Former Team Canada goaltender Small named president of PHF's Six

TORONTO — Former Canadian women's hockey team goalie Sami Jo Small has been appointed president of the Premier Hockey Federation's Toronto Six.

The 46-year-old from Winnipeg joins general manager Angela James and head coach Geraldine Heaney at the helm of the Six, which will start its third PHF season in November.

Small, who won Olympic gold medals with Canada in both 2002 and 2006 as well as four world championship gold, co-founded the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL) that operated for a dozen years before it folded under financial pressures.

Small was GM of the CWHL's Toronto Furies in the league's last season. She'll oversee the Six's business and hockey operations.

The Six announced in March the team had been sold to a new ownership group led by former NHL player Anthony Stewart and coach Ted Nolan as well as James.

But the team said Tuesday in its statement that group holds a minority stake and that BTM Partners has retained majority control of the club.

BTM's Bryant McBride is Toronto's governor and representative on the PHF Board.

“Sami Jo has unrivalled experience on and off the ice, with the character and leadership qualities we value and that will truly benefit the Toronto Six in all facets of our organization,” McBride said in the statement.

Toronto went 16-3-1 last season in the PHF to rank second in the league. The Six fell 5-1 to the Boston Pride in the Isobel Cup semifinals.

The PHF expanded this season into Montreal. The Force is the seventh team and the second in Canada to join the league, which was the NWHL until it rebranded in 2021.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 27, 2022.