'It is emotional': Hockey icon Marie-Philip Poulin to undergo knee surgery in July

Marie-Philip Poulin fought back tears Thursday as she spoke about the long recovery ahead, but said she remains determined to return to the ice.

Poulin battled through a torn anterior cruciate ligament and torn meniscus in her right knee while leading the Montreal Victoire to a Walter Cup championship this past spring. The Victoire captain will undergo surgery in late July and be out for an undetermined amount of time.

"It is emotional. Hockey, it is my life," a choked-up Poulin said during a virtual press conference. "It's the journey of an athlete where you give your 100 per cent every day, things can happen, and that's part of it.

"Not that I'm looking forward to it, but I am looking forward to [stepping] up in that recovery room, in that training room, to go one day at a time and come back."

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General manager Daniele Sauvageau said the Victoire will provide updates as they become available, adding the team is very confident Poulin will return to play "in due time."

Poulin first injured her knee in preliminary-round play against Czechia at February's Milan Cortina Olympics before suffering a more serious re-aggravation on March 15 against the Boston Fleet.

The 35-year-old from Beauceville, Que., missed the next 10 games but returned to lead the Victoire to their first Walter Cup title, earning playoff MVP honours with two goals and six assists in nine games.

"I won't lie, yes, it was painful. Mentally and physically, it was difficult," Poulin said. "It was hard, but to be honest, I knew the team we had was very special. I knew we were