Girls got game

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“I kept my kids away from it (hockey) until they asked,” Mallette told RocketFAN. “My oldest (daughter) was volleyball and softball, and my youngest was baseball and hockey. The best thing about Kaitlyn is her work ethic. She is a great teammate and she aspires to one day get a Division 1 scholarship and play for her country.”

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When Canada’s national women’s team touched down for a few days to practice at Prospera Place last winter, Mallette and his daughter were keenly aware.

They not only watched intently as the team went through their paces during practice, Mallette had the privilege of coaching against them at the Capital City Challenge last November as a head coach for one of three men’s teams that Hockey Canada iced to evaluate talent for the U-17’s.

“The skill set that is there (Canada’s women’s team) and the compete level is very impressive”, Mallette recalled. “I’ve coached women’s hockey before. The thing about them is you can tell them one thing and they will do it. They will listen.”

While the women’s team went 0 and 3 in the preliminary round against men, they lost a heartbreaking 4-3 game in the semi finals.

“The structure that head coach Troy Ryan implemented has been phenomenal, and I saw it first hand,” Mallette continued.

The Canadian national women’s hockey team will take on the Americans this November in a seven-game series, with Kelowna hosting a game November 15th in what is being billed as the Rivalry Series.

“If you look at the on-ice product of women’s hockey, it is gaining traction”, Mallette continued. “Now look in the coaching ranks. Girls are breaking barriers. The more they are involved in the NHL or the AHL, that just bodes well. Women bring a different perspective to coaching.”

Times are indeed changing.

Cammi Granato was named a scout with the Seattle Kraken in October, 2021. She is now the assistant GM of the Vancouver Canucks after being hired in October of last year.

Emily Engel-Natzke joined the Washington Capitals as the first full-time female coach in June. Jessica Campbell became the first woman to be named an assistant coach in the American Hockey League when she joined the Kraken’s affiliate Coachella Valley in July.

Kaitlyn Mallette’s dream is to wear Canadian colours, and who knows, maybe play professionally in the Canadian Women’s Hockey League, which was first established in 2007.

“Are they (women) going to make millions like Nathan McKinnon and his $12 million contract he signed? Highly unlikely, but never say never”, Mallette quipped.

“They have made up a lot of ground. All they want is the same opportunities. They play, they sacrifice. There are some real good female hockey players out there”.

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