Lethbridge duo teams on new book exploring physicality of women’s hockey

Since the discontinuation of the Pronghorns hockey program, DeBaie has played for the Lethbridge Eagles. She is currently in her final season of eligibility with the Alberta Junior Female Hockey League team, serving as an assistant captain.

However, it was during her time with the U of L when she first met Moreland, who interviewed her after she scored her first goal with the team. The two kept in touch and this past summer, Moreland asked DeBaie to help him with a new project, narrating the audiobook version of a novel he had written.

Goon Girl tells the story of Penny Davies, a 14-year-old girl coming up through the ranks of the fictional South Saskatchewan Minor Hockey League, navigating her way through her role as a physical enforcer on her team, and her relationships on and off the ice.

Moreland told Pattison Media that he was inspired to write the story after attending the 2023 IIHF Women’s World Championship in Brampton, Ontario in April. He was on-hand for the event as an independent photographer, capturing photos throughout the tournament.

He said, “Over the course of the 50 games of the tournament, I got to see some of the nastier side of the play. The Bulgarian and Romanian teams had a bench-clearing brawl one night [and] that kind of got me thinking about the physicality in female hockey.”

“On the concourse, in between the games, they had merchandise for sale. They had pictures for sale and other material, [but] no literature at all.”

The cover for ‘Goon Girl’ by Colin Moreland. (Photo supplied by Colin Moreland)

Moreland added, “It felt to me like there were stories to be told here that weren’t being told and it was a great opportunity to do so.”

He said his experience covering female sports as a photojournalist for nearly a decade helped in writing Goon Girl, noting, “I drew a lot of experience from the players that I’ve interacted with in that time, different plays I’ve observed, different interactions in between players on and off the ice.”

Moreland added that he did “refer to [DeBaie] for the authenticity”, utilizing her experience as a female hockey player and credited her as “the co-creative behind the story”.

DeBaie remarked that, “There’s always stories to be told and I think any time you can kind of shine a light on female sports, is always a good opportunity but especially the physicality side, I don’t think there’s very many stories about that.”

FULL CIRCLE MOMENT

Although the two met for the first time once DeBaie started playing with the Pronghorns, it was before she even hit the ice that their connection was formed.

Moreland explained that he has participated in the Adopt-A-Horn program at the U of L. It allows people to sponsor a student-athlete. Funds generated from the program help to purchase uniforms, cover competition travel costs and other services to ensure a student-athlete can succeed on and off the field.

Moreland stated, “I always picked a rookie coming into the team that I thought would do very well in the system and be someone who would become a core of their team.”

In a twist of fate, he said, “Eva was the rookie that I sponsored before she fully joined the team.”

NARRATING GOON GIRL

DeBaie said she was nervous at first when asked to narrate the audiobook of Goon Girl, but Moreland set her up with what she needed to get the job done. She explained that he would send over chapters as they were completed, she would record them and make any adjustments as needed. The process to record the audiobook started in July and ended in September.

‘Goon Girl’ is written by Colin Moreland, with an audiobook narrated by Eva DeBaie. (Photo supplied by Colin Moreland)

DeBaie said Moreland has “been a presence at the rink for me like ever since I’ve been in Lethbridge” and has offered nothing but support in her efforts both in hockey and throughout the recording process for Goon Girl.

GETTING YOUR COPY

Goon Girl was published through Amazon.

Moreland explained that going through Amazon allowed him to take on both the role of writer and editor, with Amazon handling the marketing and distribution of the book.

Moreland said this resulted in Goon Girl launching in 20 countries.

Physical copies can be ordered online through Amazon, and a digital copy is available through the Kindle store. Moreland said Barnes & Noble has picked up the book in the United States, making physical copies available in some of their brick-and-mortar locations.

The audiobook, meanwhile, is available on Audible and iTunes Music. Additionally, Moreland said work is underway to make it available on Spotify.

He said following its launch weekend, Goon Girl peaked at number five on the Amazon best-seller list, in the ‘Canadian Short Stories’ category.

Moreland remarked that he was “very happy with the performance over that launch weekend.”

GIVING BACK

In a way to give back to one of his inspirations, Moreland told Pattison Media that a portion of every sale of the physical and audiobook versions of Goon Girl will go toward purchasing new jerseys for the Lethbridge Eagles.

READ MORE: Lethbridge News Now.

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by Justin Goulet

Lethbridge duo teams on new book exploring physicality of women’s hockey

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