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Liz Knox

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Liz Knox
Knox on Sports Talk with Erica Ayala in 2020
Born (1988-06-09) June 9, 1988 (age 36)
Whitchurch-Stouffville, Ontario, Canada
Height 5 ft 4 in (163 cm)
Weight 135 lb (61 kg; 9 st 9 lb)
Position Goaltender
Caught Left
Played for PWHPA
Markham Thunder
Melbourne Ice
Laurier Golden Hawks
National team  Canada
Playing career 2006–2019
Medal record
Women's ice hockey
Representing  Canada
Winter Universiade
Gold medal – first place 2011 Turkey Tournament

Elizabeth Knox (born June 9, 1988) is a Canadian retired ice hockey goaltender. She ranks second all-time among Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL) goaltenders for games played and won the Clarkson Cup in 2018. An outspoken leader among players, she served as chair of the CWHL Player's Association and was a founding board member of the Professional Women's Hockey Players Association (PWHPA) after the collapse of the CWHL. Knox is currently a member of the executive committee of the Professional Women's Hockey League Players Association (PWHLPA).

Playing career

Ontario University Athletics

Knox attended Wilfrid Laurier University (WLU) in Waterloo, Ontario, and went on to become one of the most decorated players in Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks women's ice hockey program history.

2006–07

Heading into the 2006–07 season, Knox joined a squad that featured established goalie Morgan Wielgosz and had won three consecutive Ontario University Athletics (OUA) championships, as well as the 2004–05 Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) national championship (CIS is now known as U Sports). Knox generally split Laurier's goaltending minutes with Wielgosz as a collegiate rookie, featuring in 12 regular season games. She made her unofficial debut with 38 saves in a 2–1 exhibition win over NCAA Division I team Ohio State on September 30, 2006, and her official one two weeks later in a 5–2 victory against Windsor.[1] Other highlights included a 2–1 win over the Queen's Golden Gaels in a battle of teams ranked in the national top five on November 4, 2006.[2] In that contest, Knox stopped a Golden Gaels penalty shot in overtime before Laurier's Laurissa Kenworthy grabbed the winning goal 13 seconds later. Knox went on to pick up her first career shutout against Windsor three weeks later. Wielgosz, however, received most of the work through the OUA and CIS playoffs, though Knox did see action three times in the postseason – very briefly in an OUA championship win (Laurier's fourth straight league title) over Queen's while Wielgosz addressed an equipment issue, then more significantly in relief during a loss to the University of Alberta Pandas that eliminated the Golden Hawks from CIS national championship contention, and finally during a CIS third-place game loss to the University of Manitoba.[3]

2007–2011

By her second year, Knox emerged as the regular starter, a status she would retain for the rest of her time at Laurier. After taking an uncharacteristic loss early in the season to Guelph (she would drop just seven regular season decisions during her entire WLU career), Knox rebounded with a run of shutouts – five by the end of November – including one against a nationally ranked University of Toronto team.[4] Those shutouts were part of a 14-game Laurier unbeaten streak that didn't end until December 29, 2007, against, in a bit of foreshadowing, powerhouse McGill University. Knox and WLU picked right back up from there however, with the team plowing through CIS competition to the tune of a 25–3–2 regular season record and the goalie posting a 17–2–1 mark with a 0.945 save percentage and an 0.97 goals against average.[5]

As good as Knox was during the regular season, she was even better during the OUA and CIS playoffs. While the Golden Hawks won their first six post-season games (including sweeps of Queen's and Toronto en route to a fifth straight OUA title), the results were generally hard-earned. Knox, in fact, had to be perfect in the clinching games of both OUA series with 16 and 20 saves, respectively, as both ended with 1–0 scorelines.[6][7]

On March 10, 2010, Knox became the first Golden Hawks player in the history of the women's program to win the Brodrick Trophy, the CIS Player of the Year award.[8]

On September 23, 2016, Knox was inducted into WLU's Golden Hawk Hall of Fame.[9]

