MONTREAL (AP) 鈥� Montreal Victoire captain Marie-Philip Poulin revealed Thursday she played through a torn ACL and a torn meniscus in her right knee to help the team and is expected to be out indefinitely after surgery set for late July.
Poulin, 35, was initially injured in the preliminary round at the Olympics but still in the knockout stage to help it reach the final before in overtime and leaving Milan with silver. She aggravated the injury on March 15 when Montreal played Boston.
鈥淚t is emotional. Hockey, it is my life,鈥� Poulin said, fighting back tears during a video news conference with Victoire general manager Dani猫le Sauvageau. 鈥淚t鈥檚 the journey of an athlete where you give your 100% every day, things can happen, and that鈥檚 part of it. Not that I鈥檓 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.鈥�
Sauvageau said the Victoire will provide updates as they become available, adding the team is confident Poulin will return to play 鈥渋n due time.鈥�
Poulin missed 10 games after reinjuring the knee in March, then was playoff MVP for her role in Montreal’s run, with two goals and six assists in nine games.
鈥淚 won鈥檛 lie, yes, it was painful. Mentally and physically, it was difficult,鈥� Poulin said. 鈥淚t was hard, but to be honest, I knew the team we had was very special. I knew we were in a position to put ourselves in a very good spot to win the Walter Cup. It was one of our goals, and it was one of my goals. It was worth it.
鈥淚 knew all the risks, what was for it and what was against it, and what I had to do. At the end of the day, I was 100% committed. And I was very happy to lift that Cup at the end of the day.鈥�
Poulin is widely regarded as one of the greatest women鈥檚 hockey players of all time. She has won three Olympic gold medals, scoring the winning goal in all three of those finals to earn the nickname 鈥淐aptain Clutch.鈥�
A five-time Olympian, Poulin also is the Canadian women鈥檚 team鈥檚 all-time leading goal scorer at the Winter Games with 20.
Poulin is the PWHL鈥檚 all-time leading scorer with 38 goals and 67 points in 70 games since the league began play in 2024. She was named league MVP in 2025.
This past season, Poulin recorded nine goals and nine assists in 19 games.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think there鈥檚 any words to describe Marie, to start with, and what she had decided following this injury. It was not a 鈥榝or sure鈥� to be back during the playoffs,鈥� Sauvageau said. 鈥淭o go through this process, not knowing if it鈥檚 gonna work, it was unbelievable to watch 鈥� This is what Marie-Philip is all about, a person of (few) words, but so much more action. And this is how she leads.
鈥�(The goal) is to be back as long as possible. We love watching her, we love having her around, she鈥檚 bigger than the sport itself and the sport needs her.鈥�
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