Ontario Region's Master Corporal Carole Lapensée faces off against Quebec Region's Isabelle Antil in this Spring's Canadian Forces Women's Hockey Championship. CFPSA Sports Manager Switch Rousseau gets into position to drop the puck

Coach Brian Elliott, a Canadian Forces (CF) Petty Officer and head coach for the women's hockey team representing the Ontario Region at this year's CF Women's Hockey Championship, was feeling upbeat about his team's performance. His squad, made up of the best CF players in the province, was in the finals, held at CFB Borden last April, for the second year in a row and swept through the qualifying round with a 3-0-1 record. He was certain Ontario had the character, the spirit and the skill to reverse last year's 3-0 defeat to the Prairie Region and come out of this year's championship with the gold medal.

"Over the last week, we've really come together as a team," he said. "We've learned a lot and now we're determined to win the gold medal."

But despite their best efforts the team came up short against their Québec rivals. Down 3-0 the team made a heroic effort to come back with a goal in the dying minutes of the third period, but it wasn't enough to overcome Québec's superior speed and skill. Québec took the championship beating Ontario 3-1.

"It was a great game and we went into it geared up with a positive attitude," says Master Corporal Silvie LaPalme, Québec Region's assistant coach.

LaPalme, who acknowledged that the team felt confident about taking the championship after scoring the third goal, said "Ontario didn't play to their fullest potential and that's what really hurt them."

But unlike their male counterparts who also lost in the CF Men's National Championships the month before, the mood in the dressing room after the game was upbeat. The 22 women who made up Ontario's squad view the chance to compete nationally as a victory in itself and were simply excited about the opportunity to come to Borden to compete against the best players in the CF.

Just six years ago, CF women's hockey was hardly recognized at most bases across Canada. Women's hockey players were virtually shut out playing on their own bases and were forced to join local civilian leagues. But with the determination of a few key women's hockey pioneers combined with a growing awareness of women's hockey within the CF, the popularity of women's hockey has overwhelmed CF's sporting establishment. Today, women's hockey is considered as one of the CF's top draws and the Women's Hockey Championship is one of the most anticipated events of the year.

Crossing the Blue Line

Ontario team captain and last year's tournament MVP Master Corporal Carol Lapensée is a hockey pioneer blazing the trail for women's hockey both inside and outside the CF. With the help of supportive parents, Lapensée pursued her dream to play hockey from a young age. Growing up with three hockey-playing brothers in the small Eastern Ontario Town of Hawkesbury, Lapensée developed her desire to play hockey when she was just nine years old.

"Being in a small community in the early 1980's there was no opportunity for girls to play in their own league. My dad helped me try out for a boy's house league and I earned a spot on a team."

Being a girl on an all-boys team wasn't easy. It created some controversy within the community and even generated some media attention. "Every year it was a struggle and my parents had to fight just to keep me in the league," she said.

In 1989, soon after joining the CF, she was posted to CFB Calgary. Upon her arrival she found little opportunity to play within the CF and was forced to join a civilian hockey team.

Corporal Deanne Nelligan, a military police officer posted at CFB Borden and one of the tournament judges for this year's championship, found herself in the same pair of skates.

After being posted to CFB Edmonton in 1993, Nelligan also wanted to play but found few opportunities within the CF.

"There wasn't the opportunity for a beginner to play in the men's intersection league so I tried out for a civilian women's league," she said. "But that turned out to be a rude and disheartening experience. Not only did I not make any of the teams I didn't even get a call back. The whole experience made me feel like an outsider."

Determined to pursue her passion for playing hockey, Nelligan ignored the setbacks and went on to form CFB Edmonton's own women's hockey team. Making the most of her skills as an organizer, she put up notices around the base, had articles published in the base paper, used her contacts to spread the word and secured what ice time she could get at the base arena.

Captain Manson, an operations officer at CFB Winnipeg, was Prairie Region team captain at the National Championships.Together with other women's hockey pioneers like Captain Cathy Potts and Sergeant Jackie Wilson, She worked along side Nelligan in those early days working to get women's hockey going at her base.

She admits forming a hockey team from scratch was a real challenge. "CF women playing organized sports like hockey was not widely accepted at CFB Winnipeg. We chronically had to deal with the little things. Getting ice time was always a problem as was finding the money to fund a team. As well, base arenas didn't house additional changing rooms needed to accommodate women.

"Now things are different. We have support from base commanders to organize CF women's hockey teams, leagues and events. We now have budgets, personnel, equipment and support."

She Shoots, She Scores

The growth of women's hockey wasn't limited to the Prairies. At all CFB locations across Canada, hockey was becoming the winter sport of choice for CF women. Through word of mouth and vigorous publicity drives, CF women were becoming aware of base hockey programs and were turning out in record numbers. As the demand for women's hockey grew, so did the call for a national hockey championship.

In February 1999, 17 Wing Winnipeg took the initiative and hosted their own invitational national CF women's hockey tournament. The response was overwhelming with six teams representing players from 11 bases showing up to play.

Master Warrant Officer Fred Murrin is the head coach for the Prairie Region. His involvement in CF women's hockey started four years ago, after Nelligan asked him for help coaching their team.

"Before women's hockey really took off, senior base officers didn't see the importance of supporting women's hockey," he said. "But with the flood of interest in the sport, combined with the heavy turnout for the tournament in Winnipeg, commanding officers are buying in."

Soon after the tournament, the pieces for turning women's hockey into a championship CF sport began falling into place. Grassroots organizers were given word that a national championship was scheduled for the following year. And within a month, training camps sprouted up across Canada in preparation for this newly formed championship.

After two years of national championships the popularity of the sport continues to grow. According to Ontario coach Brian Elliott, "Close to 58 players tried out for the 22 spots on this year's team, double the number of players that tried out for last year's championship and there's no sign of letting up."

He added that CF women's hockey has the potential to grow much further and he envisions a day where championships will be established in all five CF regions.

Back at the arena, Elliott is disappointed about the final outcome of the championship but still he manages to carry smile of content.

"I've been coaching hockey for 20 years and out of all my experiences I find coaching women's hockey the most enjoyable," he says. "They simply play for the game itself. This environment is so refreshing to coach in. Regardless of where they play or what the outcome there is never any bitterness or ill feeling."