Ottawa Charge head coach Carla MacLeod will be stepping back as she undergoes treatment for breast cancer, the team announced Monday. MacLeod, who made her diagnosis public last fall, will be away from the team for “an undetermined period.”
“She remains in good spirits and is focused on her health and recovery,” the Charge said in a statement. “The entire organization fully supports CArla and her family and asks that her privacy is respected.”
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Assistant coach Haley Irwin, who has served under MacLeod since the team’s creation in 2023, will step in as interim head coach.
MacLeod, 43, announced her breast cancer diagnosis in November, saying that she still planned “to be behind the bench as much as possible” while undergoing treatment.
“Hearing those words was incredibly difficult, but I want everyone to know that I’m going to be okay,” MacLeod said in a statement at the time. “I’m incredibly fortunate to have an exceptional medical team guiding me, and together we’ve built a treatment plan that gives me tremendous confidence in the road ahead.
“Being with this team fuels me, and I intend to stay as connected as I can during treatment.”
MacLeod is also the head coach of the Czechia women’s national team, taking over the role in 2022. She led the Czech team to a quarterfinals appearance in the 2026 Milan Olympics in February.
MacLeod, a former player and two-time Olympic gold medalist with Canada, has been the Charge’s head coach since 2023, during the PWHL’s inaugural season. She led the Charge to the PWHL final last year, where they ultimately lost to the Minnesota Frost.
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With a month remaining in the 2025-26 season, Ottawa currently sits in fifth place in the PWHL table with 33 points, one point below the fourth-place Toronto Sceptres. The top four teams in the league advance to the playoffs.
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