Chicks with Sticks 2005

Paula [Jessalyn Gilsig] dodges bill collectors while working and raising her young son Stewie in Red Deer, Alberta. Her brother Ross enlists her to play as a substitute in a local hockey match, helping his team beat the league champions, the Chiefs. After sexist comments, Paula dares to form an all-female team and beat the Chiefs under women’s hockey rules. She and Chiefs’ captain Curt, Peter Outerbridge, soon regret this and try to cancel the match, but it has already been announced on local radio and becomes the talk of the town.

With the support of her mother Edith, Margot Kidder and local DJ Heather, [Michie Mee], Paula assembles a team from the area — destitute goalie Felicity, [Juliette Marquis], doctoral student Kate [Tanya Allen], soldier Brigitte, mechanic Charlene [Chantal Perron], and Calgarian Marcie [Brandon Firla]. Training brings tensions, and Paula’s commitment issues resurface; Edith rallies the team and uses bake sale fundraisers to create uniforms as the Black Widows. The Chiefs face hardships so Paula excuses them from raising matching funds. Curt bribes Ross to overlook the addition of a talented player to the Chiefs’ roster, but the outsider is beaten by Felicity’s friends and left unable to play. However, Marcie disappears before the match along with the prize money.

In the big match, the Chiefs take an early 3–0 lead before Kate draws a penalty against Curt and the Widows score on the power play. The Chiefs score again, which is answered by the Widows who pull their goalie to close the first period 4–2. The radio coverage draws a crowd to the arena during the intermission.

After confirming betting on the match, Paula confronts Felicity in the changing room about throwing the game but refuses to pull her from the roster, insisting that the team is a family. Paula takes a heavy bodycheck to score in the second period. While recovering, she explains to Stewie that years earlier she had left the women’s Olympic ice hockey team training camp because she was afraid of not making the team, and not because of him. She promises to try her hardest for what is important to her.

Both teams adopt a man-on-man defensive strategy for the third period. The Widows score on a breakaway, take the lead in the last minute, and then score an empty net goal. An executive from a national television network approaches Paula, offering the Widows a place as a founding team in a new professional women’s hockey league. Following the post-game handshake, the Widows pose with a custom trophy dubbed the Family Cup.