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Toronto Sceptres

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The Toronto Sceptres are a Canadian professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario. They are one of the six charter franchises of the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL). They host games at Coca-Cola Coliseum. Toronto topped the standings in the league's inaugural regular season.

Toronto Sceptres
CityToronto, Ontario
LeaguePWHL
Founded2023 (2023)
Home arenaCoca-Cola Coliseum
ColoursBlue, navy, gold and yellow
       
Owner(s)Mark Walter Group
General managerGina Kingsbury
Head coachTroy Ryan
CaptainBlayre Turnbull
Websitetoronto.thepwhl.com
Championships
Regular season titles1 (2023–24)
Walter Cups0
Current season

History

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Founding and inaugural season

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On August 29, 2023, it was announced that Toronto would be home to one of the PWHL's first six franchises.[1][2] This ensured the continuation of professional women's hockey in the city after the folding of the Toronto Six and the Premier Hockey Federation earlier that summer—the Six were that league's final champions.[3] The PWHL announced on September 1 that Gina Kingsbury, the former vice president of hockey operations at Hockey Canada and general manager of the Canadian women's national team, would be the PWHL Toronto's general manager.[4][5] On September 15, Troy Ryan, the head coach of the Canadian women's national team, was announced as the team's first head coach.[6][7]

Toronto's first three players—Canadian national team members Sarah Nurse, Renata Fast and Blayre Turnbull—were signed to three-year deals on September 5, 2023.[8] The team selected 15 players at the inaugural PWHL draft on September 18; the team's first pick, at second overall, was veteran Canadian national team defender Jocelyne Larocque.[9] Ahead of the start of the inaugural season, Turnbull was named team captain, with Fast and Larocque to serve as assistant captains.[10]

In November 2023, it was announced that the team's colours would be blue, black, and white.[11] The same month, it was announced that the Mattamy Athletic Centre in the old Maple Leaf Gardens would become the team's home.[12]

On January 1, 2024, Toronto hosted the first ever PWHL game at Mattamy, with visiting PWHL New York posting a 4–0 victory over Toronto.[13] The teams faced each other again on January 5, with Toronto securing its first win by a score of 3–2; Natalie Spooner scored the first goal in team history in the second period.[14] On February 16, Toronto hosted its first game at Scotiabank Arena against PWHL Montreal, a match dubbed by the league as "The Battle on Bay Street".[15] The game set a league and women’s hockey attendance record with a sellout crowd of 19,285, beating the previous record of 18,013 set at the 2013 IIHF Women's World Championship.[16] Two months later, on April 20, Montreal hosted Toronto at the Bell Centre, selling out the arena and setting another new attendance record at 21,105 in a game known as "The Duel at the Top" because the two teams were vying for first place.[17][18]

 
Toronto in action against PWHL Minnesota in 2024.

Toronto became the first team to clinch a playoff spot, and clinched first overall on May 1. Spooner led the league in both goals and points.[19] On April 30, 2024, it was announced that PWHL Toronto would relocate from Mattamy Athletic Centre to Coca-Cola Coliseum to host its playoff games.[20] Toronto elected to play PWHL Minnesota in the first round of the playoffs.[21] & hosted them for their inaugural playoff game on May 8; Toronto won 4–0 in front of a sold-out crowd.[22] Despite winning the first two games at home, Toronto went on to lose three straight and the series and were eliminated from playoff contention.[23]

After the season, Spooner was named the league's first winner of the Billie Jean King MVP award; she was also named the league's top forward. Kristen Campbell won top goaltender honours, while Troy Ryan was named coach of the year.[24]

On September 3, 2024, Coca-Cola Coliseum was officially announced as PWHL Toronto's primary venue for the 2024–25 PWHL season.[25]

Team identity

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Inaugural season logo for PWHL Toronto.
 
Uniform worn by PWHL Toronto in the league's inaugural season.

Like all six charter PWHL franchises, Toronto operated without unique branding for the league's inaugural season—the team was known as PWHL Toronto and wore a league-wide jersey template that featured the city's name diagonally on the front.[26] The team did have its own colour scheme, featuring blue and black. In October 2023, the league registered a trademark for the name Toronto Torch.[27] However, when the league unveiled franchise names in September 2024, Toronto was named the Sceptres, referencing the city's regal history—Toronto is nicknamed the Queen City.[28] The Hockey News reported that other names in contention for Toronto included the Sentinels and the Tempest.[29]

In addition to the Sceptres moniker, the team's logo was unveiled as stylized "TS" initials, and yellow was added to the team's colour scheme.[28]

