On Sundays at the St. Bon's Forum in St. John's, the scoreboard is used only for its clock. In this weekly hockey game for women, the scores don't matter, says Liz Ohle, the creator of the Sunday games. "It's much more about, 'Did I play as well as I wanted this week?
Did I play better than last week?'" Ohle said. "'Did I make a new friend today?'" It's not only beginner-friendly, Ohle says — it's made for beginners: no judgment or drive for competition, just a safe place for women and non-binary people to enjoy the game with each other and discover what they're capable of achieving. "Whenever anybody scores a goal, everybody cheers from both sides.
It's just an accomplishment and we all recognize it," Ohle said, before adding with a smile, "Well, except the goalies." But even the goalies cheer on the players who make a good move, she said.
In nearly 18 years of weekly games, this unofficial women's league, informally known as Liz's Sunday Game, has attracted women of all ages and backgrounds, as well as the attention of a filmmaker.