All-girls hockey tournament kicks off in Montreal, helmed by former Olympian

There was a time when this seemed improbable: 54 hockey teams from Ontario and Quebec battling it out in an all-girls tournament.

But this weekend, it’s a reality in Montreal, thanks to Olympic gold medalist Caroline Ouellette.

When Ouellette first stepped onto the ice at the age of nine, she was the only girl on her team. Today, the same rink where she played as a child now bears her name.

And this year, for the very first time, everyone on the ice for a hockey tournament is female, including the officials.

“It really became being about having more girls playing hockey so they could experience all of the joy that I felt throughout my career,” Ouellette told CTV National News.

“It means to me that young girls and young women know they can become anything they want to.”

The tournament, officially called the Caroline Ouellette Girls Hockey Celebration, started Thursday and will be held until Sunday. Girls ages five-12 will have the chance to compete against each other.

But Ouellette is not the only one with Olympic experience putting her efforts into this tournament.

After hanging up her whistle, Canadian referee Gabrielle Ariano-Lortie is now showing the ropes to new refs, hoping they will dream big, like she did.

“Some people helped me,” Ariano-Lortie said. “They helped me a lot, so I want to give it back, there aren’t a lot of women doing that who went to Olympics or higher level.”

“I want girls to go in the NHL and play and be an official.”

The NHL doesn’t have any female refs, but the American Hockey League saw 10 women officiate for the first time this season.

While there is a lot to celebrate, there are still strides to be made.

“That’s what makes me the saddest in my sport, is that after these years we still don’t have one professional women’s hockey league where women can make a living playing hockey,” Ouellette said.

For now, these future stars are simply doing what they love, proving they have what it takes to be in a league of their own.