Marie-Philip Poulin Crowned PWHL MVP
Montreal Victoire captain Marie-Philip Poulin has been awarded the Billie Jean King MVP award of the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) for the 2024-25 season.
Poulin, who was also named forward of the year, received the awards at a ceremony held in Ottawa.
The 34-year-old player led the league with 19 goals and finished in fourth place with 26 points in 30 matches.
Poulin was also a finalist for the MVP and best forward awards in the inaugural PWHL season in 2024, awards that were won by Natalie Spooner of Toronto.
These awards cap off another year of great achievements for Poulin, who was named IIHF Player of the Year earlier this month, after earning the MVP award at the women’s world championship in April, with 12 points (four goals, eight assists).
Toronto Sceptres defender Renata Fast and Boston Fleet captain Hilary Knight (now with Seattle) were the other finalists for MVP, while Knight and New York Sirens forward Sarah Fillier competed for the forward of the year award.
Fast and Fillier didn’t go home empty-handed. Fast took home the defender of the year award, while Fillier was named the league’s best rookie.
Fast, 30 years old, tied for first in scoring among defensemen with 22 points in 30 games, led the league with 63 hits, and led all skaters with an average of 24 minutes and 39 seconds of ice time per game.
Sophie Jaques and Claire Thompson of the Minnesota Frost (both now with Vancouver) were the other finalists.
Fillier, 25, tied for the league lead with 29 points in 30 games and led the league with five power-play goals.
Montreal forward Jenn Gardiner (now with Vancouver) and Ottawa goalkeeper Gwyneth Philips were also finalists.
Ann-Renée Desbiens, from Montreal, took home the Goaltender of the Year award. The 31-year-old player led all goaltenders with 15 wins, and her 1.86 goals-against average and .932 save percentage were the best marks among all starters.
Philips and Aerin Frankel, from Boston, were also finalists.
Kori Cheverie, from Montreal, won the coach of the year award after leading the Victoire to first place in the PWHL standings with a record of 12-7-3-8. Carla MacLeod from Ottawa and Troy Ryan from Toronto, who won the award last year, were also in the running.
Victoire forward Laura Stacey won the Hockey For All award, given to the player “who had the greatest impact on her community”.
Poulin, Fillier, Knight, Fast, Jaques, and Desbiens were named to the league’s first all-star team.
Kendall Coyne Schofield of Minnesota, Tereza Vanisova of Ottawa (now Vancouver), Daryl Watts of Toronto, Ella Shelton of New York (now Toronto), Thompson and Frankel were named to the second all-star team.
Fillier, Gardiner, Britta Curl-Salemme from Minnesota, Cayla Barnes and Anna Wilgren from Montreal (both now with Seattle) and Philips formed the rookie team.
