2016 Outdoor Women's Classic

Last updated

2016 Women's Winter Classic
2016 Outdoor Womens Classic logo.png
12Total
Les Canadiennes (CWHL)101
Boston Pride (NWHL)011
DateDecember 31, 2015
Venue Gillette Stadium
City Foxborough, Massachusetts

The 2016 Outdoor Women's Classic presented by Scotiabank was an ice hockey game played on December 31, 2015, at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, between the Boston Pride of the National Women's Hockey League and Les Canadiennes of the Canadian Women's Hockey League. It was the first outdoor ice hockey game between professional women's teams; it ended in a 1–1 tie. [1] The game was played one day before the 2016 NHL Winter Classic, between the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens.

Contents

Announcement

Publicity around the game was kept to a minimum after a report surfaced on December 5 that there would be a game between the two teams. On December 28, the game was officially announced, although players felt that it was overshadowed by other game-day events, including an NHL alumni game that followed the women's game. [2]

Game

The game was played in two 15-minute periods, with running time. [3] Montreal's Kim Deschenes scored the first goal of the game at 3:15 of the first period, while Blake Bolden registered the game-tying goal for Boston late in the second period. [1]

Injury

During the game, Pride player Denna Laing stepped on a stick and crashed into the boards head first. Removed from the ice on a stretcher, she was taken to the hospital. [4] On January 8, 2016, Laing's family announced that she had suffered a severe spinal cord injury and that she had limited movement of her arms and no feeling in her legs. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Les Canadiennes de Montréal</span> Ice hockey team in Montreal, Quebec

Les Canadiennes de Montréal were a professional women's ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 2007 as the Montreal Stars, they competed in the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL) in every season. The team appeared in and won the Clarkson Cup the most times out of any CWHL teams with four championships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hilary Knight (ice hockey)</span> American ice hockey player (born 1989)

Hilary Atwood Knight is an American ice hockey forward and captain of the Boston Fleet of the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL). She is also a member of the United States women's national ice hockey team. She previously played for the Les Canadiennes de Montréal of the CWHL and the Boston Pride of the NWHL, with whom she won the inaugural Isobel Cup.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jillian Dempsey</span> American ice hockey player

Jillian T. Dempsey is an American professional ice hockey player for the Boston Fleet of the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL). The former captain of the Boston Pride of the now-defunct Premier Hockey Federation (PHF), she holds the all-time PHF records for games played, goals, assists, and points, and is one of only two players to have won the Isobel Cup three times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 NHL Winter Classic</span> Outdoor National Hockey League game in Foxborough, Massachusetts

The 2016 NHL Winter Classic was an outdoor ice hockey game played in the National Hockey League (NHL) on January 1, 2016, at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. The eighth edition of the Winter Classic, it matched the Montreal Canadiens against the Boston Bruins; the Canadiens won, 5–1, a significant event in one of the NHL's best-known rivalries. A Bruins and Canadiens alumni game was also played on December 31, 2015. The Boston Pride women's professional hockey team played before the alumni game against Les Canadiennes of the Canadian Women's Hockey League to a 1–1 tie in the first 2016 Outdoor Women's Classic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Premier Hockey Federation</span> Former North American professional womens ice hockey league

The Premier Hockey Federation (PHF) was a women's professional ice hockey league in the United States and Canada that operated from March 2015 until June 2023. The league was established in 2015 as the National Women's Hockey League (NWHL), comprising four league-owned teams. Over time, some teams gained independent ownership and the number of teams grew to seven; teams during the league's final season in 2022–23 included the Boston Pride, Buffalo Beauts, Connecticut Whale, Metropolitan Riveters, Minnesota Whitecaps, Montreal Force, and Toronto Six. The Isobel Cup was awarded annually to the league playoff champion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metropolitan Riveters</span> Former womens professional ice hockey team in East Rutherford, New Jersey

The Metropolitan Riveters were a professional women's ice hockey team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, with home games at the American Dream Meadowlands ice rink.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boston Pride</span> Former womens professional ice hockey team in Boston

The Boston Pride was a professional women's ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts. It was one of the four charter franchises of the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF). The Pride played at Warrior Ice Arena, which is also the practice facility for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League. The Pride won the inaugural Isobel Cup in 2016 and became the first professional women's ice hockey team to win three championship titles when they claimed consecutive victories in 2021 and 2022.

