-coming players". Brenda Andress, commissioner of the CWHL, also stated that the partnership "affords the CWHL an opportunity to grow women’s hockey hand in hand with one of the most storied franchises in professional sport." [10][11] In September 2015, the team unveiled a new identity as Les Canadiennes, adopting the Canadiens' team colors, along with a new "C" emblem alluding to the Canadiens' logo, but also containing a star in homage of their previous name.[12]

On December 31, 2016, the Canadiennes participated in an outdoor game, the 2016 Outdoor Women's Classic, against the Boston Pride of the National Women's Hockey League (NWHL) at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts; the game was held as an undercard to the following day's NHL Winter Classic, which featured their teams' NHL counterparts—the Canadiens and the Boston Bruins.[13]

Olympic connection

Caroline Ouellette with Clarkson Cup on March 27, 2011

The team includes notable forwards Caroline Ouellette, Sarah Vaillancourt and goaltender Kim St. Pierre,[14] all members of the 2010 Canadian Women's Hockey Olympic team who won the Olympic gold medal in Vancouver[15][16]

For the 2014 Sochi Winter Games, Stars players Ouellette, Haley Irwin, Charline Labonté and Catherine Ward competed for Team Canada, while Julie Chu was a member of Team USA.

Social implication

Montreal stars support the fight against breast cancer with a Breast Cancer Fundraising event.[17] For the occasion, the Montreal Stars played with pink jerseys.[18] Also Montreal Stars are committed to supporting amateur girl's hockey team and take their role as examples to the young girls growing up playing the sport, very seriously. The Trainings with the Stars players [19] is just one way that these athletes connect with young players. They are also available to meet the girls at the autograph sessions following most of their games, they are accessible through the team blog, and many of them are involved in various community and school girls’ hockey teams.

Seasons

Season-by-season

Year GP W L T/OTL GF GA Pts
2007–08 30 23 6 1 112 55 48
2008–09 30 25 4 1 135 65 51
2009–10 30 23 5 2 122 70 48
2010–11 26 22 2 2 125 70 46
2011–12 27 22 4 1 160 66 51
2012–13 24 18 5 1 105 58 37
2013–14 23 19 2 2 96 47 42
2014–15 24 14 9 1 67 49 29

Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime losses, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, Pts = Points.

Season standings

= Indicates First Place finish
= Indicates championship
= Indicates Clarkson Cup win

As of 2011, the Montreal Stars have a total of 3 regular season championships and two Clarkson cups[20] in 4 Seasons of play.

Year Reg. Season Playoffs Clarkson Cup
2007–08 1st Overall Lost in second round N/A
2008–09 1st Overall Won the CWHL Championship Won the 2009 Clarkson Cup
2009–10 1st Overall Won the CWHL Championship Lost in first round 2010 Clarkson Cup
2010–11 1st Overall Won the CWHL Championship Won the 2011 Clarkson Cup
2011–12 1st Overall Won the CWHL Championship Won the 2012 Clarkson Cup
2012–13 2nd Place Lost in the 2013 Clarkson Cup championship game to the Boston Blades
2013–14 1st Overall Did not qualify for Cup finals
2014–15 3rd Place Lost in the 2015 Clarkson Cup championship game to the Boston Blades

Awards and honors

Captains

The Stars discussing strategy
Season CaptainAssistant Captains
2007–08 Lisa-Marie Breton
2008–09 Lisa-Marie Breton
2009–10 Lisa-Marie Breton
2010–11 Lisa-Marie Breton Nathalie Dery, Caroline Ouellette, Kelly Sudia
2011–12 Lisa-Marie Breton Nathalie Dery, Caroline Ouellette, Kelly Sudia
2012–13 Lisa-Marie Breton
2013–14 Cathy Chartrand
2014–15 Cathy Chartrand
2015–16 Cathy Chartrand

Current makeup

Current roster (2015–16)

Updated January 4, 2016.[21]

# Nat Player Pos S/G Age Acquired Birthplace
53 Canada Anderson, JessicaJessica Anderson G L 35 2015 Pierrefonds, Quebec
67 United States Aveson, SydneySydney Aveson G R 24 2015 West Covina, California
24 Canada Bettez, Ann-SophieAnn-Sophie Bettez (A) F L 28 2012 Sept-Îles, Quebec
47 Canada Blais, EmmanuelleEmmanuelle Blais F R 28 2010 Lasalle, Quebec
62 Canada Bocchia, EmilieEmilie Bocchia F L 25 2013 St. Leonard, Quebec
23 Canada Brault, SophieSophie Brault D L 28 2014 Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec
8 Canada Chartrand, CathyCathy Chartrand (C) D L 34 2012 Nominingue, Quebec
21 United States Chu, JulieJulie Chu D R 34 2010 Bridgeport, Connecticut
19 Canada Clement-Heydra, KatiaKatia Clement-Heydra F L 26 2015 Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville, Quebec
9 Canada Deschênes, KimKim Deschênes F L 24 2014 Saint-Quentin, New Brunswick
76 Canada Emard, KarellKarell Emard D L 28 2015 Marieville, Quebec
6 Canada Hill, CarlyCarly Hill D R 30 2011 Pointe-Claire, Quebec
32 Canada Labonté, CharlineCharline Labonté G L 33 2012 Boisbriand, Quebec
77 Canada Lachance, SaraSara Lachance F L 23 2015 Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Quebec
10 Canada Marin, NoémieNoémie Marin F L 32 2010 Acton Vale, Quebec
17 Canada Morand, AudreyAudrey Morand F L 25 2015 Montreal, Quebec
71 Canada Oles, LeslieLeslie Oles F L 25 2015 Beaconsfield, Quebec
13 Canada Ouellette, CarolineCaroline Ouellette (A) F L 36 2008 Montreal, Quebec
20 Canada Peroff, JordannaJordanna Peroff F L 26 2015 Keswick, Ontario
29 Canada Poulin, Marie-PhilipMarie-Philip Poulin F L 25 2015 Beauceville, Quebec
91 Canada Prévost, MelindaMelinda Prévost F L 21 2015 Montreal, Quebec
5 Canada Rougeau, LaurianeLauriane Rougeau D L 26 2014 Pointe-Claire, Quebec
12 Canada Saunders, ChelseyChelsey Saunders D L 24 2014 Ottawa, Ontario
11 Canada Sherrard, AlyssaAlyssa Sherrard F L 23 2015 Bathurst, New Brunswick

