High stakes, big opportunities await undrafted hopefuls invited to PWHL training camps

Sarah Bujold thought her hockey career was going to take her to Montreal in 2019.

Bujold was poised to play for Les Canadiennes in the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL) after five seasons with St. Francis Xavier University in Nova Scotia.

But the league folded just as Bujold was about to begin her CWHL career, changing her plans and the landscape of professional women's hockey.

After a journey that took her through Sweden and the New York area, the former U SPORTS player of the year will finally get the chance to make a professional hockey roster in Montreal.

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Bujold has been invited to training camp with Montreal of the new Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL), one of a number of players to accept a tryout after not hearing their names called in the PWHL's draft.

"My agent and I were speaking to different teams but Montreal just felt right," said Bujold, who is from Riverview, N.B.

According to the league's collective bargaining agreement with the players, each team needs to have at least 28 players at training camp, creating opportunities for at least 60 players who weren't drafted.

Training camps are expected to open in mid-November and for those competing for a job, the stakes are high. The PWHL is expected to begin play in January 2024, at a time when professional women's hockey leagues in Europe, a potential plan B, will be mid-season.

At some point, PWHL rosters will need to be trimmed down to 23 players, with provisions for reserve players, according to the collective bargaining agreement.

Bujold became more than a point-per-game player in her final season in the Swedish Women's Hockey League (SDHL) before returning to North America last year.