Breaking: Female players take bold stance and go on strike

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HockeyFeed
HockeyFeed
Published 4 years ago
Breaking: Female players take bold stance and go on strike
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This is bold move by more than 200 women — including superstars Marie-Philip Poulin of Canada as well as Hilary Knight and Kendall Coyne-Schofield of the United States, however, it is the decision they have made on Thursday morning. 

The women want to create a new future for their sport and have taken a bold stance with this powerful statement. Here is the full statement from the women’s players group:

"We are fortunate to the ambassadors of this game that we revere so deeply and yet, more than ever, we understand the responsibility that comes with that ambassadorship: To leave this game in better shape than when we entered it. That is why we come together, over 200 players strong, to say it is time to create a sustainable professional league for Women's Hockey.
While we have all accomplished so much, there is no greater accomplishment than what we have the potential to do right here and right now – not just for this generation of players, but for generations to come. With that purpose, we are coming together, not as individual players, but as one collective voice to help navigate the future and protect the players’ needs. We cannot make a sustainable living playing in the current state of the professional game. Having no health insurance and making as low as two thousand dollars a season means players can’t adequately train and prepare to play at the highest level.
Because of that, together as players, we will not play in ANY professional leagues in North America this season until we get the resources that professional hockey demands and deserves.
We may have represented different teams, leagues, and countries – but this sport is one family. And the time is now for this family to unite. This is the moment we’ve been waiting for – our moment to come together and say we deserve more. It’s time for a long-term viable professional league that will showcase the greatest product of women’s professional hockey in the world.” #ForTheGame


The disbanding of the Canadian Women’s Hockey League, and the narrowing of North American women’s hockey back down to one professional league has pushed the women to meet prior to the 2019 IIHF Women’s World Championship in Finland last month to begin the dialogue that led to the decision to shutter the women’s game next season.

The players hope that this move will create a void that could lead to a new model.

Fans were outraged to find out last month that the NHL annually supported each of the NWHL and CWHL to the tune of $50,000 per year. The NHL was not prepared to make any greater financial commitment to league(s). After the CWHL folded, the league said it would designate funds previously earmarked to the CWHL to the NWHL for a total league contribution of $100,000.

Source: TSN