Emma Woods (born December 18, 1995) is a Canadian professional ice hockey forward for the Toronto Sceptres of the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL). She was selected 81st overall by PWHL New York in the 2023 PWHL draft.
| Emma Woods | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Woods with the Quinnipiac Bobcats in 2014 | |||
| Born |
December 18, 1995 Burford, Ontario, Canada | ||
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (170 cm) | ||
| Weight | 146 lb (66 kg; 10 st 6 lb) | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Shoots | Right | ||
| PWHL team Former teams |
Toronto Sceptres | ||
| Playing career | 2017–present | ||
Playing career
editGrowing up in Burford, Ontario, Woods played with the boys' Burford Coyotes until the bantam level, often the only girl on the team.[1] In 2011, Woods was recognised with the Phyllis Gretzky Memorial Award for Female Youth Leadership from the Brantford Sports Council.
Woods played four seasons of NCAA Division I ice hockey with the Quinnipiac Bobcats women's ice hockey program of Quinnipiac University in the ECAC Hockey conference. As a sophomore, she was named to the ECAC All-Academic team and, as a junior, she served as an alternate captain and was named to the All-ECAC Third Team. She served as team captain during her senior season.[2]
Professional
editIn 2016, she was drafted in the fourth round, 14th overall by the Buffalo Beauts of the NWHL.[3] In the 2017 CWHL Draft, she was selected in the seventh round, 49th overall by the Vanke Rays, one of two new Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL) expansion teams in China. Woods opted to sign with the Vanke Rays for the 2017–18 CWHL season.[4] She remained with the franchise as it merged with the other CWHL team in China, Kunlun Red Star, to become the Shenzhen KRS Vanke Rays for the 2018–19 CWHL season.
In the 2019–20 season, Woods played with Leksands IF of the Swedish Women's Hockey League (SDHL).[5] She tallied 29 points in 35 games – tied with fellow-Canadian Brooke Boquist for second-most on the team.[6]
In June 2020, it was announced that Woods had joined the National Women's Hockey League (NWHL) expansion team, the Toronto Six, making her the seventh player to sign with the organization. The Toronto Six roster included four teammates from Woods' time with the Qunnipiac Bobcats – Kelly Babstock, Sarah-Ève Coutu-Godbout, Shiann Darkangelo, and Emma Greco – in addition to Vanke Rays teammate Elaine Chuli and Leksands IF teammate Brooke Boquist.[7][8]
The leadership for the inaugural season included Woods, who served as one of the alternate captains with Emma Greco, while Shiann Darkangelo appointed as the first team captain in franchise history.[9] She and Shiann Darkangelo assisted on the first goal scored in Toronto Six franchise history.[10] Scored by Lindsay Eastwood, the goal took place in the second game of the 2020–21 NWHL season and was scored against Minnesota Whitecaps goaltender Amanda Leveille.[11]
Woods re-signed with the Toronto Six for the 2023–24 season on June 26, 2023.[12] The Premier Hockey Federation (PHF) was bought out and dissolved three days later, on June 29, 2023, and her contract was voided.[13] Woods subsequently declared her eligibility for the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL), the league which replaced the PHF. She was selected in the fourteenth round, 81st overall by New York in the inaugural PWHL draft on September 18, 2023.[14][15] Over the course of the season, she would score two goals and five points as New York's second line center.[16]
On June 21, 2024, the opening day of free agency for the 2024–25 season, Woods signed a two-year contract with Toronto.[16]
Personal life
editWoods was born December 18, 1995, in London, Ontario. She grew up in Burford, Ontario, with her older sister, Rebecca, twin brother Calvin, and younger brother, Hayden.