Players and personnel

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Current roster

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As of March 20, 2024[30][31][32]
No. Nat Player Pos S/G Age Acquired Birthplace
51 Canada  Victoria Bach F L 28 2023 Milton, Ontario
50 Canada  Kristen Campbell G L 26 2023 Brandon, Manitoba
17 Canada  Samantha Cogan F L 27 2023 Ottawa, Ontario
18 United States  Jesse Compher F R 25 2023 Northbrook, Illinois
22 Canada  Maggie Connors F L 24 2023 St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador
14 Canada  Renata Fast (A) D R 30 2023 Hamilton, Ontario
6 United States  Kali Flanagan D R 29 2023 Burlington, Massachusetts
41 Canada  Brittany Howard F R 29 2023 St. Thomas, Ontario
37 Canada  Erica Howe G L 32 2023 Ottawa, Ontario
70 Canada  Carly Jackson G L 27 2023 Amherst, Nova Scotia
7 Canada  Olivia Knowles D R 25 2023 Campbell River, British Columbia
3 Canada  Jocelyne Larocque (A) D L 36 2023 Ste. Anne, Manitoba
19 Canada  Rebecca Leslie F R 28 2023 Ottawa, Ontario
27 Canada  Emma Maltais F L 25 2023 Burlington, Ontario
34 China  Hannah Miller F L 28 2023 North Vancouver, British Columbia
12 Canada  Allie Munroe D L 27 2023 Yarmouth, Nova Scotia
20 Canada  Sarah Nurse F L 29 2023 Hamilton, Ontario
76 Canada  Maude Poulin-Labelle D L 25 2023 Sherbrooke, Quebec
5 Canada  Lauriane Rougeau D L 34 2023 Beaconsfield, Quebec
24 Canada  Natalie Spooner Injured Reserve  F R 34 2023 Scarborough, Ontario
40 Canada  Blayre Turnbull (C) F R 31 2023 Stellarton, Nova Scotia
10 Canada  Alexa Vasko F L 25 2023 St. Catharines, Ontario
28 Canada  Kaitlin Willoughby F R 29 2023 Prince Albert, Saskatchewan

Reserves

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As of March 20, 2024[30][31][32]
No. Nat Player Pos S/G Age Acquired Birthplace
23 Canada  Jess Jones F L 34 2024 Picton, Ontario
21 Canada  Emma Keenan D L 26 2023 Calgary, Alberta
55 Canada  Jessica Kondas D R 24 2023 Calgary, Alberta

Team captains

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General managers

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Head coaches

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First-round draft picks

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Main article: List of Toronto Sceptres draft picks

