Off-Ice Icons: An Ode to the WAGs and Moms of the NHL

Courtesy of The New Hampshire Magazine

It’s no question that it takes a lot of strength to play hockey. It’s rigorous, fast-paced and physically intense, making hockey players some of the strongest athletes in the world. However, since March is Women’s History Month, it’s not the hockey players we’re going to be talking about. Ever heard the saying, “Behind every strong man is a stronger woman”? Well, that’s certainly true for hockey players. Whether they helped foster the love of the sport at an early age or are a source of support at the rink and at home, NHL players couldn’t do it without their wives, girlfriends, or moms.

Lauren Kyle McDavid

Courtesy of Mathew Tsang/WireImage

She may be known for being married to Connor McDavid, the generational talent, Edmonton Oilers captain, 2024 Conn Smythe Trophy winner and recent Four Nations Face-Off Champion. However, Kyle is a very successful interior designer and businesswoman who founded her own design company, Kyle & Co., in 2019.

Kyle met McDavid in 2016 at a birthday party where they were set up by her cousin, Sadie, and one of McDavid’s teammates. The two went on a “blind-ish” date, where they became inseparable after that. The couple dated for nearly eight years before they got engaged in 2023. To cap off McDavid’s historic summer, the couple got married in July 2024 in what they both called a “10-Day Production.”

With McDavid’s contract expiring later this year, some have wondered whether he’ll stay with the Oilers or not. However, it looks like he’ll be staying in Edmonton because Kyle is set to open her newest business venture, “Bar Trove,” in the city sometime later this year.

Ellen Weinberg-Hughes

Courtesy of The New Hampshire Magazine

Now, there’s probably no NHL mom more well-known than Ellen Hughes, the mom of Vancouver Canucks captain and defenseman Quinn Hughes, New Jersey Devils alternate captain and center Jack Hughes, and New Jersey Devils defenseman Luke Hughes. Mrs. Hughes was a hockey player herself, competing internationally for the U.S. Women’s National Team in the 1992 Women’s World Championship, where she led Team USA to a silver medal and was named to the tournament’s All-Star Team. Naturally, it makes sense that she played a huge role in getting her boys on the ice and growing their love of the sport.

Currently, Hughes can be found either working with USA Hockey, where she is a player development consultant for the Women’s National Team, or frequently going to watch all three of her boys’ NHL games, including the Devils’ Moms Trip from this past fall, where she got to watch both Jack and Luke alongside other NHL moms.

“I think it [the experience] is amazing, I mean, who gets to go to work with their kids?” Hughes gushed. “What a blessing…just to be a part of this is incredible.”

Caitlin Fitzgerald

Courtesy of Caitlin Fitzgerald via Instagram

Though the “C” on the chest of his jersey stands for captain, it could also represent that Montreal Canadiens’ center Nick Suzuki’s fiancee Caitlin is close to his heart. Fitzgerald and Suzuki met when they were both high schoolers. Both are from London, Ontario, so they both knew of each other through mutual friends.

“He had been living out of town playing hockey, but we kind of just connected at the time – 2016 or 2017– on Instagram and Snapchat and the rest is history,” Fitzgerald said.

Throughout the years, Suzuki’s character has not only made him the bedrock of the Canadiens’ team, but it has also been a blessing in Fitzgerald’s life.

“He’s super compassionate. He’s super easy to get along with,” Fitzgerald said. “There are a lot of things about him all in one realm. I think his demeanor in general is something that is one of his greatest qualities. Anything you throw at him, any stressful situation, any bad situation, he always knows how to handle everything, and he does it calmly.”

Stephanie LaChance

Courtesy of The US Sun

LaChance and her husband, Toronto Maple Leafs alternate captain and right winger Mitch Marner, have one of the cutest love stories. Both grew up in the town of Markham, Ontario, where they went to the same elementary school. As time passed, the two went their separate ways and drifted out of touch. However, Marner reached out to LaChance on her 19th birthday, when she was a student at Western University and when he was playing for the London Knights and preparing for the NHL draft. Their acquaintance was instantly rekindled.

The couple dated for six years before they got engaged in 2021 and married in 2023. Though LaChance is a private person who likes to keep her life on the down-low, she has been a constant source of support for Marner, staying close to his side and making an effort to go to most of his games, home and away.

Additionally, it looks like their duo is soon to be a trio. Just days after Marner won the 4 Nations Face-Off, LaChance announced on an Instagram story post that the couple is expecting a baby boy.

Meredith Gaudreau

Courtesy of Kirk Irwin/NHLI via Getty Images

Being the wife of a hockey player requires a deeper kind of strength. Having a husband on the road all the time means having to face lots of day-to-day challenges alone. However, no one imagines that the biggest challenge is mending a broken heart and trying to collect the pieces and rebuild life again, like trying to mend a sheet of glass after a puck hits it.

This past fall, Meredith’s husband, Columbus Blue Jackets alternate captain and left winger Johnny Gaudreau, was killed in a bike accident while back at his hometown in New Jersey. Though life as she once knew it was gone, Meredith has held her head high with a grace and strength that many have found inspiring. Teams, players and their families, and fans across the NHL have shown their unwavering support in light of the tragedy by sharing just how much Gaudreau meant to them. At the NHL Stadium Series game in Columbus, Ohio, Meredith and her children, Noa and Johnny Jr., had the honor of leading the Columbus Blue Jackets onto the ice, where Meredith was overwhelmed with gratitude by the support of not only the Blue Jackets, but also the players and fans of the opposing team, the Detroit Red Wings.

“It's unbelievable. Like, his impact amazes me. It catches me off guard…I get it, though. Like, he was so special. And even I was with some of the Detroit wives today, and they all were wearing his pin, and Team USA girls all had 13 on. And, like, you know, what everyone's doing is so nice. Just to see his impact reach so far. And, like, that's crazy,” Meredith said.

Even in the face of grief, Meredith carries her husband’s legacy. She is proof that wives of hockey players are warriors that possess as much emotional strength as their husbands possess physical strength.

These women are just a few of the many that are involved in the lives of the NHL players that we follow so dearly. Many of them are not who they are today without strong women to support them. So, here’s to the wives, girlfriends and moms.

Edited by Jenna Mandarano