Marie-Philip Poulin named IIHF Female Player of the Year

One of the greatest players in the history of the game has earned another prestigious honor.

On Wednesday, the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) announced that Team Canada captain Marie-Philip Poulin has been named the 2024-25 Female Player of the Year.

Poulin won the award after receiving almost a third of the votes cast, beating out American goaltender Gwyneth Philips and U.S. captain, and 2023 Female Player of the Year, Hilary Knight.

The 34-year-old is the first player, male or female, to be a finalist for IIHF Player of the Year in each of the three years of the awards’ existence. She finished third in voting last year, losing out to fellow Canadian star Natalie Spooner.

After a couple of “down” years at the IIHF Women’s World Championships, by her standards, Poulin was a driving force behind the Canadians’ success in Czechia this past April. With four goals and eight assists for 12 points in seven games, she led the tournament in scoring, was named to the tournament All-Star Team, along with earning most valuable player honors for the second time in her career, and the first time since the 2013 tournament.

Unfortunately, her efforts didn’t help Canada repeat as champions, as they fell to the rival United States in overtime in the gold medal game.

The silver medal marked the 12th medal Poulin has taken home from the Women’s Worlds – four gold and eight silver. The Quebec native has also three Olympic golds and one silver to her resume.

Along with her international success this past season, Poulin was once again one of the best players in the PWHL. She led the league in goals, finding the back of the net 19 times, and is once again a finalist for the Forward of the Year and Billie Jean King MVP awards. Poulin ended up fourth in the PWHL in overall scoring with 26 points in 30 games.