Shirley shows that hockey is a girls' game too

Little did Ryan Francis anticipate that an academic paper he published in 2023 and meeting Victoria Bach, a former Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) player, would result in the co-authored children’s book Skate On, Shirley!: A Hockey Story.

Francis' paper “Being represented in the game on your own terms”, was written for St. Mary’s University in his home province of Nova Scotia. It focused on the Indigenous Girls Hockey Program (IGHP), addressed racism in hockey and how the mainstream structure for the sport in Canada led to exclusion. 

His advisor suggested his paper could be re-envisioned as a children’s book.

When Francis, a member of the Wasoqop'aq (Acadia) First Nation, met Bach, a member of the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte First Nation, at two hockey events in Charlottetown, PEI and Truro, NS in 2023, he thought “That’s the story right there.”

Skate On, Shirley opens with Shirley watching hockey on TV with her dad and one day being so excited to see girls playing hockey on TV. It leads her to ask her dad if she could also play hockey.

“In the sport of hockey, the very first Indigenous player I met was Brigette Lacquette," said Bach. "And for me, that's something that I hope this next generation can be inspired by a story like this. See Shirley and be like, ‘Wow, look at Shirley'."

Lacquette, of the Cote First Nation in Saskatchewan, was the first First Nation woman selected to a national team. She played at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games and won silver with the team.

When Francis spoke to Bach about collaborating on the children’s book, she said she was “immediately excited” about the idea.

“Before Ryan approached me, I had spoken at some events and told my story. Throughout my hockey journey I faced a lot of adversity,” she said. “At some point in my life, I (thought) it would be really cool to share that story with the youth and be able to hopefully inspire them.”

Bach played minor hockey in Ontario before playing four years at Boston University. She also represented Canada on the world stage, earning gold at the Under-18 World Championships and two more gold medals with the national women’s team. She was chosen as an alternate for Olympics competition in Beijing in 2022.

In the inaugural season of the PWHL, Bach was drafted by the Toronto Sceptres where she played one-and-a-half seasons before moving on to the Ottawa Chargers. She retired from the PWHL in 2025.

Francis, who grew up in Cole Harbour, home of NHL superstars Sidney Crosby and Nathan MacKinnon, also played hockey, including in the National Aboriginal Hockey Championships for Team Atlantic. Later he coached in that national tournament. Francis also played in the United States where he earned his undergraduate degree in Sport Management.

In 2022, Francis was recognized as a finalist for the National Hockey League’s Willie O’Ree Community Hero Award for his work in launching IGHP. Through the process of the award, the Genevieve Francis Memorial Fund was created, which, in part, provides equipment for girls wanting to play hockey, removing one of the biggest barriers of getting involved in the sport.

The Genevieve Francis Memorial Fund is named for Francis’ grandmother. Shirley, the title character in Skate On, Shirley, is named for Bach’s grandmother.

“I know for me growing up I didn't have very many female Indigenous role models in my life. My grandmother was Indigenous and she was a big role model to me,” said Bach.

In the book, young Shirley doesn’t have any equipment but when she goes to the rink, equipment is provided. She’s come late to the sport, but she’s able to show the other girls how to raise the puck because she remembers the tips her hockey-playing Dad gave her. When she falls down, her new friend Ella helps her get up. Her woman coach is her neighbour. The girls play hockey in teams but don’t have matching jerseys.

“For me growing up, this is a big part of my story. The aspect of community is so important here knowing that her community is behind her…(and) just that importance of being resilient,” said Bach. 

“I started hockey late and... one big thing for me was that I just kept trying…I think that's really what motivated me was the love that I had for the game and the people around me. I just think it's such an important message just about community, about sticking together, being resilient.”

At the start of Skate on, Shirley, Shirley’s little brother says girls don’t play hockey. As Shirley progresses in her skills, her little brother cheers her on at the rink. The book ends with little brother watching women’s hockey on TV alongside Shirley and turning to his sister and saying, “Some day I want to be a hockey player, just like you.”

“That moment of the brother thinking that (girls don’t play hockey) is just acknowledging how we've always seen hockey and in many spaces isn't actually how hockey is truly experienced by people or ought to be experienced by other people,” said Francis. “We have to challenge what's normal and this book is trying to do that.”

He said the IGHP is trying to do hockey differently by showing that people don’t always interact with hockey or access hockey in the traditional way.

Francis and Bach are both still in awe of having “author” added to their credentials.

Francis acknowledges Mi’kmaq author and illustrator Brandon Mitchell for his help with the book. Mitchell works for the Ulnooweg Indigenous Communities Foundation, which also administers the Genevieve Francis Memorial Fund.

Even before Mitchell illustrated Skate On, Shirley!, he helped Francis and Bach develop the manuscript.

“He knew the story intimately before he even took on this project from an illustration perspective. It was a pretty seamless process,” said Francis. “Brandon is incredibly talented and thoughtful in his work and we think that really came through in this book.” Mitchell is also author of the the Mali and Puuj adventure series.

Skate On, Shirley!: A Hockey Story, for children four to seven years of age, was released by Nimbus Publishing in late April. It can be purchased through https://nimbus.ca/store/skate-on-shirley.html?srsltid=AfmBOorgZuyz24Q8NMlzi37pKebQN4aFrRtKIvJOH8nO85Xr9ixsipsD