Quebec City, Quebec, will host a Professional Women’s Hockey League regular season game on Jan. 19, according to sources Rogers Sportsnet on Tuesday. The game will be played at the Videotron Center and features the Montreal Victoire and Ottawa Charge.
The Videotron Center opened in 2015. The main tenants are the Quebec Remparts of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. By building the arena, there was hope that Quebec City would see the return of the National Hockey League and/or successfully bid for the Winter Olympics. Neither has happened yet.
Quebec City applied for an NHL expansion franchise in 2016. However, the NHL only accepted one franchise at that point, and that was Las Vegas. According to Pat Hickey of the Montreal GazetteThere is a belief that there will never be NHL hockey in Quebec City as long as Gary Bettman is NHL commissioner. The Nordiques were in the NHL from 1979 to 1995 before moving to Denver to join the Colorado Avalanche. The International Olympic Committee has set all venues for the Winter Olympics by 2034.
By hosting a PWHL regular season game, there is a belief that Quebec City is interested in a PWHL franchise. There are three PWHL franchises based in Canada. They are located in Ottawa, Montreal and Toronto.
“Gamer. Introvert. Problem solver. Creator. Thinker. Lifelong food evangelist. Alcohol advocate.”