Fast-Larocque defence pair provides sturdy backbone for red-hot PWHL Toronto

Renata Fast and Jocelyne Larocque are no strangers to being partners on the blue line.

The two have been paired together on the Canadian national team. And as the Professional Women's Hockey League season has progressed, they have benefited from a lot of ice time together for a red-hot Toronto team that's won seven in a row and eight of its last nine.

"Just that consistency, the fact that we're playing two to four games a week," Larocque said post-practice Tuesday. "We read off each other well [and] for me it's been great. When you get to play with the fastest skater on the ice, it makes my job pretty easy."

Fast says the defenders are getting more comfortable with the flow of the bench.

"At the beginning of the year, we were working a little bit where like Joc and I would split up for a shift and go with someone else and then we'd come back together.," Fast said.

"I think we found it a little bit difficult at first to manage playing with other people but we've figured out a way. When we're together we know how we need to play together [and] when you're playing with another player, just playing the same way but having a little bit more awareness."

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The duo has been producing offensively just as well as they have defensively of late and are among the top-scoring blue liners in the PWHL. Fast has six of her seven points (one goal, six assists) on the season in the past six games, while Larocque has had six of her eight (one goal, seven assists) across the team's hot stretch.

Part of the success comes from the creative system head coach Troy Ryan has employed, which includes defenders leading the rush if they make a play.

"Troy's been my coach on the