Toronto Six to host Premier Hockey Federation all-star game: ‘Toronto is where it’s at for us’

The Toronto Six will host the first all-star game for the newly rebranded Premier Hockey Federation as professional women’s hockey looks to expand its foothold in Canada and draw more attention to itself.

It will be the first time the league, formerly the National Women’s Hockey League, holds its all-star game outside the United States.

“This is a big deal in the history of our league,” PHF commissioner Tyler Tumminia told the Star in an exclusive interview. “We really felt it was important for the federation to stake its claim in Toronto, No. 1. But to have our best athletes show up and perform there in Toronto, it was definitely of high importance.

“Plus, they’re the new kids on the block. So we want to make sure we send some love there. But, yeah, Toronto, it’s where it was at for us.”

The game will be held Jan. 29 at York Canlan Sports, the home of the Six, who are now in their second season in a league established in 2015.

The game will be shown in Canada on TSN and to TSN Direct subscribers, worldwide through the ESPN International distribution network, and in the United States on ESPN-Plus, the streaming service that is also home to many NHL games.

The TV deals are another sign that the league is striving to make itself more attractive to the game’s top female players, most of whom are currently without a league.

To that end, the Star has learned the league was poised to signed its highest-profile player.

Kali Flanagan was to sign a deal with the Boston Pride for the remainder of the 2021-22 season. She won gold with the U.S. at the 2017 world championship and the 2018 Olympics.

Flanagan spent the past two seasons in barnstorming tournaments with the Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association, the league-less home to Olympic-bound female players. She was among the 28 players invited to the U.S residency program for the 2022 Games but was recently released.

While the PHWPA has been touring with its stars, holding out for a league that pays a living wage, Flanagan’s arrival to the PHF is a victory for a league that is looking to improve the quality of hockey. The PHF has a salary cap of $300,000 (U.S.) a team for a 20-game regular-season schedule.

“We’re setting ourselves up to be very attractive to current Olympians or post-Olympians to want to play here in the federation and to create an attractive environment for them to want to do that,” said Tumminia.

Flanagan will surely be one of the brighter lights when the all-star game comes to Toronto.

The Six should have plenty of stars for consideration, including Mikyla Grant-Mentis, the reigning league MVP and current leader in assists who was just named to Forbes 30 Under 30 list for sports, alongside the likes of Alphonso Davies, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Nelly Korda. Grant-Mentis has two goals and six assists in three games this season.

Veteran Michela Cava is second in Six scoring with three goals and three assists, and Lindsay Eastwood is among defence leaders with a goal and two assists while goaltender Elaine Chuli, an under-18 gold medallist with Canada in 2012, is 3-0-0 with a 9.19 save percentage and 2.00 goals-against average.

The all-star event will actually be three minigames, featuring three teams. The all-star selection process will take place in three stages: PHF players will be polled to determine three captains; coaches from all six teams will identify 30 all-star participants; and fans will vote to choose three final all-star skaters and one extra goaltender. Once the pool of players is determined, the captains will be responsible for drafting three 12-player rosters.

The three teams will compete in a round-robin series. Each of the three single-period games will include 10 minutes of five-on-five hockey followed by five minutes of three-on-three and a shootout. All goals will count toward a final score, with the top team crowned all-star champions.

“There’s a lot we’re trying to do, and to do it here and in this new territory to me is very poetic,” said Tumminia. “So we’re very happy to have this happen.”