Professional

First CWHL stint

Following graduation, Knox was selected 18th overall in the 2011 CWHL Draft by the Brampton Thunder, part of a fruitful class for the team that also included Courtney Birchard, Tara Gray and Vicki Bendus.[10]

Almost immediately, she became the workhorse goalie for the Thunder, playing in 20 of 27 regular season games and helping Brampton to an 18–7–2 and a robust third-place finish in the standings. For Knox, notable milestones included her first professional win on October 29, 2011, against Team Alberta (now known as the Calgary Inferno)[11] and her first shutout, on March 4, 2012, against a loaded Boston Blades team that included several United States national team regulars like Kelli Stack, Gigi Marvin and Kacey Bellamy.[12]

AWIHL

For the 2013–14 season, Knox joined the Melbourne Ice women's hockey club of the Australian Women's Ice Hockey League (AWIHL) and became half of a formidable tandem with Australian national team goaltender Jodie Walker.[13][14] During the AWIHL's short regular season (the league only has four teams, with each playing four games per opponent), Knox played in eight of 12 games (winning all eight), and posted a dominant 1.00 goals against average with a 0.964 save percentage to help the Ice to a first-place finish in the standings, with 38 of a possible 42 points. She was even better in the league final against the Adelaide Adrenaline, posting consecutive 32-save shutouts in 2–0 victories to help the Ice to their third AWIHL title.[15] Including the pair of contests in the final, Knox ended the year with a shutout streak of 207:17 – all against the Adrenaline, as her last three regular-season appearances were also against Melbourne's eventual championship opponent – and led the league in most major statistical categories including wins, goals against average and save percentage.[16]

Return to the CWHL

Knox won the Clarkson Cup on March 25, 2018, with the Markham Thunder. The team had relocated from Brampton that season, and the CWHL had also expanded to seven teams (from five) with the addition of two teams based in Shenzhen, China.

In 2019, Knox ranked second among all CWHL players in an online vote, gaining the opportunity to serve as a captain at the 4th Canadian Women's Hockey League All-Star Game.[17]

PWHPA

When the CWHL announced its collapse in May 2019, Knox was one of the leading players in the scramble to organize a response, culminating in the formation of the Professional Women's Hockey Players Association (PWHPA).[18]

In September 2020, Knox announced her resignation from the board of the PWHPA to ensure that Sarah Nurse, one of the few black players in the PWHPA, could have a seat on the board.[19] Knox remained an advisor to the PWHPA and called for the organization to do more to combat racism in hockey. After the PWHPA achieved its goal of launching a new, unified professional women's league in the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) in the summer of 2023, Knox was named to the executive committee of the PWHL Players Association, the league's labour union.[20] She is joined on the committee by Nurse and three other PWHL players.[20]

International

Winter Universiade

During her final season at Laurier, Knox was selected to compete for Team Canada at the 2011 Winter Universiade in Erzurum, Turkey, along with two of her Golden Hawks teammates – defenceman Alicia Martin and forward Candice Styles.[21][22] The 2011 tournament was just the second time that the biennial Universiade included women's ice hockey, and Knox helped Canada successfully defend its gold medal from 2009.

She appeared in four of Canada's seven games, winning all four, and was among the tournament leaders in most statistical categories including goals against average (0.80, good for second among qualifying goaltenders) and save percentage (.921, also second). Two of Knox's four games were routs, as she saw just four shots in a 14–0 win against Great Britain and played the first two periods of an 8–1 victory over the United States in the semifinals.[23][24] Her defining outings were her first and last of the tournament, both against a Finland squad packed with stars from the senior Finnish women's national ice hockey team, including Anne Helin, Saara Tuominen Niemi, Anniina Rajahuhta, Venla Hovi and Anna Vanhatalo, all of whom had been a part of the bronze medal team at the 2010 Winter Olympics prior to the 2011 Universiade.

