Whether it was on a backyard rink as children or in their current role as teammates on the defending NCAA champion University of Wisconsin Badgers, the passion that sisters Sophie and Grace Shirley have for hockey comes through.
The talented sisters from Saskatoon were the featured speakers at the ‘Pack the Barn: A celebration of Female Hockey’ event at the Warman Legends Centre on Sunday, December 19.
The pair shared their journey with a very attentive audience in the Legends Theatre.
When asked about their greatest hockey memory, despite all the awards and championships they have experienced, their answer was when they were younger playing on the backyard rink or at a pond. That was where the passion originated.
The University of Wisconsin Badgers won the last two NCAA Championships and Saskatoon’s Sophie Shirley played a big role in that success. The most recent win in March, 2021, was even more special as she was joined by her younger sister, Grace. The opportunity to win a national championship as teammates rates as their most special moment in their hockey careers.
While they talked about the teams they played on and explained what was involved being an athlete at one of the major college hockey programs in the USA, they were far too humble to provide information on their impressive hockey careers.
Some background research provided that information.
Sophie Shirley played for the Saskatoon Stars in the Saskatchewan Female Midget Hockey League for two years, earning Rookie of the Year and second-team all-star honors in her first year. She earned MVP and first-team all-star league honors in her second year. She competed in the 2015 Esso Cup, winning a bronze medal and earning MVP and Top Scorer honors at that tournament.
She then played for the Notre Dame Hounds in the Junior Women’s Hockey League (JWHL) and was named to the JWHL first all-star team and appeared in the 2016 JWHL All-Star Game.
She played for Okanagan Hockey Academy during her senior year, leading the team with 32 goals and 60 points in 36 games.
Sophie also spent a year playing professional hockey in the Canadian Women’s Hockey League (CWHL) with the Calgary Inferno, scoring eight goals and 19 points, and earning CWHL Rookie of the Year honors.
She was a member of the Team Canada U-18 in 2016, tallying five points in five games to help the squad to a silver medal. After attending the Hockey Canada Senior National Camp, she represented Hockey Canada in a two-game series against the United States and on the U-18 squad for the 2017 IIHF World Championships.
Younger sister, Grace played with the Saskatoon Stars, recording 51 points her first season (31 goals, 20 assists). Her second year, she ranked third in the Saskatchewan Female Midget Hockey League with 56 points, helping the Stars win the SMFAAAHL League Championship as a first-team all-star. Shirley was second in the league in scoring with 48 points in 25 regular-season games her final year, adding 11 points in the playoffs.
She played for Team Canada, including being a crucial part of the gold-medal winning team at the 2019 IIHF U-18 World Championships in Obihiro, Japan.
Growing up with two older brothers, the sisters were always at a rink or playing on their backyard rink.
One brother, Collin, had a successful career in the Western Hockey League and with the University of Saskatchewan Huskies, and is currently playing professional hockey in Europe. He was an inspiration for his younger siblings.
Another big influence was Emily Clark, a Saskatoon Stars player who is a University of Wisconsin alumni and Canada National team member.
They talked about the importance of good coaching. and felt they were fortunate that their coaches made it fun when learning the skills. One of their first coaches said the things needed to play hockey are a heart and a brain and have fun.
The Sask First program was very important in their development. They really enjoyed participating in Canada Games where they could cheer on athletes in other sports as part of the Saskatchewan team.
They have a great appreciation for what hockey has given them. They have developed strong friendships .
They have been given the opportunity to play in all the provinces of Canada and see China, Russia, Germany, the Czech Republic and Japan.
It has also allowed them to further their education, as Wisconsin has a strong emphasis on the student part of the student-athlete designation. Both sisters are Academic All-Big Ten and Academic All-WCHA.
Their advice for players looking to play at higher levels is to stay confident, be versatile, have fun and love the game; something the Shirley sisters continue to do.