Coaching staff (2015–16)

Jenny Lavigne, the Star's long-time starting goaltender, now serves as an assistant coach for the team

[22]

Scoring leaders

Year-by-year

Season Leader (F)GPGAPts Leader (D)GPGAPtsPPGSHGGWG
2010–11[23] Caroline Ouellette 29 24 47 71 Annie Guay 29 13 19 32 Noemie Marin (6) Three tied with 2 Noemie Marin (7)
2011–12[24] Meghan Agosta 27 41 39 80 Catherine Ward 27 2 29 31 Four tied with 5 Agosta (2) Agosta (5)
2012–13[25] Meghan Agosta 23 16 30 46 Cathy Chartrand 23 5 15 20 Emmanuelle Blais (4) Three tied with 1 Five tied with 3
2013–14[26] Ann-Sophie Bettez 23 16 24 40 Cathy Chartrand 23 9 21 30 Vinny Davidson (8) Two tied with 2 Bettez (7)
2014–15 Caroline Ouellette 22 8 18 26 Cathy Chartrand 22 5 12 17 Noemie Marin (7) Ouellette (2)
2015–16 Marie-Philip Poulin 22 23 23 46 Lauriane Rougeau 22 2 17 19 Ann-Sophie Bettez (7) Caroline Ouellette (2) Ouellette (7)

References

  1. ↑ Kamila Hinkson (March 10, 2009). "Breton a Busy Bee After the Stingers' Life". Magazine. Concordian. Retrieved 2010-01-21.
  2. ↑ Canadian Women's Hockey League (2009). "2007–08 CWHL REVIEW" (PDF). Magazine. CWHL. Retrieved 2010-01-21.
  3. ↑ Andrew Podnieks (2009). "Montreal Wins First Clarkson Cup". News. IIHF. Retrieved 2010-01-21.
  4. ↑ Donna Spencer (2009). "Clarkson will be on hand to award her cup". News. CTV Globemedia. Retrieved 2010-01-21.
  5. ↑ CWHL (June 18, 2009). "Caroline Ouellette Named 2008–09 CWHL Most Valuable Player". News. Canadian Women's Hockey League. Retrieved 2010-01-21.
  6. ↑ CWHL (2010). "CWHL Player stasts 2009–10". News. Canadian Women's Hockey League. Retrieved 2010-01-21.
  7. ↑ http://www.cwhl.ca/view/cwhl/news-644/news_144156
  8. ↑ http://www.cwhl.ca/view/cwhl/news-644/news_120944
  9. ↑ http://www.cwhl.ca/view/cwhl/news-644/news_130227
  10. ↑ "Canadiens partner with CWHL’s Montreal Stars to grow women’s game". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
  11. ↑ "The Montreal Canadiens enter a partnership with the Montreal Stars". Montreal Canadiens. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
  12. ↑ "Montreal women’s team gets new logo, name: Les Canadiennes". Sportsnet.ca. Canadian Press. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
  13. ↑ "Ice Problems and Injury Plague Women’s Debut at the Winter Classic". The New York Times. Retrieved 13 January 2016.
  14. ↑ TSN (2010). "CLARKSON CUP'S NAMESAKE READY TO HONOUR WINNING WOMEN'S TEAM". News. CTV Globe media. Retrieved 2010-01-21.
  15. ↑ Montreal Stars (2010). "3 Stars selected go to the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver". News. Montreal Stars. Retrieved 2010-01-21.
  16. ↑ Hockey Canada (2010). "2010 Women's Olympic Hockey team Roster". News. Hockey Canada. Retrieved 2010-01-21.
  17. ↑ Montreal players and fans give from the heart, http://montrealstars.ca/community-communaut%C3%A9/87/montreal-players-and-fans-give-from-the-heart/
  18. ↑ Photo Gallery, http://montrealstars.ca/photo-gallery/648/breast-cancer-fundraising-event/
  19. ↑ Training with the Stars, http://montrealstars.ca/news/990/day-7-training-with-the-stars/
  20. ↑ Montreal wins first Clarkson Cup, http://www.iihf.com/channels0809/ww/news/news-singleview/article/montreal-wins-first-clarkson-cup.html?tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=2068&cHash=9e147782a4
  21. ↑ "Les Canadiennes Roster". Les Canadiennes. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
  22. ↑ Les Canadiennes Coaching Staff
  23. ↑ http://cwhlboston_hockey.stats.pointstreak.com/teamplayerstats.html?teamid=277086&seasonid=6347
  24. ↑ http://cwhlboston_hockey.stats.pointstreak.com/teamplayerstats.html?teamid=277086&seasonid=8067
  25. ↑ http://cwhl_site.stats.pointstreak.com/teamplayerstats.html?teamid=277086&seasonid=9580
  26. ↑ http://cwhl_site.stats.pointstreak.com/teamplayerstats.html?teamid=277086&seasonid=11441

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Montreal Stars players.

External news story

See also

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