FROM THE PRESS BOX
JOSH SAYS: Speaking with players and coaches on both sides, it’s clear that while this is a business trip at a critical juncture in the playoff race, tonight is about marking a special homecoming for Tabin and Ste. Anne’s Jocelyne Larocque.
The Manitoba-born blue-liners — who were Olympic teammates for Canada in February — are back home to play in front of a host of family and friends, and both are eager to put forth a strong performance.
For Larocque, the Ottawa Charge’s veteran defender, it’ll mark the first time she’s played at home in almost nine years (the last time came in 2017 with the national team in an exhibition contest against the U.S.) and the first time she’s played here as a member of a professional team.
Jocelyne Larocque (Ottawa Charge photo)
The 37-year-old has nearly 240 loved ones taking in tonight’s action, and they aren’t coming quietly. Larocque’s older sister, Chantal, told the Free Press the rowdy group has a number of signs prepared, and the goal is to get on the jumbotron.
“We know it’s gonna be a special game for her, and we’ll definitely celebrate that and play with a little extra something for her,” said Charge forward Emily Clark. “We know that she has a lot of loved ones in the stands. There’s not as many games out west, in the prairies, just yet. I know how special it is when I’ve gotten to play in Saskatoon (Clark’s hometown), so it’s not lost on us how special it’ll be for Joce (tonight).”
For Oakbank-product Tabin, the Montreal Victoire defender, it’ll be the first time playing at home since her minor hockey days.
The 28-year-old is expected to have around 80 people in the stands tonight.
“Kati is pretty even keeled. She never gets too high, she never gets too low. She’s a competitor. She’s been extremely important to our team, and I know her teammates and the staff are really excited to be able to experience this opportunity with her,” said Victoire head coach Kori Cheverie.
“She was greeted at the airport by her mom and her dog, and some other community members, too. So I think that she’s definitely excited, and it’s an opportunity to kind of show us where she’s from.”
There will be some nerves, for sure, but if either of these defenders get on the score sheet, expect quite the roar from the Manitoban crowd.
GRACE ANNE SAYS: There’s nothing I can really say that won’t sound hyperbolic, but I have literally been waiting my whole life for a women’s pro league game in this city, and I still can’t believe I’ll be watching it from the press box.
“They see it in a different lens, for sure,” Hobson said of the female fans who grew up without a pro women’s league to cheer for.
“They’ve seen how far the Jocelyne Larocque’s and those girls have taken this game, and it’s truly incredible for them to see us be able to live out the dream. And then the young girls come in and it’s kind of a reality now for them. So they definitely see it in a different lens, and I just know they appreciate it, I think, more than anybody out there.”
Now, to put on my editor hat, there are three storylines I am most looking forward to: the first is the homecoming of Jocelyne Larocque and Kati Tabin.
Fingers crossed they both get a glory lap at some point in the game.
Manitoba is known for its goaltenders and defenders in the PWHL, and it will be a treat to get to see the two defenders live.
If I could have one wish, it would be for a jailbreak goal from either team. For those new to the league, a jailbreak is when the team on the penalty kill scores a shorthanded goal, meaning, both teams go back to full strength.
Members of the Ottawa Charge celebrate a win last season. (Arlyn McAdorey / The Canadian Press files)
Basically, if there’s a goal from either team during a power play, the penalty immediately ends. It is a thrill to watch on TV, so to be able to watch it live would just be perfection.
Finally — and with some confidence this game will be a dandy after watching these two teams all season — I’m looking forward to crowd watch the Winnipeg fans of all stripes and ages enjoy the game. This Takeover Tour clash is literally decades in the making, take a moment to soak it all in.
NOTABLE QUOTABLES
Q: Do you still get that special feeling for these Takeover Tour games or has the novelty worn off at all?
Manitoba hometown hero Kati Tabin: “The support from the NHL teams has been phenomenal this year. It’s a lot of fun playing in NHL arenas, and I think the coolest part is, we’re selling most of them out. People want to come and watch and support and see what the PWHL is all about. Whether it’s your first game or your 40th, whatever it is, people just want to come and see. Just to see the growth over the past three years has been really cool. Going to a new city for us is always fun… The coolest thing is there’s not just little girls out there, there’s little boys out there, too. So, ultimately, people are just excited to see hockey.”
Brooke Hobson, who has eight family members making the nine-hour drive in from Prince Albert, Sask.: “I think everyone gets excited for the Takeover Tour games. It’s a new atmosphere for everybody, so it’s exciting to walk into the new arena and just see new fans and the new wave of women’s hockey and women’s hockey support in different provinces, different states. So it’s exciting, especially this one for me, this is closer to home.”
Charge head coach Carla MacLeod on the older generation of fans watching tonight: “There are generations before us that invested their lives and tried to elevate our game and earn us the right to be able to play. I started playing in 1986 (and there were) women long before me that were pushing the envelope. So, there’s no doubt that we think of them, too, and this league’s built on their shoulders. So for them to be able to come now into these venues and see 15, 18,000 people, and see women being paid to play the game, I’m sure when they first started, it was just a dream. So it’s not lost on us that it’s the coming together, both of the future and the past, and certainly we play for those women and men.”
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