Photo: Arianne Bergeron
Photo: Émilie Lapointe
‘Expect the unexpectable’
Heading in her first season, Laganière already has some clear objectives in mind.
“My personal goals are just to get to know new teammates and really bond with them and create new relationships.”
Laganière says she models her game on the ice after a few players, including former and current assistant coaches for the Stingers’ women’s hockey team, Lauriane Rougeau (2016-20) and Erin Ambrose (2018 – present), both former defenders who have competed for Canada’s national women’s team.
“My team goals are to just enjoy the moment and develop together,” she says. “We don’t have major expectations because we’re a brand-new team, but at the same time, we can achieve really good standards this year. Expect the unexpectable.”
Off the ice
While at Concordia, Laganière completed a BA in therapeutic recreation and a graduate certificate in business administration.
“The social aspect of [therapeutic recreation] — communicating with people and bringing people together — helped me with my leadership,” she says. “In hockey, you work with a team of 30-plus people and you have to get everyone on the same page.
“Hockey is a business itself and my background in business administration was also a big help.”
Laganière is also the co-founder of @WomensHockeyNation, an Instagram page dedicated to taking a stand for women’s hockey.
“It all started with my business administration certificate. I had a class on marketing, and we had to create a website and sell something,” she says.
“I was with my teammates at that time, and we decided to promote the idea of women's hockey, because we just thought that there wasn’t enough the representation, especially for the RSEQ [Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec] and for youth.”
On or off the ice, Laganière says her hope is to represent women’s hockey players across Canada and to be a role model for young hockey players.