She attended Paris District High School for her secondary education, where she participated in varsity ice hockey, volleyball, junior basketball, soccer, tennis, track and field, badminton, and baseball. During her high school career, she won county-level championships in badminton, tennis, and baseball,[a] won the regional championship in tennis,[b] and competed at the provincial-level for ice hockey and tennis.[c] Woods was three-time MVP of the ice hockey team and twice served as team captain. She was named the Paris District Senior Female Athlete of the Year in 2013.[17]
Career statistics
editRegular season and playoffs
edit| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2011–12 | Kitchener-Waterloo Jr. Rangers | Prov. WHL | 34 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 20 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2012–13 | Cambridge Rivulettes | Prov. WHL | 35 | 10 | 14 | 24 | 37 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 4 | ||
| 2013–14 | Quinnipiac Bobcats | NCAA | 37 | 13 | 12 | 25 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | Quinnipiac Bobcats | NCAA | 38 | 11 | 13 | 24 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | Quinnipiac Bobcats | NCAA | 38 | 11 | 23 | 34 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | Quinnipiac Bobcats | NCAA | 36 | 12 | 11 | 23 | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | Vanke Rays | CWHL | 28 | 9 | 10 | 19 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2018–19 | Shenzhen KRS Vanke Rays | CWHL | 28 | 8 | 8 | 16 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2019–20 | Leksands IF | SDHL | 35 | 10 | 19 | 29 | 18 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 2020–21 | Toronto Six | NWHL | 4 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2021–22 | Toronto Six | PHF | 20 | 9 | 9 | 18 | 18 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2022–23 | Toronto Six | PHF | 24 | 10 | 13 | 23 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | ||
| 2023–24 | New York | PWHL | 24 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| PWHL totals | 24 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
Awards and honors
edit| Award | Year |
|---|---|
| NCAA | |
| ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Week | October 8, 2013 |
| October 22, 2013 | |
| February 4, 2014 | |
| ECAC Hockey Player of the Week | December 2, 2014 |
| Nutmeg Classic Most Outstanding Player | 2014 |
| ECAC Hockey All-Academic Team | 2014–15 |
| All-ECAC Hockey Third Team | 2015–16 |
| Quinnipiac University | |
| Quinnipiac Scholar-Athlete | 2015–16 |
| Other | |
| Phyllis Gretzky Memorial Award | 2011 |
| Paris District Senior Female Athlete of the Year | 2013 |
Sources:[17]
References
edit- ^ Levine, Justin (January 16, 2021). "From Leksands IF to the Six: Emma Woods Relishes Opportunity in Toronto". Archived from the original on January 17, 2021. Retrieved January 18, 2021.
- ^ Staffieri, Mark (March 24, 2017). "Emma Woods Adds to Growing Legacy of Strong Leadership at Quinnipiac". Women's Hockey Life. Archived from the original on April 7, 2020. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
- ^ Beidelschies, Jon (January 27, 2017). "Emma Woods has Quinnipiac in the hunt for an ECAC title". The Ice Garden. Archived from the original on April 7, 2020. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
- ^ Staffieri, Mark (April 26, 2018). "Emma Woods Wonderful in Epic Season for Valiant Vanke Rays". Women's Hockey Life. Archived from the original on April 7, 2020. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
- ^ Björnbom, Jonna (September 12, 2019). "Leksands Samantha Hanson och Emma Woods inför säsongen". SVT Nyheter (in Swedish). Archived from the original on April 7, 2020. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
- ^ Smiley, Brian (June 2, 2020). "Professional hockey suiting Woods well". Brantford Expositor. Archived from the original on July 12, 2020. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
- ^ Rice, Dan (June 30, 2020). "Beauts Bolster Lineup with Trio of Signings, Six Add Emma Woods". The Hockey Writers. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
- ^ Levine, Justin (June 29, 2020). "Toronto Six Round Out Forward Group, Sign Emma Woods For Inaugural Season". The Puck Authority. Archived from the original on December 18, 2020. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
- ^ "TORONTO SIX ANNOUNCE TEAM LEADERSHIP FOR 2021 SEASON". toronto.nwhl.zone. January 14, 2021. Archived from the original on April 29, 2021. Retrieved April 29, 2021.
- ^ "Away Whitecaps vs Home Toronto Jan 24, 2021 at 1:00pm EST at: Herb Brooks Arena - 6 – 5 FINAL SO". March 3, 2021. Archived from the original on May 7, 2021. Retrieved April 30, 2021.
- ^ Morrison, Holly (January 24, 2021). "The Six weekend in review: first games and first goals, but still no wins for Toronto". The Ice Garden. Archived from the original on September 27, 2022. Retrieved January 26, 2021.
- ^ Kennedy, Ian (June 26, 2023). "Founding Member Emma Woods Back With The Six". The Hockey News. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
- ^ Burgess, Melissa (June 29, 2023). "PHF Bought Out by BJK Enterprises, Mark Walter Group". The Victory Press. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
- ^ "Seven Quinnipiac Women's Ice Hockey Alums Selected in 2023 Inaugural PWHL Draft". Quinnipiac University Athletics (Press release). September 18, 2023. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
- ^ "PWHL Draft Tracker: Round-by-round recap of all 90 selections". Sportsnet. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
- ^ a b "PWHL TORONTO SIGNS EMMA WOODS TO TWO-YEAR CONTRACT". www.thepwhl.com. June 21, 2024. Retrieved June 21, 2024.
- ^ a b "2016-17 Women's Ice Hockey Roster: Emma Woods". Quinnipiac University Athletics. Archived from the original on October 14, 2020. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
Notes
- ^ Organized by the Brant County Secondary Schools' Athletic Association (BCSSAA)
- ^ Organized by the Central Western Ontario Secondary Schools Athletics (CWOSSA)
- ^ Overseen by the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations (OFSSA)
External links
edit- Biographical information and career statistics from Eliteprospects.com, or Eurohockey.com, or The Internet Hockey Database