The Professional Women’s Hockey League flag has been raised at the Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame by champion Michela Cava.
The flag went up at the hall on Thursday morning.
“We are absolutely thrilled,” said Hall of Fame Executive Director Diane Imrie. “Michela is a great role model for our young female hockey players, for hockey in general.”
“We have a tradition, we’ve had it for years, raising flags when people won traditionally the Stanley Cup, so it’s like we are raising it for the Walter Cup.”
Although Cava won the Walter Cup last year as well, the hall was unable to find a flag and instead opted to have one made for this year.
“They said how many people have had the flag raised for them and all that, NHL players from Thunder Bay that I’ve been kind of looking up to as a kid,” explained Cava. It’s just a really cool experience to be included in it.”
Cava says it has not fully set in that she is now the person kids are looking up to.
“I think it’s just the way that the PWHL and women’s sports has gone, it’s just such a cool experience to be a part of the start of it, and yeah, I’m just really proud of the way that everyone’s come together and the community and fans and it’s a pretty remarkable experience.”
“I think right now for girls that get to play in the youth organizations, it’s pretty cool for them to be able to look forward to, to playing longer than just college and not worrying about so much about focusing on getting a job right after school, of course, that’s what we’re all eventually going to do but go to school and then being able to play pro for a few years.”
“So I think it’s a really cool experience for not only me to be a part of it, but to watch the the younger generation grow up and maybe be even able to coach them and stuff.”
This is the third year in a row that Cava has one a championship, securing the last two PWHL Walter Cups as well as the final Lady Isobel Gathorne-Hardy Cup for winning the Premier Hockey Federation, which ceased operation in 2023 and preceded the PWHL.
