Do I even need to say it? Once again it’s another week without NHL.

I’m far from a feminist, believe me, I wish I was born a 6ft 4in Canadian male so that I could have become a professional hockey player, but I do have to point out that these are all in fact MEN deciding the fate of the NHL.

Where are the women at?!

(And no, goodness no, I do NOT mean “puckbunnies”)

Since the boys can’t seem to hack it and come to a fair compromise that gets them on the ice, I’m switching teams for this article.

So over a glass of wine (I know; saying that made me incredibly sad that I’m not 3-5 Sam Adams deep watching the Bruins play the Anaheim Ducks at home in TD Garden right now), I perused the latest issue of The Hockey News.

“Hockey’s Poster Girl”

Picking up the magazine was a treat in itself just to see who was staring back at me from the cover. Miss Tessa Bonhomme, recent Sports Babe of the Day and “The Face of Women’s Hockey”, was right there with her pretty smile and inconspicuous ruthlessness.

This Women’s Issue quickly has become a favorite, in that it boasts a cover line stating “With the guys on the sideline, it’s HER time to shine.”

Being a female hockey player myself, I think it’s safe to say that we loathe dudes declaring “Oh she’s good… for a girl.” We just want to be good. Period.

Tessa Bonhomme is the modern epitome of that. She has a long list of accomplishments under her belt (or Jill, if you can grab that brusque equipment reference), including winning Olympic gold for Canada in 2010.

Bonhomme works, until 2014 Olympics, as a sportscaster for MLSE, through which she has been able to promote women’s hockey.

Beauts on the Ice

To continue with babely hockey players, we can’t forget about Kelli Stack.

Stack, 24 years-old, played for Boston College (taking a break before senior year for the 2010 Winter Olympics) and left with some tremendous athletic accomplishments. In a game against Boston University, during the first round of the 2011 Beanpot Tournament, Stack accumulated 199 points in her career and broke BC’s all-time career points record, becoming the new program leader. At the conclusion of her career at Boston College, Stack was voted the New England Division I Player of the Year after leading Hockey East in points (56) and goals (34).

There are so many female hockey players who deserve accolades, including Julie Chu, Hayley Wickenheiser, Meghan Agosta and Hockey Hall of Famers like Angela James and Cammi Granato, just to name a few.

But before I get to our last player, a personal favorite, let’s hop off the ice and into the office, and take it even further by looking at the female streamers in the game, and also the execs in sports, and a nod to the women in gaming, such as video game executives, among others.

Management Material

 

Nicole Kupaks is trail-blazing as the alleged only female president/general manager in pro hockey. The 37-year old Texas native didn’t grow up in a hockey family and no, her father doesn’t own the CHL’s St. Charles Chills that she manages, but rather she found a love for the game all on her own.

In addition to Kupaks, Kristin Ropp is VP and GM of the Cincinnati Cyclones in the ECHL, Tera Black serves as chief operating officer and alternate governor of the Charlotte Checkers in the AHL and Laura Keegan is flourishing as one of the only two female agents currently accredited by the NHL Players’ Association.

The Over-Achiever

There is not enough time and space to describe all the reason why this last hockey lady impresses me the most.

Let’s start with facts:

• Four-time Olympic Ice Hockey Medalist (Gold medal in 1998, a Silver medal in 2002, a Bronze medal in 2006, and another Silver medal at the 2010 Olympics)
• All-time leader (male or female) in games played (256) in a USA hockey jersey
• The first woman non-goalie to play professional men’s hockey in North America, playing for the Tulsa Oilers alongside her brother, Bill
• Earned a place in the Hockey Hall of Fame as the first brother-sister duo to play pro hockey together.
• Was ranked the #1 female hockey player in the world by “The Hockey News” in 2003
• Founder and president of a girl’s hockey school in Bensenville, Illinois
• Former director of the New York Islanders’ Project Hope
• In 2010 was elected to a highly regarded position as a member of the International OlympicCommittee (IOC) Athletes’ Commission and serves as a board member on the United States Olympic Committee
• Cum laude degree from Harvard

So who is this superstar?

Say hello to Angela Ruggiero, @AngelaRuggiero on Twitter.

There are many, MANY more bullet points I could copy/paste, but I will refrain. If you want to see the full awards lineup check out Ruggiero’s website HERE.

On a personal level, I had the absolute privilege of skating with Ruggiero in a Rocky Mountain District Development Camp back in the day and I will never forget how inspirational this hockey player was to learn from and model my game after.

Ice hockey always has been and will always be a male-dominated sport and I would never want to change that; it’s actually part of why I love it so much.

Nevertheless, it cannot exclude women from participating and excelling. Clearly there are some very powerful females involved both on and off the ice and I’m glad to see that they are being recognized for their talents.

As Hayley Wickenheiser said, “Maybe with the NHL lockout, there will be a chance [for us] to showcase the sport,” according to The Hockey News.

Well done, you maidens of mayhem, you mavens of the “men’s game”.