Toronto Six

The Toronto Six are a professional ice hockey club based in Toronto. They will be the first Canadian team to compete in the National Women's Hockey League (NWHL) and are the first expansion team to join the league since the collapse of the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL) in 2019. The team was founded in 2020 and the 2020–21 NWHL season will be their inaugural season. The venue for their home games is yet to be announced.

Toronto Six
2020–21 Toronto Six season
CityToronto, Ontario, Canada
LeagueNational Women's Hockey League
Founded2020
Home arenaTo be announced
ColoursRed, gold
         
Owner(s)Johanna Neilson Boynton
General managerMandy Cronin
Head coachTo be announced
CaptainTo be announced
MediaTwitch
WebsiteOfficial Website

The team is owned by a group of Boston-based investors headed by Johanna Neilson Boynton, a former competitor with the Harvard Crimson women's ice hockey program. Margaret ”Digit” Murphy, iconic former head coach of the Brown Bears, Boston Blades, and Kunlun Red Star WIH, serves as Team President. The team’s general manager is Mandy Cronin, a co-founder of the CWHL, and sports executive Tyler Tumminia is the team’s chairman.

History

Background

Following the 2018–19 season, the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL) ceased operations and with it the league's Toronto team, the Toronto Furies, citing the fragmentation of corporate sponsors between the CWHL and NWHL which caused their league to be financially infeasible.[1] The NWHL then announced it was pursuing adding two CWHL markets to the league, Montreal and Toronto, if the NWHL found financial backers for the teams.[2] The formal announcement welcoming the team was made on April 22, 2020. The Six are the league's sixth team and first original expansion team (the Minnesota Whitecaps joined the league's original four teams after being an independent team).[3]

Establishment

The first five players signed by the franchise were Kristen Barbara, Elaine Chuli, Shiann Darkangelo, Emma Greco, and Taylor Woods.[4] All five were former players in the CWHL. Holding the first overall pick in the 2020 NWHL Draft, which took place on April 28 and 29, 2020, the team traded the pick to the Boston Pride, who selected Sammy Davis. The first player selected in Toronto franchise history was Jaycee Gebhard, an alumna of the Robert Morris Colonials women's ice hockey program. With their 15th overall pick, the club selected Erin Locke, a forward with the York Lions women's ice hockey,[5] only the second USports women's ice hockey player selected in draft history. The team announced Mandy Cronin, former goaltender of the Buffalo Beauts, as general manager on May 11, 2020.[6]

Team identity

The team name, colours, and logo were announced by the NWHL on May 19, 2020.[7] The name was chosen from over 300 entries submitted by fans in an online poll, and was chosen because the team is the sixth NWHL team founded for the sixth NWHL season, as well as there being six players on the ice. The Six is also a nickname for the city of Toronto, referring to the original cities of Toronto, North York, Scarborough, York and Etobicoke, and the borough of East York.[8]

The team colours are red and gold, the former representing the country of Canada and the latter representing the Golden Horseshoe and the elite level of play the club aims to achieve. The logo is a combination of the letter "T", "O" and the number 6, with a maple leaf in the middle.[9]

Players and personnel

Current roster

Updated 20 July 2020 [10]

# Nat Player Pos S/G Age Acquired Birthplace
– Elaine Chuli G L 24 2020 Waterford, Ontario
– Samantha Ridgewell G L 26 2020 Outlook, Saskatchewan
– Kristen Barbara D R 27 2020 Mount Hope, Ontario
– Lindsay Eastwood D L 23 2020 Kanata, Ontario
– Emma Greco D L 25 2020 Burlington, Ontario
– Sarah Steele D L 25 2020 Stratford, Prince Edward Island
– Kelly Babstock F L 28 2020 Mississauga, Ontario
– Brooke Boquist F L 24 2020 Thunder Bay, Ontario
– Sarah-Ève Coutu-Godbout F L 23 2020 Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec
– Amy Curlew F L 22 2020 Goose Bay, Newfoundland and Labrador
– Shiann Darkangelo F L 26 2020 Royal Oak, Michigan
– Mikyla Grant-Mentis F L 22 2020 Brampton, Ontario
– Mackenzie MacNeil F R 24 2020 Richmond Hill, Ontario
– Natalie Marcuzzi F L 22 2020 Thornhill, Ontario
– Jenna McParland F R 28 2020 Schreiber, Ontario
– Breanne Wilson-Bennett F L 24 2020 Markham, Ontario
– Emma Woods F R 21 2020 Burford, Ontario
– Taylor Woods F R 25 2020 Morden, Manitoba

General managers

References
  1. "Final Public Communication" (PDF). CWHL. July 2, 2019.
  2. "U.S.-based women's hockey league OKs plan to expand to Canada after CWHL folds | The Star". thestar.com. April 2, 2019. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
  3. "NWHL adding first Canadian team, in Toronto". April 22, 2020.
  4. Wawrow, John (April 22, 2020). "NWHL's expansion to Toronto gets mixed reviews from women players". cbc.ca. CBC Sports. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  5. "Toronto NWHL Loads up on Lions, Selects Locke in Entry Draft".
  6. "NWHL Provides Updates on the GMs for 2020-21". www.nwhl.zone. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
  7. "Introducing…The Toronto Six - Nwhl". Nwhl.zone. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  8. "Toronto Nicknames & Where They Came From: A Tourist's Guide". Narcity. May 15, 2015. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  9. Jay, Michelle (May 11, 2020). "Toronto NWHL officially announces its name". The Ice Garden. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  10. "Stats - Toronto". Toronto.nwhl.zone. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
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