Hockey success started in Caledon for two childhood friends, now PWHL rookies in Ottawa

By Jim Stewart

Zoe Boyd and Kristin Della Rovere—childhood best friends who are now professional hockey players for PWHL Ottawa – have travelled together through many of the most significant stages of their young lives.

Born and raised in Caledon East, Della Rovere and Boyd played their formative years for the Caledon Hawks.

During our phone interview after their afternoon practice at TD Place in Ottawa, the dynamic duo reflected on the fond memories connected to playing rep hockey in Caledon.

Della Rovere noted, “Both of us grew up playing hockey for the boys' Hawks teams. We were the Captain and Assistant Captain of the boys' team and we were proud of that accomplishment, but one of my happiest memories of hockey in Caledon was when we won a Tri-County championship with all those guys. Our coach, Martin Brassard, taught us about hockey, but he emphasized to all of us the importance of character.”

Boyd agreed with her teammate's insights about Coach Brassard's influence on their foundational years and added some pastoral imagery to our conversation.

“Coach Brassard played a huge role in our careers when we played for the Hawks and taught us how to play the game the right way, but my favorite childhood memory of growing up in Caledon was playing pond hockey in Palgrave.”

Although they both loved those pond hockey games in Palgrave and played on the same rep hockey teams, Della Rovere and Boyd attended different high schools—Della Rovere graduated from The Hill Academy and Boyd graduated from Humberview Secondary School.

However, the best friends shared similar post-secondary aspirations:  to play NCAA hockey. 

They both earned scholarships to prestigious US Colleges in the highly-competitive Eastern College Athletic Conference—Della Rovere starred for the Harvard University Crimson in Cambridge, Massachusetts and Boyd starred for the Quinnipiac University Bobcats in Hamden, Connecticut.

The 12-team ECAC is also home to some of the most famous universities in the USA including Brown, Clarkson, Colgate, Cornell, Dartmouth, Princeton, Rensselaer, St. Lawrence, Union, and Yale.

Starring on the Bobcats' blue line for four seasons, Boyd scored nine goals and earned 41 assists in 135 games with Quinnipiac from 2018-2023.

In her senior year in Connecticut, she was the Assistant Captain of the Bobcats, set career highs in assists, accrued an impressive +11 plus/minus, and blocked 46 shots on her way to ECAC Third Team All-League honors.

Boyd appreciated the opportunities that came with playing for Quinnipiac:  “We were fortunate to travel to a new country which can be pretty scary for many Canadians, but we were welcomed into a family setting.  I'd consider my career at Quinnipiac to be the best years of my life.” 

Della Rovere spoke in a similar manner about her years in the ECAC. A high-scoring forward for the Crimson from 2018-23, Della Rovere tallied 56 goals and 64 assists for 120 points in 125 games.

She was named Captain of Harvard's team in her senior year and led the NCAA with 529 face-off wins.  Della Rovere earned ECAC First Team All-League and All-Ivy First Team recognition in 2021-22 after a 40-point season in her junior year in Massachusetts.

Della Rovere's happiest moments at Harvard were delineated with a mix of pride and joy: “In my junior year, we won a few championships and I got to celebrate with teammates and the coaching staff.  On the ice or off the ice, it was a fun four years for me.”

After completing stellar four-year NCAA hockey careers, the lives of Della Rovere and Boyd converged once again, courtesy of the PWHL Ottawa franchise that selected both Caledon-born players in the new league's 2023 Draft. 

Both Boyd and Della Rovere expressed their gratitude and appreciation about playing pro hockey in Ottawa.

Boyd pointed out the best part about playing for the PWHL franchise: “We definitely have an amazing fan base. The 67's have been very welcoming, too, but our fans are my favorite part. Our fans are beyond compare.”

Della Rovere's assessment was equally warm.

“It's a combination of things.  We've been welcomed into the facility.  All our practices are in one arena which makes TD Place feel like home.  But it's more than the great facility—we can't thank the fans enough for the huge welcome they have given us.”

