Between the suitcases, the children’s program, the Concordia Stingers, their tournament, writing her speech and arranging a real group trip to Toronto, Caroline Ouellette is racing to arrive for her induction into the Hall of Hockey Fame on Monday.
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Breathless? Oh yeah! Stressed? A little, but she is the one who “puts this pressure on herself.” Above all, she is looking forward to the eve of this weekend, which will mark the culmination of a career that includes four Olympic triumphs and 12 medals at the Women’s World Cup, including six gold medals.
“I feel great pride and joy that both my parents [Nicole et André] “I’m still here to experience this with myself, because without her it would never have happened,” admits the one who took a few minutes to talk to Le Journal on Thursday, on the eve of the presentation of her ring from the Pantheon has found.
“I never thought this could happen to me. “That wasn’t possible for most of my career,” Ouellette adds modestly.
Caroline Ouellette with her mother Nicole after the Vancouver 2010 Games. Archive photo
The 10e player
The 44-year-old Montrealer was inducted into the International Ice Hockey Federation pantheon in May and was named a Knight of the National Order of Quebec a month later. He will be the tenth hockey player immortalized in Toronto (see table below).
“I played with and against most of them. It’s a great honor to be in the same class as her,” said Ouellette.
However, the latter ranks third in the history of the national team in terms of games played and points, behind Hayley Wickenheiser and Jayna Hefford, and is also second in assists. In 220 games, she collected 87 goals and 115 assists for 242 points.
Quebec Premier François Legault honored Caroline Ouellette in the National Assembly last June. Archive photo, Stevens LeBlanc
A surprise from Julien BriseBois
Thanks to a donation of 10 tickets from Julien BriseBois, around 35 people will accompany the former Team Canada captain to the temple.
The general manager of the Tampa Bay Lightning earned his master’s degree in business administration from Concordia University’s John Molson School of Business, where Ouellette assists the head coach, his wife, Julie Chu. In addition, their charges have to play two games without their two coaches for the first time.
“This is a nice surprise! says Ouellette. He decided to give back to our women’s hockey program and ultimately to that of the Université de Montréal Carabins [où BriseBois est diplômé de la faculté de droit].”
The Hockey Canada coach can therefore count on the presence of “people who have had an extraordinary influence.” [sa] playing career, but also on it [qu’elle a] could do well off the ice.
Because she is involved in several organizations, she was keen to invite Josée Lebel and Mika Malloch, the other two co-founders of the Caroline Ouellette Celebration, which will welcome around 100 teams of players aged 5 to 15 in December. In addition to his parents, his sister, his aunt, his wife, his daughters Liv and Tessa and his in-laws, Ouellette will be surrounded by former teammates and coaches, including Charline Labonté, Noémie Marin, Emmanuelle Blais, Marie-Philip Poulin, Laura Stacey, Lauriane Rougeau, Melody Davidson and Daniele Sauvageau.
“These are all people who have had a truly extraordinary influence on my life,” says the former star and Montreal Canadiens color man.
Caroline Ouellette, Marie-Philip Poulin and their teammates pose with the Clarkson Cup, the emblem of the now-defunct Canadian Women’s Hockey League, in 2017. Archive photo, Chantal Poirier
The famous speech
If there’s one thing that stresses out future candidates, it’s writing a speech. And Ouellette is no exception.
“This is probably one of the longest speeches I’ve ever had to write and I always want to change it! I’m afraid of forgetting people.”
On Wednesday, when her daughters were on the ice, she felt like she was on a roll, but the siren that signaled the end of practice quickly caught her off guard. Then she thought she would finish her composition in the evening, but she couldn’t miss the game between Canada and the United States in Arizona, where she would normally have been.
“I think it’s finished, but I’ll have to revise it another time…”
“I remember Kim [St-Pierre] was nervous and now I understand why!” continues Ouellette, who wants to make her people happy, organize a dinner with her loved ones and take part in various activities on the weekend.
“As soon as my parents and everyone are on the plane and in the hotel, I can breathe!” she hopes.
Caroline Ouellette also serves as an assistant coach with Team Canada, as she did in the Rivalry game against the Americans in Laval last February. Archive photo, Martin Chevalier
Honor shared with Pierre Turgeon
Caroline Ouellette cherishes the fact of experiencing this moment with Pierre Turgeon, whom she met for the first time at the recent Pee-Wee International Hockey Tournament in Quebec.
“I always liked him as a player, he had great class and brilliant intelligence on the ice. It was obvious he was a good teammate and a good leader. He made us vibrate in Montreal,” she mentions, also thinking of Pierre Lacroix, “a great builder with the Nordiques and the Colorado Avalanche.”
Caroline Ouellette overtakes American Kacey Bellamy at the 2014 Sochi Olympics. Photo AFP
Women immortalized in photos
Angela James and Cammi Granato received their Hockey Hall of Fame rings in 2010.
Portal-
Geraldine Heaney (right) and Hayley Wickenheiser at the 2002 Olympic Games in Salt Lake City. They were inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2013 and 2019, respectively.
Portal/Sue Ogrocki-
Defenseman Angela Ruggiero talks to teammate Chris Pelletier in 2005, the first woman to play for the Tulsa Oilers of the Central Hockey League. Ten years later she entered the hall.
Getty Images/AFP-
Danielle Goyette kissed her gold medal at the 2006 Turin Games. The Quebecer was immortalized in 2017.
(Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images)-
Jayna Hefford defeated Andrew Raycroft in the Legends Match at the Hall of Fame Induction Weekend celebrations in Toronto in 2019. The Ontarian had been inducted a year earlier.
Martin Chevalier / JdeM-
Hayley Wickenheiser signs autographs at Calgary airport after returning from the Sochi Games. The one that holds several records was recorded in 2019.
Mike Drew/Calgary Sun/QMI Agency-
Kim St-Pierre makes a spectacular save against Finland at the 2008 Women’s Ice Hockey World Championship in China. The doors of the temple opened for the Quebec goalkeeper in 2020.
Portal/David Gray (CHINA)-
Finn Riikka Sallinen (right) was the first European to be accepted last year. She is here in action with American Kelly Pannek during the 2019 World Cup in their country.
AFP-
Caroline Ouellette now has her plaque in the Toronto Hall of Fame.
Getty Images via AFP-
Cammi Granato, United States, 2010
Angela James, Canada, 2010
Geraldine Heaney, Canada, 2013
Angela Ruggiero, United States, 2015
Danielle Goyette, Canada, 2017
Jayna Hefford, Canada, 2018
Hayley Wickenheiser, Canada, 2019
Kim St-Pierre, Canada, 2020
Riikka Sallinen, Finland, 2022
Caroline Ouellette, Canada, 2023
Source: Hockey Hall of Fame