MONTRÉAL (July 23, 2026) – The Montréal Victoire announced on Thursday the acquisition of forward Michelle Karvinen, signed to a one-year Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) Standard Player Agreement for the 2026-27 season. The signing brings the Victoire roster up to 18 players under contract for the upcoming campaign.
Karvinen, a 36-year-old from Rødovre, Denmark, made her PWHL debut last season and scored three goals and added six assists in 30 games with the Vancouver Goldeneyes who selected her in the first round (seventh overall) in the 2025 PWHL Draft. She was named an alternate captain for part of the season.
Representing Finland internationally, Karvinen has competed in five straight Olympic Winter Games since Vancouver 2010 where she won her first of three Olympic bronze medals. Karvinen has also won eight medals (1 silver, 7 bronze) in 12 IIHF Women’s World Championship appearances and became Finland’s all-time leading scorer at Women's Worlds with 62 points (25G, 37A) while captaining the team in April 2025.
Prior to the PWHL, Karvinen won four championship titles in Sweden’s SDHL, three with Luleå HF (2015-16, 2017-18, 2018-19) and most recently in 2024-25 with Frölunda HC, where she tallied 35 points (21G, 14A) in 32 games and added 12 points (5G, 7A) in 11 playoff games. The former University of North Dakota captain has also won championship titles in Finland’s Auroraliiga with the Espoo Blues (2007-08, 2008-09), Switzerland’s SWHL with Ladies Team Lugano (2020-21) and Russia’s ZhHL with KRS Vanke Rays (2021-22).
Karvinen joins a Victoire forward group that includes fellow newcomers Jessie Eldridge and Emma Maltais, along with returnees Marie-Philip Poulin, Laura Stacey, Lina Ljungblom, Abby Roque, Jade Downie-Landry, Alexandra Labelle, Catherine Dubois and Kaitlin Willoughby. The roster also features returning defenders Maggie Flaherty, Kati Tabin, Nadia Mattivi, Jessica DiGirolamo and Tamara Giaquinto, as well as goaltenders Ann-Renée Desbiens and Megan Warrener. A complete list of player signings and transactions is available on the official PWHL Transactions Page. To see the full overview of the status of PWHL player contracts, visit the PWHL Contract Guide here.