Toronto Sceptres’ Rylind MacKinnon suspended one game for illegal hit

The PWHL announced Thursday that Toronto Sceptres’ defender Rylind MacKinnon has been suspended one game for an illegal check to the head delivered on Montreal Victoire defender Amanda Boulier during their Dec. 21 contest.

The incident occurred five minutes into the third period when MacKinnon laid a body check on Boulier that made direct contact with the head. The Sceptres’ defender was give a major penalty and a game misconduct.

“The Player Safety Committee determined that the head was the main point of contact, and that MacKinnon continued her momentum after playing the puck. This is in violation of PWHL Rule 48,” the league wrote in a statement.

MacKinnon has two assists and 19 penalty minutes in five games with the Sceptres this season, averaging just under 11 minutes of ice time per game.

The Victoire would place Boulier on long-term injured reserve (LTIR), then signed defender Catherine Daoust to a standard player agreement (SPA) on Thursday.

Daoust was a mainstay on Montreal’s blue line during the inaugural season, appearing in all 24 regular season games and the team’s three semifinal games against Boston. The Quebec native scored a goal and an assist, registering a plus-minus rating of minus-two while averaging close to 15 minutes per game.

The 29-year-old started the 2024-25 campaign on the team’s reserve list, but general manager Danièle Sauvageau knows what Daoust brings to the back end.

“We have the luxury of having an experienced player like Catherine on our reserve team,” Sauvageau said. “She knows the league well, having played in all our games last season, and we’re sure she’ll be ready for the challenge ahead of us.”

Toronto is 1-3-1 with four points, last in the PWHL. Meanwhile, Montreal is 3-0-1 with seven points, third in the league.