Montreal set to become 7th franchise in the PHF
Published
Earlier this week The Premier Hockey Federation announced Montreal as the league’s seventh expansion team set to launch in the 2022-23 season.
The franchise will be owned by BTM Partners, with TVA sports commentator Kevin Raphaël as the team’s president and Emmanuel Anderson as the vice president. The two have been business partners for over a decade.
BTM Partners currently owns two other teams in the league; the Boston Pride and Metropolitan Riveters. They formerly owned the Toronto Six, but the team was sold to a BIPOC investor group this year.
The league also announced a partnership deal between the franchise and Centre 21.02, a high-performance hockey centre in Montreal for next season. The sports complex will serve as the team’s training facility, while the team’s home games will be played across different communities in Quebec to bring more exposure to the league.
“This is a very exciting time for the PHF and the growth of professional women’s hockey. The city of Montreal and province of Quebec have a rich hockey history that the PHF is proud to officially be a part of,” said PHF Commissioner Reagan Carey.
Montreal was home to a professional women’s hockey team from 2007-2019. Initially founded as the Montreal Stars, the team played in the Canadian Women’s Hockey League. The franchise won the league’s most championships. In 2015, they were rebranded as Les Canadiennes when they became an affiliate of the NHL’s Montreal Canadiens. In 2019, the CWHL ceased operations.
The PHF has yet to announce the team name or logo for its newest franchise but said it would do so in the coming weeks, along with announcements for the team’s coaching staff and roster formation.