Victoria Bach: Loving Life with the Ottawa Charge

Back on December 30, 2024, Ottawa Charge forward Victoria Bach received what turned out to be a life changing telephone call.

Bach, who is from Milton, Ontario, was enjoying dinner that night with her parents when she was interrupted by a call from Toronto Sceptres GM Gina Kingsbury informing the 28 28-year-old that she had just been traded from the PWHL’s Sceptres to the Charge in what was a multi-player deal.

“The call came at about 7 or 8 p.m. informing me that I was traded. It was a big surprise, and I’m very excited to come to Ottawa. It was really cool coming to Ottawa with Jocelyne,” Bach said.

In reference to Jocelyne, Bach was talking about her good friend Jocelyne Larocque, who was part of that trade which saw both these teammates traded from Toronto to Ottawa in exchange for defenceman Savannah Harmon and forward Hayley Scamurra.

“I didn’t sense a trade. It did catch me by surprise. I was just eating dinner, getting ready for the game. It’s a new opportunity on a new team.”

Ironically enough, Bach and Larocque’s first game as a Charge would be a night later at Coca-Cola Coliseum against their former team, the Sceptres, who ended up defeating Ottawa by a 2-1 score.

“After and before that first game, there were a lot of friendly chirps,” Bach said.

Looking to make a solid first impression with Ottawa, Bach was credited with one hit and finished with a plus/minus of +1, which were the exact same stats recorded by Larocque.

Bach referred to the experience of being traded, then preparing right away to play against her former team, as the “weirdest 12 hours of my life,” while adding that she got no sleep that night.

“This is obviously very special. Ottawa is an amazing city. To put on the jersey was a special moment, and their fans are incredible.”

Reflecting on playing for Ottawa, Bach also had a lot of praise for her teammates, who she said made her feel welcome and for her new coach Carla MacLeod, whom she knows well.

“I was coached by Carla on the National team in Germany,” Bach said. “I’ve been coached by Carla a couple of times. Carla reached out right away and expressed excitement. She reached out and made me feel comfortable. Obviously, this (traded to Ottawa) was special. It’s Canada’s capital and such a special city with great fans.”

We have a fast, skilled team, and I want to bring the Walter Cup to Ottawa. I really think we have what it takes. We have the passion and will do what it takes to bring the cup to Ottawa.”

Bach, who couldn’t say enough good things about the city of Ottawa, was originally selected in the 2023 PWHL’s inaugural draft in the seventh round, 38th overall by the Toronto Sceptres, where as a rookie she scored 2 goals along with 5 points in 16 regular season games.

Prior to joining the PWHL, Bach had put together an impressive winning resume, which included dominating for four seasons while playing NCAA hockey for the women’s Boston University team.

During her time playing at Boston University, she set various records, such as producing 198 career points in 145 NCAA games, which set a Boston University record.

On the international stage Bach has put together an impressive solid resume which among her many accomplishments include helping Canada to gold at the 2022 Beijing Olympic Games along with being part of Canada’s gold medal wins at the 2021 and 2022 World Championships and playing on the 2014 IIHF U-18 Team Canada Women’s team who struck gold.

Reflecting more on playing for Ottawa, Back replied, “We want to bring the Walter Cup back to Ottawa. The girls (teammates) are so skilled and play with passion. There are great people in this room and we will do everything we can to bring the Cup back to Ottawa.”

Get your tickets for the Ottawa Charge’s next home game against the Montreal Victoire on Saturday, April 26, at 12:00 p.m.