Marie-Philip Poulin had a tear in her eye when she saw women’s hockey legends

There were winners of 13 Olympic medals at center ice and two members of the Hockey Hall of Fame on Saturday afternoon at the Verdun Auditorium.

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To this, we could add the eight won by Marie-Philip Poulin and Hilary Knight, the two captains who took the ceremonial puck drop before the first home game of Montreal’s new professional women’s hockey team.

And in a few years, Poulin and Knight, who learned that she would wear the “C” of the Boston club from none other than Patrice Bergeron, will join Danielle Goyette, France St-Louis, Kim St-Pierre, Caroline Ouellette and ex-coach Danièle Sauvageau as legends of their sport.

These pioneers were also warmly applauded when they were presented to some 3,200 supporters. “Caro!” Carol! Carol!” were heard to welcome the youngest of them and the latest inductee in Toronto, joining St-Pierre in particular.

“They paved the way for us. I was watching them on TV and they fought so hard just to play hockey,” Poulin recalled after the 3-2 overtime loss. They deserved to be applauded so loudly by the spectators. They have done so much for women’s hockey in the country and especially for Quebec.

For the star of the hour, these women are “mentors, models”.

“I had a tear in my eye when I saw them go on the ice,” Poulin said.

Grateful

The word “grateful” was often mentioned when talking about these ambassadors during the press briefings on Saturday.

“These women have never counted the hours of training, playing or fighting and they have never experienced anything like this [être payées pour évoluer dans une ligue professionnelle et structurée avec les meilleures joueuses], recognized attacker Laura Stacey, author of a goal against Boston. It was incredible to see them receive such a standing ovation, but they deserve more. These pioneers did so much to ensure that we have the privilege of making a living from our sport. It was an honor to play in front of them.”

“It was very cool to see the kind of players this country was lucky to have. It shows how women’s hockey has been important there for a long time. It’s great that they support our league. They worked very hard to get us here today,” said Montreal head coach Kori Cheverie.

“Hard to do”

Even if Poulin is the heroine of many young and old girls, the 32-year-old Quebecer still has difficulty imagining that she will one day have her place among those who inspired her, even if she already writes several pages of history.

“It’s hard to do. When I see Caroline Ouellette, France St-Louis, Danielle Goyette, Kim St-Pierre and Danièle Sauvageau, for me, they are the legends,” humbly said number 29, adding that it was “remarkable” to see so many boys in the stands.