Boyd and Della Rovere shared their best moments about being professional hockey players in the PWHL's first season. Della Rovere was moved by “The feeling and atmosphere of the home opener. I think I blacked out during the first shift. It was so loud. A few weeks ago, a little boy ran up to us in the arena and asked for our autographs.  Having a young male feel the same excitement and experience that our young female fans have expressed to us was very eye-opening in terms of the overall impact our team is having on Ottawa.”

Boyd echoed her best friend's sentiments about Opening Night in Ottawa: “The first game we played was my best moment, too, especially playing in front of a full house. Our fans were in the arena and cheering for us even in our warm up.  They were so loud and proud and that was just our warmup.  My other big moment this year was when Kristin scored her first PWHL goal—it was a special moment when she scored that goal against Boston.”

Both Boyd and Della Rovere also marveled at the international flavor of PWHL Ottawa's inaugural roster which features players from six countries: Canada, United States, Japan, Hungary, Czechia, and Germany.

Della Rovere loves the international makeup of the team.

“It's really cool.  It's allowed the European girls to thrive in the league, especially when most of the focus is on the US and Canada in most international competitions.  It's special to see the talents from around the world.  We've learned some Japanese and other languages this season, too.”

Boyd echoes her teammate's insights into the rich culture created by so many nations of origin: “All the different countries have different styles of play and emphasize different elements. It makes our team stronger.  We're lucky to have this range of cultures in the dressing room, on the bench, and on the ice.”  

The former Caledon Hawks have also been impressed by how the PWHL has captured the imaginations of hockey fans in its first season of operation.

Della Rovere has been taken aback by the league's immediate success: “I didn't expect it would be this successful, given how rushed it was to get things going, but so many people are watching in the arenas and on tv.  I never thought it would gain so much popularity so soon.”

Boyd attributed some of the league's popularity to the determination and the entertaining quality of the players.

“We had many conversations as a team about putting on a show for the new fans. It has been spectacular to be playing in full arenas—in many cases, two to three times as many fans as we had in the stands in College—and our fans are here to stay.”

Boyd and Della Rovere are also pleased with the recent success of their team as PWHL Ottawa is steadily improving after a rough and unlucky start to the season.

Recent wins over Boston and New York –with whom Ottawa is in a dog fight for the last playoff spot in the 6-team league--left the rookies excited by the team's improving fortunes.  Boyd noted that “Winning against New York at home in front all our fans was one of the best moments of the season” and Della Rovere added that “It's amazing that after all the work we put in—to finally get some wins and start moving in the standings--makes the second half of the season very exciting for our team and our fans.”

The sky is the limit for PWHL Ottawa as it is for Boyd and Della Rovere as rookie professionals in the fledgling league. The graduates of the Caledon Hawks hockey program have progressed through high school to brilliant NCAA hockey careers as student-athletes at Quinnepac and Harvard to their current lives at the apex of professional women's hockey.

Their suggestions for young women in Caledon currently contemplating a similar career path were helpful and genuine.

Della Rovere recommended to the youngsters to “Have fun and love the game.  It's important to trust the process of becoming a better hockey player and to realize that there's more than one path to get there.”

Boyd also focused on the importance of enjoying hockey: “Never lose sight about having fun—it's the most important ingredient. If you're having fun, you'll work harder and play better.  It's a privilege to play rep hockey so it's important to appreciate the opportunities that come along with it.”  

Zoe Boyd and Kristin Della Rovere have skated themselves to the Promised Land of Professional Hockey.

The PWHL currently features the best 138 female hockey players in the world.  To be included in that elite group of athletes is a credit to their families, their coaches along the way, and, most importantly, their own determination to do what prior generations of female hockey players could only dream of doing.

The congenial duo owe much to the trailblazers who came before them, but it's apparent that Boyd and Della Rovere are blazing trails of their own for others to emulate—whether those impressionable, hard-working youngsters reside in Caledon, or Peel Region, or Ontario, and anywhere else in Canada.