References

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  1. ^ Wyshynski, Greg (August 29, 2023). "Six inaugural franchises revealed for new PWHL". ESPN. Archived from the original on September 1, 2023. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  2. ^ Dachman, Jason (January 30, 2024). "Inside the Whirlwind Launch of the Professional Women's Hockey League's Broadcast Operations". sportsvideo.org. Sports Video Group. Archived from the original on February 3, 2024. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
  3. ^ McGran, Kevin (September 20, 2023). "Toronto Six president excited for the future of women's hockey, but mourns a team left in the ashes". Toronto Star. Archived from the original on January 6, 2024. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  4. ^ "PWHL names six general managers as teams begin roster construction". Sportsnet. CP. September 1, 2023. Archived from the original on September 5, 2023. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  5. ^ Kennedy, Ian (September 1, 2023). "Gina Kingsbury To Step Away From Role With Hockey Canada". The Hockey News. Archived from the original on September 19, 2023. Retrieved September 17, 2023.
  6. ^ "Ryan, MacLeod headline PWHL coaches". Sportsnet. The Canadian Press. September 15, 2023. Archived from the original on September 17, 2023. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
  7. ^ Ngabo, Gilbert (September 15, 2023). "Team Canada coach Troy Ryan adds Toronto PWHL job". Toronto Star. Archived from the original on September 16, 2023. Retrieved September 17, 2023.
  8. ^ "Sarah Nurse, Blayre Turnbull and Renata Fast sign with Toronto's PWHL franchise". The Globe and Mail. CP. September 6, 2023. Archived from the original on September 7, 2023. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  9. ^ Kennedy, Ian (September 18, 2023). "Jocelyne Larocque Goes Second Overall To Toronto In PWHL Draft". The Hockey News. Archived from the original on September 21, 2023. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  10. ^ Martin, Curtis (December 30, 2023). "Turnbull Named Toronto's Captain". The Hockey News. Archived from the original on January 5, 2024. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
  11. ^ Kennedy, Ian (November 23, 2023). "PWHL Releases Jersey Designs". The Hockey News. Archived from the original on November 14, 2023. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
  12. ^ Glennie, Drew-Anne (November 3, 2023). "MAC Confirmed as PWHL Toronto's Home Rink". ontherecordnews.ca. Archived from the original on December 15, 2023. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
  13. ^ Donkin, Karissa (January 1, 2024). "New York shuts out Toronto in 1st PWHL game as Canada's Shelton leads the way". CBC Sports. Archived from the original on January 4, 2024. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
  14. ^ "Maltais' short-handed goal lifts Toronto over New York for 1st PWHL win". CBC Sports. AP. January 5, 2024. Archived from the original on January 8, 2024. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
  15. ^ "Scotiabank Arena to host PWHL's 'Battle on Bay Street' between Toronto, Montreal". CBC Sports. The Canadian Press. January 25, 2024. Archived from the original on January 26, 2024. Retrieved January 26, 2024.
  16. ^ Ibrahim, Abdulhamid (February 16, 2024). "PWHL Toronto tops Montreal 3-0 in front of record-setting crowd at Scotiabank Arena". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. Archived from the original on February 17, 2024. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
  17. ^ Rainbird, Daniel (April 20, 2024). "PWHL-leading Toronto clinches playoff berth, wins in OT before record crowd in Montreal". CBC Sports. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  18. ^ Rowe, Daniel J. (April 20, 2024). "Nurse OT winner breaks Montreal hearts as Toronto wins PWHL 'Duel at the Top'". CTV News. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  19. ^ Kennedy, Ian (May 6, 2024). "Spooner Wins PWHL Scoring Race, Hits 20 Goal Mark". The Hockey News. Archived from the original on May 6, 2024. Retrieved June 9, 2024.
  20. ^ "Toronto, Montreal shift to larger venues for best-of-5 PWHL semifinals". CBC Sports. The Canadian Press. April 30, 2024. Archived from the original on May 1, 2024. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
  21. ^ Sadler, Emily (May 6, 2024). "Toronto chooses to face Minnesota in first round of PWHL playoffs". Sportsnet. Archived from the original on May 7, 2024. Retrieved May 7, 2024.
  22. ^ Brady, Rachel (May 8, 2024). "Toronto pounds Minnesota with 4-0 win in PWHL playoff opening". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on May 9, 2024. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
  23. ^ Ganter, Mike (May 19, 2024). "Not the ending they wanted, but PWHL Toronto's first year a success". Toronto Sun. Archived from the original on May 19, 2024. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  24. ^ "PWHL Toronto forward Natalie Spooner named league's inaugural MVP". CBC Sports. The Canadian Press. June 11, 2024. Archived from the original on June 12, 2024. Retrieved June 12, 2024.
  25. ^ "PWHL Toronto relocates to Coca-Cola Coliseum for 2024–2025". The Sports Network. September 3, 2024. Archived from the original on September 4, 2024. Retrieved October 8, 2024.
  26. ^ Morhardt, Meghann (December 21, 2023). "PWHL Toronto GM Says Nailing Down Team Name and Logo Are 'Low on Priority List'". The Messenger. Archived from the original on January 18, 2024. Retrieved January 18, 2024. When the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) starts its inaugural season on Jan. 1, the league's six teams won't have names and logos. For now, the players will be wearing simple jerseys that have the city name across the front.
  27. ^ Salvian, Hailey (October 26, 2023). "Potential names for PWHL's original 6 franchises revealed". The Athletic. Archived from the original on October 31, 2023. Retrieved October 26, 2023.
  28. ^ a b Wawrow, John (September 9, 2024). "PWHL reveals names, logos for all 6 franchises ahead of second season". CBC Sports. The Associated Press. Archived from the original on September 10, 2024. Retrieved October 8, 2024.
  29. ^ Kennedy, Ian (September 9, 2024). "These Were The Final Four Names In Contention For Each Of The PWHL's Six Teams". The Hockey News. Archived from the original on September 9, 2024. Retrieved October 8, 2024.
  30. ^ a b Donkin, Karissa (December 12, 2023). "PWHL teams release final 23-player rosters ahead of Jan. 1 season opener". CBC Sports. Archived from the original on December 16, 2023. Retrieved December 28, 2023. Teams will also carry 3 reserve players for 2024 season
  31. ^ a b "PWHL Toronto Roster 2024 Regular Season". ThePWHL.com. Professional Women's Hockey League. Archived from the original on December 28, 2023. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  32. ^ a b "Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) Roster Updates". March 19, 2024.
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