Tessa Bonhomme

Playing career

Bonhomme was a member of the Sudbury Lady Wolves from 1998 to 2003 and served as a captain in 2003. During that same time she competed for the Lasalle Secondary School hockey team from 1999 to 2003 and was the captain in 2003. She was the leading scorer at Lasalle and the league leader for three consecutive years (2001–2003). In 2001, she led Lasalle to a second-place finish in its league and a city championship title in 2001.

Ohio State Buckeyes

The 2003–04 season marked Bonhomme's freshman year with the Buckeyes. She played in 34 of 35 games and her 20 points (5 goals, 15 assists) led the Buckeye freshman class and tied for third on the squad. In WCHA conference games, Bonhomme tied for fifth among freshmen and seventh among defensemen with 13 points. Her 107 shots paced the freshman class and was third on the team while her four power play goals tied for first on the team.

On October 17, 2003, she registered her first career assist versus Minnesota. Versus Wisconsin (on November 1), Bonhomme scored her first career goal. Said goal was also the game-winning goal. From October 25 to November 15, she had a five-game point streak. November 22 marked the first multi point game of her career. She had two assists versus Bemidji State.

Heading into her sophomore season (2004–05), Bonhomme appeared in 30 of 37 games. Her 27 points ranked third on the team while her 20 assists were second. Of her seven goals, three were scored on the power play. For the season, she was the only Buckeye to finish with positive rating at plus-3. On December 11, 2004, Bonhomme scored two goals against North Dakota in a 3–1 win. In a 5–4 win against the Yale Bulldogs (on January 14), Bonhomme registered three assists. During the season, she had a five-game point streak that began on January 21 and ended on February 4. In a WCHA tournament game (March 4), she had two assists vs. Minnesota State. Of note, she was the first Buckeye to compete for the Canadian National Team when she was one of 20 Canadian players selected to participate in the Four Nations Cup from November 10–14.

Bonhomme returned to the Buckeyes in 2006 after redshirting the 2005–06 season while taking part in the Canadian Centralization Program in association with the National Women's Team. Through two seasons, the two-time letterwinner already ranked fourth all-time in defensemen scoring with 47 points. She was co-captain of the team along with Amber Bowman, Katie Maroney and Lacey Schultz.

In her first series back with Ohio State (October 6–7, 2006), Bonhomme had two goals and five assists in a series sweep of Northeastern. In the October 6 contest, Bonhomme scored a career-high four points (two goals and two assists). She attained a career high in points with 36 (14 goals and 22 assists). On the power play, she contributed 17 points (6 goals, 11 assists). Her four game-winning goals led the Buckeyes. Her 1.09 points per game ranked fourth in the NCAA among defenders. During the season, Bonhomme had nine multi-point, three multi-goal and three multi-assist games. Her 137 shots on goal led all Buckeyes players. In WCHA conference play, Bonhomme tallied 23 points 24 conference games. Against WCHA opponents, she scored five power play goals and three game-winning goals. On January 19, she had a career high nine shots on goal against St. Cloud State. From December 30 to January 26, Bonhomme had a seven-game point streak. The February 16–17 series against Minnesota State was the only series where she was held without a point.

Hockey Canada

Bonhomme participated at Canada's National Under-22 Team Development and Selection Camp from August 15 to 21, 2004 in Waterloo, Ontario. From August 25 to 28, 2004, she took part in a three-game series with Canada's Under 22 team vs. the U.S. National Under-22 Team in Lake Placid, N.Y., and Burlington, Vt. In 2005–06, Bonhomme redshirted her season with Ohio State to take part in the Canadian Centralization Program in preparation for the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. Bonhomme was one of 27 players selected to centralize but was one of two players to miss the final cut for the Canadian Olympic roster. In addition, she was a member of the 2005–06 Canadian Under-22 team. She captained the squad to a 3–1 record in an international round-robin tournament in Germany. She attended the Canadian National Women's Team Conditioning Camp from June 10 to 18, 2006. In autumn 2006, Bonhomme was named to the Canada's National Women's Under-22 Team for the third time in her career. From August 24 to 27, 2007, she participated with the U-22 team in an exhibition series vs. the U.S. National Under-22 team. Bonhomme also participated in the Canadian National Women's Team Fall Festival, from August 31 to September 9, 2007 in Prince George, British Columbia. In the first game of the 2011 IIHF Eight Nations Tournament, Bonhomme scored two goals in a 16–0 victory over Switzerland.

2010 Olympic Games

Bonhomme scored Canada's second goal in their first game of the tournament, 3 minutes and 6 seconds into the first period and was awarded an Olympic Gold Medal in Women's hockey at the 2010 games in Vancouver.

CWHL

In the 2010 CWHL Draft, Bonhomme was the first overall selection. and appeared with the Toronto Furies in the championship game of the 2011 Clarkson Cup. She would help the club win the 2014 Clarkson Cup. With the Cup victory, she became the twelfth woman in hockey history to win IIHF World Gold, Olympic Gold and the Clarkson Cup.

Awards and honours

Ohio State

• 2008 WCHA Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, the first Buckeye to receive either award • Named 2008 First Team All-WCHA to follow her 2007 first team selection. She is the first Ohio State player to be a two-time first team honoree • Has led the NCAA in defensemen points per game throughout the 2007–08 season • The only defenseman to rank in the Top 30 in the NCAA in overall points per game and has a 12-point margin over the rest of the defensemen in the nation • Set the Ohio State single-season record for points by a defenseman with 45 points, breaking the previous record set in the 2000–01 season • Holds the Ohio State career record for points by a defenseman with 128. She ranks third in career scoring overall and second in career assists with 86 • Ranks second all-time in defenseman scoring in the WCHA

Television appearances

It was announced on October 5, 2010 that Bonhomme was one of several athletes selected to participate in an all-athletes episode of Wipeout Canada. The episode aired in April 2011. Bonhomme was a presenter at the 2011 Gemini Awards.

On December 2, 2011, it was announced that Bonhomme would be joining Leafs TV to "appear and report on flagship programs for Leafs Today and Leafs@Practice host Toronto FC telecasts on GOLTV Canada and share her unique insider perspective as an online contributor at www.mapleleafs.com" in addition to continuing to play Hockey in the CWHL, stating that she grew up watching and cheering for the Leafs.

In September 2014, it was announced that Bonhomme will join TSN's SportsCentre as a host and reporter.

Battle of the Blades

On August 22, 2011, CBC television announced that Bonhomme would compete in their figure skating competition TV program Battle of the Blades. She is the first female hockey player to be a competitor in Battle of the Blades.

Bonhomme told the media that she couldn't wait to take on the NHL players and show them that women's hockey has come a long way, adding that she was honoured to be the first woman representing all those who play hockey and excited to be partnered with Olympic gold medalist David Pelletier. On November 14, 2011, it was announced that she and her partner were the winners of the 2011 competition.

Personal