It’s been a tough offseason for the Montreal Victoire. The arrival of teams in Seattle and Vancouver has resulted in Daniele Sauvageau’s team losing essential players, including two blueliners: 2024 first-round pick Cayla Barnes and standout Anna Wilgren. It made it imperative for the Victoire GM to reach an agreement with 2025 first-round pick Nicole Gosling, and the team announced on Friday morning that it was a done deal.
Gosling has agreed to terms on a three-year deal, which will see her remain with the Victoire until the end of the 2027-28 season. The 23-year-old rearguard has spent the last five seasons with Clarkson University in the NCAA, and she’s a back-to-back All-American. She posted identical 39-point seasons, playing 40 games, in her previous two seasons with her alma mater. She ended her collegiate career as the most productive defender in Clarkson Golden Knights history, posting 148 points in 170 games.
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She has also started making a name for herself on the international scene, playing in the under-18 World Championship in 2019 and 2020, and making her senior international debut at the 2024 World Championship, where she won a gold medal. Even though she was scoreless in seven games, her strong and steady play was impressive enough for the Victoire to pick her fourth overall at the last draft.
The 5-foot-7 blueliner will join Erin Ambrose, Amanda Boulier, Kati Tabin, Jessica DiGirolamo, and Maggie Flaherty on the rebuilt Montreal defense corps. Like her cousin Julia Gosling, she was invited to the Team Canada orientation camp in preparation for the 2026 Olympics in Milan-Cortina.
The Victoire will start its season on November 23 with a visit to the Boston Fleet before playing its home opener on Tuesday, November 25, when it’ll host the New York Sirens and former Victoire forward, Kristin O’Neil. Meanwhile, Sauvageau will continue to work on improving her roster, as Gosling is the sole pick from the last draft who has signed with the team so far.