A lot of pressure is put on NHL players. They’re paid to score—or stop—goals, expensive commodities that can suffer a career-ending injury or be traded to a team on the other side of the country. It’s a stress-filled, sometimes cruel sport.
But let’s not forget the wives, girlfriends and children behind the scenes whose lives are affected just as much as the players. Returning Wednesday on W Network, Season 2 of Hockey Wives follows 11 ladies who call NHL players their husband, fiancé or boyfriend.
“Some of the girls from Season 1 were throwing my name around to the producers and told me how much fun they had,” says show newbie Angela Price. “I went back and forth with the producers before finally saying yes.” Wife of Montreal Canadiens goalie Carey Price, Wednesday’s return introduces viewers to the affable young couple away from the ice, participating in photo ops at their charity, the Breakfast Club of Canada. Baby talk is front and centre; cameras capture Angela detailing how the pair are trying to get pregnant.
Back for Season 2—alongside Keshia Chanté, Rhianna Weaver, Kodette LaBarbera, Tiffany Parros, Noureen DeWulf, Paige Getzlaf, Taylor Winnick, Ashley Booth and Maripier Morin—is Martine Forget, wife of Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Jonathan Bernier. She reveals her sophomore season storyline is filled by footage of her raising their infant son, Tyler, and planning the couple’s wedding.
Price and Forget admit not every part of their lives was recorded for Hockey Wives; the Prices’ home life hasn’t been documented and Forget nixed a dinner out in Toronto.
“They asked Jonathan and I to go out for dinner,” she recalls. “But dinner in Toronto, with the cameras, is just too much. With the cameras there’s just so much attention, so we said no.” Forget adds that, with the shaky start the Maple Leafs have had, her hubby would rather concentrate on his game than reality TV cameras.
It’s easy, in this social media-obsessed world, to dismiss the ladies as women swanning around mansions waiting for a paycheque to be cashed. Hockey Wives is an eye-opener. Sure, there are high-profile events to attend and swank dinners on the calendar, but so is everyday stuff like laundry, paying bills, helping with homework, changing dirty diapers or holding down a job. Throw in a partner who is away playing hockey much of the year and you’ve got recipe for disaster.
“I want viewers to understand that I’m a mom going back to work and that I’m not at home spending money all the time,” says Forget.
“There are so many different varieties of lifestyles in hockey,” Price says. “I’m excited for people to see that Carey and I live a very similar lifestyle to what we did before he became a professional hockey player and we find pleasure in doing the same things we’ve always done.”
Hockey Wives airs Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on W Network.
