Angela Ruggiero to Become First Woman to Play Non-Goalie Pro Hockey
Ok, so it’s a bit of a long title, but I wanted to give credit where credit’s due. First of all, Angela Ruggiero deserves to have her name in the headline. Then, she’s becoming the first woman to play pro hockey as a positional player. I wanted to fit that all in, it’s a big deal.
She’ll be playing for the Tulsa Oilers of the Central Hockey League, Ruggiero’s older brother Bill is the goaltender for the Oilers.
Ruggiero will be playing one game, this Friday, January 28th, against Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees. She will take part in two to four shifts according to the Oiler’s press release. The team will donate proceeds from the game’s ticket sales to the American Red Cross’ tsunami relief efforts.
That last part there cancelled out any reservations I was having about this event. Obviously, when you sign a player for terms like these it’s a PR move. However, there are good PR moves (as opposed to being referred to as a “stunt”), and I think this is one of them. Besides attracting attention to the sport, the league and the team, money is going to charity. Not only that, but they didn’t just pick some player’s sister, Ruggiero won the Patty Kazmaier Award last year; think of it as the woman’s version of the Hobey Baker award (top college hockey player). In other words, she’s a damn good hockey player. The brother-sister combo will be a first in North American professional hockey.
I inquired to find out if anything special had to be done about her contract, specifically insurance-wise. I was told it’s the standard CHL contract and coverage policies.
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