During the round robin stage of the tournament, on January 27, 2011, Knox and Vanhatalo engaged in a classic goaltending duel. Hovi gave the Finns a 1–0 lead midway through the contest before Mariève Provost answered on the power play with 1:29 left in regulation to force overtime. After a scoreless five-minute extra period, things proceeded to a shootout. There, Knox denied all five shooters she faced, including Helin and Sari Kärnä twice each, and Tuominen once. Vanhatalo matched her save for save until Canada's fifth shooter, Ellie Seedhouse, gave her side the victory.[25] The teams met once again in the gold medal match, although things were a bit less dramatic there, as Canada jumped out to a 3–0 lead early in the second period and cruised to a 4–1 win, helped in part by 20 Knox saves.[26][27][28]

IIHF 12 Nations Tournament

Knox received a second call from Hockey Canada six months after the gold medal at the 2011 Winter Universiade and competed at the one-off 2011 IIHF 12 Nations Tournament, sharing the Canadian crease with fellow eventual CWHL netminders Geneviève Lacasse and Christina Kessler. The stated goal of the 12 Nations Tournament was to enhance the competitive level of developing women's hockey countries ahead of the 2014 Winter Olympics and accordingly, no medals were awarded.[29] Canada went 4–2–0 in the round-robin-style showcase, with Knox playing twice and winning both of her games. On August 25, 2011, she had an easy outing against Russia, making 15 saves in a 16–1 blowout.[30] Five days later, Knox made 16 stops as Canada pulled off yet another dramatic win over Finland by a 3–2 score. In that contest, Finland carried a 2–1 lead past the halfway point of the third period before goals by Meghan Agosta and Jennifer Wakefield, the latter with 2:00 remaining, flipped the result.[31]

Personal life

Knox was born on June 9, 1988, in Stouffville, in Ontario's Greater Toronto Area.

In addition to ice hockey, she serves as a volunteer firefighter in Whitchurch-Stouffville, the greater municipality of her hometown.[32]

Career statistics

College and professional

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP W L T/OT MIN GA SO GAA SV% GP W L MIN GA SO GAA SV%
2006–07[33] Laurier Golden Hawks CIS 12 9 1 1 685.12 15 2 1.31 .934 3 1 2 89.50 4 0 2.68 .867
2007–08 Laurier Golden Hawks CIS 20 17 2 1 1172.04 19 7 0.97 .945 7 6 1 430.18 6 3 0.84 .963
2008–09 Laurier Golden Hawks CIS 23 22 1 0 1351.68 21 10 0.93 .953 7 5 1 355.38 9 0 1.52 .899
2009–10 Laurier Golden Hawks CIS 25 22 1 0 1482.34 22 11 0.89 .960 9 6 1 411.14 5 3 0.73 .964
2010–11 Laurier Golden Hawks CIS 22 20 2 0 1282.25 21 5 0.95 .955 5 0 3 219.64 8 0 2.19 .890
2011–12[34] Brampton Thunder CWHL 20 13 6 1 1206.10 59 1 2.94 .828 4 2 2 240.00 10 0 2.50 —
2012–13 Brampton Thunder CWHL 11 4 6 1 615.20 43 0 4.19 .831 1 0 1 69.98 4 0 3.43 .886
2013–14[16] Melbourne Ice AWIHL 8 8 0 0 408.00 8 2 1.00 .964 2 2 0 102.00 0 2 0.00 1.000
2014–15 Brampton Thunder CWHL 11 2 6 1 596.83 39 1 3.92 .888 — — — — — — — —
2015–16 Brampton Thunder CWHL 10 7 2 0 502.00 21 2 2.51 .924 0 0 0 0.00 0 0 0.00 —
2016–17[35] Brampton Thunder CWHL 13 5 6 0 659.00 29 4 2.64 .899 1 0 1 59.00 4 0 4.04 .882
CIS totals 102 90 7 2 5973.43 98 35 0.98 .952 31 18 8 1505.84 32 6 1.28 .935
CWHL totals 65 31 26 3 3579.13 191 8 3.20 .874 6 2 4 368.98 18 0 2.93 .884

