BARRIE, ONT. -- A born and raised Barrie woman is now chasing her dreams of being a hockey player on the national stage while advocating for women in Canada's game.
Jessie Eldridge plays forward for Montreal's Team Bauer in the developing Professional Women's Hockey Players' Association (PWHPA). The league was formed following the dismantling of the Canadian Women's Hockey League in 2019.
"When you step on the ice here with all the women that are here, we have Olympians, the best players on the world," Eldridge says to CTV News. "Getting the chance to play with them, you just keep your stick on the ice and get ready for the puck because you know they are going to make you look good."
This past week Eldridge has been playing in the Secret Dream Gap Tour in Calgary. The PWHBA is divided into five regions across the continent, with three in Canada: Calgary, Montreal and Toronto. This week's round-robin-style tournament included the three Canadian teams and was one of Eldridge's first of its kind since the pandemic began.
"So instead of playing a season and working towards the playoffs, we're just in little hubs right now, and we're going around and doing showcases," says Eldridge. "This is our first and only right now, because of COVID-19, but last year we also did the same thing. We are hopefully building on this movement, hopefully, a sustainable league."
Eldridge had a successful week, with her team making it to Sunday's final. Team Bauer, on which Eldridge plays forward, beat Team Sonnet (Toronto) in a score of 4-2. The Barrie native was even named one of Sunday's three-star players of the game.
After starting playing with the boys in the Barrie Colts' minor leagues, she hopes to continue developing her career and serving as a role model to other women.