The 2015–16 Boston Pride season was the first in franchise history and participated in the National Women's Hockey League's inaugural season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blake Bolden</span> American ice hockey player and scout

Blake Alexis Bolden is an American former ice hockey player, and scout for the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL). On October 11, 2015, she became the first African-American player to compete in the National Women's Hockey League. She won the 2015 Clarkson Cup with the Boston Blades of the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL). In 2016, she won the Isobel Cup with the Boston Pride of the NWHL. Bolden is also a contributor and rinkside reporter for ESPN's NHL coverage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kaleigh Fratkin</span> Canadian ice hockey player

Kaleigh Fratkin is a Canadian professional ice hockey player for the Boston Fleet of the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL). The second-longest tenured player and leading scorer among defenders in PHF history, she was the first Canadian player to sign a contract in the league, is a five-time PHF all-star, and is a two-time PHF Defender of the Year in 2020 and 2021. She was also a member of the Boston Pride roster that captured the 2021 and 2022 Isobel Cup, and was one of three 2023 PHF All-Star captains. Previous to the joining the NWHL, she won the Clarkson Cup in 2015 and was the first girl to play boys' midget AAA hockey in British Columbia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alyssa Gagliardi</span> American ice hockey player

Alyssa Marie Gagliardi is an American ice hockey defender currently with the PWHPA. Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and raised in Raleigh, North Carolina, Gagliardi is one of the first women from Raleigh to become a professional ice hockey player.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shannon Turner (ice hockey)</span> Canadian ice hockey player

Shannon Turnernée Doyle is a retired Canadian ice hockey player. She served as captain of the Connecticut Whale of the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF).

Denna Christine Laing is an American former professional ice hockey player. She last played for the Boston Pride of the National Women's Hockey League (NWHL) until a career-ending injury. At the collegiate level, she accumulated 77 points while competing for the Princeton Tigers women's ice hockey program from 2010 to 2014. She was also the captain her junior and senior year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kim Deschênes</span> Canadian ice hockey player

Kim Deschênes is a Canadian ice hockey player who was mostly recently signed to the Montreal Force of the now defunct Premier Hockey Federation. She played five seasons with the Canadiennes de Montreal of the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL), until the league ceased operations in 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2017–18 NWHL season</span> Sports season

The 2017–18 NWHL season was the third season of the National Women's Hockey League. All four teams from the previous two seasons returned for this season: the Boston Pride, Buffalo Beauts, Connecticut Whale, and the Metropolitan Riveters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018–19 NWHL season</span> Sports season

The 2018–19 NWHL season is the fourth season of the National Women's Hockey League. All four teams from the previous three seasons returned: the Boston Pride, Buffalo Beauts, Connecticut Whale, and the Metropolitan Riveters while the Minnesota Whitecaps entered the league as an expansion team bringing the league to five teams.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kelly Cooke</span> American ice hockey referee and player

Kelly Cooke is an American ice hockey official, currently serving as a referee in the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL). A retired ice hockey forward, she played with the Boston Blades of the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL) during the 2013–14 and 2014–15 seasons, and with the Boston Pride of the Premier Hockey Federation during the 2015–16 season. Her college ice hockey career was spent with the Princeton Tigers in the ECAC Hockey conference of the NCAA Division 1.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lexie Laing</span> American ice hockey forward

Alexandria "Lexie" Laing is an American former ice hockey forward, most recently having played for the Boston Pride of the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sammy Davis (ice hockey)</span> American ice hockey forward

Samantha "Sammy" Davis is an American professional ice hockey forward for the Ottawa Charge of the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL). She was drafted 1st overall in the 2020 NWHL Draft by the Boston Pride following a two-year captaincy of the Boston University Terriers women's ice hockey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bray Ketchum</span> American ice hockey player and executive

Bray Ketchum is an American former ice hockey player and executive. She played for the Metropolitan Riveters of the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF) and the Boston Blades of the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL), winning the Isobel Cup and the Clarkson Cup respectively, before ending her playing career and serving as general manager of the Connecticut Whale during the 2019–20 NWHL season.

References

  1. 1 2 Lane, Jon (January 1, 2016). "Women's hockey happy for Winter Classic showcase". NHL.com. Archived from the original on January 2, 2016. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
  2. Berkman, Seth (December 31, 2015). "Ice Problems and Injury Plague Women's Debut at the Winter Classic". The New York Times . Archived from the original on December 22, 2017. Retrieved January 9, 2016.
  3. "Women's teams skate on Winter Classic ice". The Philadelphia Inquirer . AP. January 1, 2016. Archived from the original on December 22, 2017. Retrieved December 21, 2017 via newspapers.com.
  4. Springer, Shira (January 6, 2016). "Hockey player Denna Laing remains hospitalized". The Boston Globe . Archived from the original on January 9, 2016. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
  5. "NWHL's Denna Laing suffered spinal cord injury at Women's Winter Classic". cbssports.com. January 8, 2016. Archived from the original on February 22, 2020. Retrieved January 8, 2016.

Further reading