Victoire sign Jessie Eldridge to two-year contract
One of the top scorers in the young history of the PWHL is heading to la belle province.
On Saturday, the Montreal Victoire announced that the team has signed forward Jessie Eldridge to a two-year contract, which will carry through the 2027-28 season.
The Victoire will be the fourth team Eldridge has joined since coming to the league in Year 1. The Barrie, Ont. native began her career with the New York Sirens, joining forces with Alex Carpenter, and later Sarah Filler, to create one of the more entertaining lines in women’s hockey. However, she was left unprotected last summer and was taken by the Seattle Torrent in the expansion draft. After a productive first half of the season on a bad Seattle team, Eldridge was traded to the Boston Fleet ahead of the trade deadline.
The 28-year-old made an immediate impact on a Fleet team that needed more offense. In 11 games with her new team, Eldridge scored seven goals and 13 points, totaling 14 goals and nine assists for 23 points, tied for fifth in the PWHL. She added three assists in four postseason games, as Boston was ousted in the semifinals by the Ottawa Charge.
In 84 career regular-season PWHL games, the former Colgate star has scored 30 goals and 31 assists for 61 points.
On top of her pro career, which saw her participate in the PWHPA Dream Gap Tour, Eldridge won the gold medal with Canada at the 2022 IIHF Women’s World Championship.
Eldridge joins a Victoire team that is coming off its first Walter Cup this spring, and still has plenty of firepower returning to the roster. Along with captain Marie-Philip Poulin and Laura Stacey, general manager Daniele Sauvageau re-signed forward Abby Roque, who was a key part of Montreal’s championship run, to a two-year contract ahead of the PWHL Draft.
With the addition of Eldridge and the re-signings of Jade Downie-Landry and Alexandra Labelle, the Victoire have 14 of a possible 23 contracts signed for next season.