The OHL made some history on Monday night.
Goaltender Sophie Jovanovic became the first female player ever selected in the OHL's U19 Priority Selection draft after the Brantford Bulldogs took her with the 40th pick.
Jovanovic also becomes the second female player to be selected in any OHL draft after fellow goalie Taya Currie was taken by the Sarnia Sting in the 14th round of the 2021 draft.
No stranger to breaking barriers, Jovanovic played 17 games in the GTHL for the Toronto Marlies, and as the only female player in the league, she earned a sparkling 1.71 save percentage and 10-1-3 record on the U16 squad.
Connor McDavid, Jack Hughes and John Tavares have all donned the Marlies jersey on their way to the NHL's elite.
"It's just crazy," Jovanovic said in a 2025 interview with Sportsnet of being the only female player in the GTHL. "I'm also very thankful for my teammates, because they've been very supportive."
Her brother, Matthew Jovanovic, was drafted by the Saginaw Spirit in the 2020 OHL draft.
The U18 Priority Selection is a three-round process established in 2017 that allows teams to draft players not previously chosen in the Priority Selection, giving a chance for late-blooming players to participate in major junior hockey.
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