International

Year Team Event Result GP W L OT MIN GA SO GAA SV%
2011 Canada WU 1st place, gold medalist(s) 4 4 0 0 225.00 3 1 0.80 .921
2011 Canada 12N N/A 2 2 0 0 120.00 3 0 1.50 .912
Totals 6 6 0 0 345.00 6 1 1.04 .917

Awards and honours

Canadian Interuniversity Sport

  • 2007–08 Championship Tournament All-Star[33]
  • 2009–10 Player of the Year
  • 2009–10 First Team All-Canadian

Ontario University Athletics

  • 2006–07 OUA Champion
  • 2007–08 OUA Champion
  • 2007–08 Second Team All-Star
  • 2008–09 OUA Champion
  • 2008–09 First Team All-Star
  • 2009–10 OUA Champion
  • 2009–10 Player of the Year
  • 2009–10 First Team All-Star
  • 2010–11 Second Team All-Star

Wilfrid Laurier University

  • 2006–07 Cindy Eadie Award (team rookie of the year)[36][37]
  • Laurier Athlete of the Week (October 22, 2007)
  • Laurier Athlete of the Week (December 3, 2007)
  • Laurier Athlete of the Week (March 10, 2008)
  • Laurier Athlete of the Week (November 16, 2009)
  • Laurier Athlete of the Week (February 1, 2010)
  • Laurier Athlete of the Week (March 8, 2010)
  • 2009–10 Laurier Athlete of the Year
  • 2009–10 Lisa Backman Award (team most valuable player)
  • 2009–10 President's Award
  • 2009–10 Luke Fusco Academic Athletic Achievement Award
  • 2009–10 Outstanding Women of Laurier Award

