The Professional Women’s Hockey League handed down its most severe suspension to date on Monday, announcing that New York Sirens forward Taylor Girard would be sidelined for four games after leaving the bench to join a post-game altercation. The incident occurred following New York’s 2-1 victory over Montreal, with video footage showing Girard colliding with Montreal defender Maggie Flaherty and causing her to fall to the ice. Both teams had four players each issued 10-minute misconducts, but Girard received an additional 20-minute penalty for leaving the bench.
According to league regulations, the first player to illegally leave the bench automatically receives a four-game suspension. This decision was upheld after a review by the PWHL Player Safety Committee. The previous longest suspension in the league was a two-game ban given to Seattle defender Aneta Tejralova for an illegal head check against the Sirens in a recent game.
Girard will be ineligible to play until New York’s game against Boston on March 5, which comes after the league’s month-long Olympic break. The 27-year-old Girard, now in her third PWHL season and second with the Sirens following a trade from Boston, has scored five goals this season, ranking second on the team. Notably, Girard, who had a clean record prior to this incident, now leads the league with 30 penalty minutes in 13 games.
The altercation occurred during a PWHL game held at the NHL Washington Capitals’ home arena, attracting a record-breaking crowd of 17,228 spectators. This game marked the largest turnout for a professional women’s hockey game in the United States.