An Antigonish County Goalie is about to make hockey history tonight.
Ryah Stewart is a 16-year-old who is set to become the first woman to play in a game for the Cape Breton Eagles in their pre-season matchup against the Moncton Wildcats tonight. Although, she’s no stranger to playing against men.
Stewart was part of the Nova Jr. X men’s U15 team in 2021 and played for the Cape Breton West Islanders U18 men’s team in both of the past two seasons. She posted save percentages over .900 across playoff appearances with both squads.
Stewart will become the fourth woman to ever suit up in a QMJHL game tonight, following in the footsteps of Manon Rheaume who played for Trois Rivieres before eventually becoming the first woman to play in the NHL. Since then, Charline Labonte played 28 games for Acadie-Bathurst in the late 90’s and early 2000’s, and most recently, Eve Gascon became the third woman to play in the Q when she took the ice for Rimouski in 2022.
Puck drop for tonight’s game is at 7:00 p.m. at Centre 200 in Sydney.
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