References

  1. ^ Wagner, Jon (October 2, 2006). "The defense will be key to OSU's success". The Lantern. Archived from the original on July 12, 2018. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  2. ^ "Hawks sweep #5 Gaels with Two Wins". Laurier Athletics. November 5, 2006. Archived from the original on January 8, 2018. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  3. ^ "Hockey Hawks finish fourth at Nationals". Laurier Athletics. March 19, 2007. Archived from the original on January 8, 2018. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  4. ^ "Knox picks up fifth shutout". Laurier Athletics. November 26, 2007. Archived from the original on January 9, 2018. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  5. ^ "2007/2008 Women's Hockey Schedule". Laurier Athletics. Archived from the original on January 9, 2018. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  6. ^ Grossman, Ari (February 24, 2008). "Hawks eliminate Queeen's 1-0 to Advance". Laurier Athletics. Archived from the original on January 9, 2018. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  7. ^ Grossman, Ari. "Hawks Claim Fifth Consecutive OUA Gold". Laurier Athletics. Archived from the original on January 9, 2018. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  8. ^ http://newswire.cup.ca/articles/29262 Archived March 26, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
  9. ^ "Local Sports: Golden Hawks receiver the nod". Waterloo Region Record. July 12, 2016. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  10. ^ "News - CWHL - Canadian Women's Hockey League". Archived from the original on August 26, 2011. Retrieved July 27, 2011.
  11. ^ "Brampton vs Alberta: 4-1". Pointstreak. October 29, 2011. Retrieved July 24, 2017.
  12. ^ "Brampton vs Boston: 3-0". Pointstreak. October 29, 2011. Retrieved July 24, 2017.
  13. ^ Johnson, Michael (September 25, 2013). "Melbourne Ice women announce their roster for season 2013-14". Puck It. Archived from the original on November 24, 2023. Retrieved July 24, 2017.
  14. ^ Staffieri, Mark (October 31, 2013). "Legendary Liz Knox Brings Her World Class Goaltending Game Down Under". Women's Hockey Life. Retrieved July 24, 2017.
  15. ^ Staffieri, Mark (April 11, 2014). "Liz Knox Adds Another Accolade to Her Storied Career with Melbourne Ice". Women's Hockey Life. Retrieved July 24, 2017.
  16. ^ a b "# 37 Elizabeth Knox". Pointstreak. April 11, 2014. Retrieved July 24, 2017.
  17. ^ "LIZ KNOX NAMED CWHL ALL-STAR CAPTAIN". thecwhl.com. January 14, 2019. Archived from the original on February 10, 2019. Retrieved February 9, 2019.
  18. ^ Jay, Michelle (May 2, 2019). "Liz Knox on the #ForTheGame movement". The Ice Garden. Archived from the original on October 20, 2021. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  19. ^ Kaplan, Emily (September 2, 2020). "PWHPA adds Nurse to board to fix 'blind spot'". ESPN. Archived from the original on September 8, 2020. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  20. ^ a b Bellerose, Sam (October 3, 2023). "Liz Knox to serve on Executive Committee of PWHL Players Association". Laurier Athletics. Wilfrid Laurier University. Archived from the original on January 18, 2024. Retrieved January 18, 2024.
  21. ^ "2011 Winter Universiade : CIS announces Canadian women's hockey coaches, roster". U Sports. December 3, 2010. Archived from the original on July 29, 2017. Retrieved July 29, 2017.
  22. ^ Belanger, Michel (December 7, 2010). "2011 WU Update: CIS Announces Canadian Women's Ice Hockey Coaches & Roster". International University Sports Federation (FISU). Archived from the original on November 6, 2020. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  23. ^ "Winter Universiade women's hockey: Canada crushes Great Britain 14-0". U Sports. January 30, 2011. Archived from the original on July 29, 2017. Retrieved July 29, 2017.
  24. ^ "Winter Universiade women's hockey: Canada off to final, to defend title Saturday". U Sports. February 4, 2011. Archived from the original on July 29, 2017. Retrieved July 29, 2017.
  25. ^ "Winter Universiade women's hockey: Reigning champ Canada opens with shootout win". U Sports. January 27, 2011. Archived from the original on July 29, 2017. Retrieved July 29, 2017.
  26. ^ Hayakawa, Michael. "Stouffville's Knox backstops Canada to hockey gold". yorkregion.com. Archived from the original on March 20, 2012. Retrieved July 29, 2017.
  27. ^ "Lady Hawks win gold with Team Canada in Turkey". Wilfrid Laurier University. February 7, 2011. Archived from the original on July 29, 2017. Retrieved July 29, 2017.
  28. ^ "Winter Universiade women's hockey: Canada makes it back-to-back gold". U Sports. February 5, 2011. Archived from the original on July 29, 2017. Retrieved July 29, 2017.
  29. ^ "IIHF Twelve Nations Invitational Tournament Series". IIHF. Archived from the original on August 29, 2011. Retrieved July 29, 2017.
  30. ^ "Meghan Agosta Scores Three Times As Canada Thumps Russia 14-1 in Women's Hockey". Canadian Press. Archived from the original on June 15, 2012. Retrieved July 29, 2017.
  31. ^ "Wakefield Scores Winner for Canadian Women's Hockey Team in 3-2 Win Over Finland". Canadian Press. Archived from the original on September 2, 2012. Retrieved July 29, 2017.
  32. ^ Staffieri, Mark (March 11, 2020). "PWHPA Spotlight: Liz Knox". Women's Hockey Life. Archived from the original on September 24, 2020. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  33. ^ a b "Liz Knox #27". Wilfrid Laurier University Athletics. Archived from the original on July 20, 2017. Retrieved July 24, 2017.
  34. ^ "# 37 Liz Knox". Pointstreak. Retrieved July 24, 2017.
  35. ^ "Liz Knox". Canadian Women's Hockey League. Retrieved July 24, 2017.
  36. ^ http://english.cis-sic.ca/championships/wice/2009-10/files/media_guide/Laurier_Whockey_Media_Guide_2010.pdf Archived September 29, 2012, at the Wayback Machine [bare URL PDF]
  37. ^ "2009-10 Women's Hockey Media Guide". Issuu. Wilfrid Laurier Department of Athletics & Recreation. March 7, 2010. Archived from the original on February 26, 2023. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
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