Rhyah Stewart, 17, is one of the best netminders in Canada. She was the only woman playing U-18 'AAA' in Nova Scotia, and has earned an invite to training camp with the QMJHL's Cape Breton Eagles.

Rhyah Stewart, 17, has received an invitation to attend the QMJHL's Cape Breton Eagles' preseason camp.

Stewart this season became the first woman to ever play for the Cape Breton West Islanders U-18 boys' 'AAA' team. The Islanders compete in the Nova Scotia U-18 Major Hockey League, the highest level of competition at the age group in Nova Scotia. 

Last season Stewart faced more shots 771 and made more saves 693 than any players in the U-18 'AAA' league. In 21 games she posted a .899 save percentage, good for eighth overall in the league.

Stewart recently made her NCAA decision committed to play Division I hockey for the reigning NCAA national champions, the University of Wisconsin Badgers. She still has one year of high school remaining before making the jump to Wisconsin.

Stewart also represented Nova Scotia's women's team at the 2023 Canada Winter Games in Prince Edward Island. The five-foot-nine Stewart was spectacular for Nova Scotia leading her team to a semifinal 3-2 upset over an Ontario team loaded with U-18 national team members, before falling to British Columbia in the gold medal game. Nova Scotia's silver medal was historic as the province's first women's hockey medal in Canada Games history, and also the first by an Atlantic province.

Last summer, Stewart was the youngest netminder invited to Hockey Canada's U-18 selection game in Calgary. She did not make that roster, but will be in contention this year to grab a roster spot.

Multiple women have played Major Junior hockey in the CHL, most recently Quebec goaltender Eve Gascon, who backstopped the QMJHL's Gatineau Olympiques, playing two games in the 2021-2022 season.