Eyeing attendance record, PWHL Montreal to face Toronto at Bell Centre in April

The top two teams in women’s hockey will take their skills to one of the sport’s biggest stages.

The top-ranked Professional Women’s Hockey League sides – Montreal and Toronto – will face off at Montreal’s Bell Centre on April 20.

The home of the Canadiens – with a capacity of just over 21,000 – will host a PWHL game for the first time. It will be the sixth NHL venue to host a PWHL game this season.

Tickets go on sale March 20.

The game is being dubbed “Duel at the Top” as both teams are tied for first with 30 points this season.

Minnesota is close behind in third place, with Boston, Ottawa and New York finishing off the table.

PWHL Montreal plays its home games at Verdun Auditorium, though the team has played four games at the larger Place Bell arena in Laval this year.

“Our fans have been asking us for this and we are happy to be able to give them what they want. It’s exciting to know that we will be playing in the largest hockey venue in North America, and I am certain that our supporters will be louder than ever,” said Danièle Sauvageau, general manager of PWHL Montreal, in a news release.

The attendance record for a women’s hockey match was set Feb. 16 when Toronto hosted Montreal at Scotiabank Arena. There were 19,285 fans in the stands.

Only a near sellout at the Bell Centre would top that.

“The ‘Duel at the Top’ will bring an intriguing dimension to this chapter: whether PWHL Montréal, which already has played before four of the top five crowds in our inaugural season, can make more women’s hockey history at the Bell Centre by taking the world attendance record away from PWHL Toronto,” said Jayna Hefford, PWHL senior vice-president of hockey operations.