She Earned It

Let me be the first to say that seeing Kenzie Lalonde's name as the play-by-play voice for tonight's Ottawa Senators-Toronto Maple Leafs game brings a genuine smile to my face. The former Mount Allison Mounties forward has come a long way since her playing days after graduating in 2017 as she is the new voice of women's hockey across the TSN network, but she's also so much more than that to those of us who watched her grow from calling university games in the AUS to getting her shot under the bright lights of the three-lettered Toronto sports network. She is one of the best in the game at calling hockey - male or female - and she has worked her tail off to reach new heights of which most have only dreamed. Kenzie has earned all of her promotions each and every time, and I'm beyond ecstatic for her opportunity tonight.

While Kenzie won't be the first woman to call an NHL game, she will be the first woman to call an NHL game across the TSN network so that's an accolade she can add to her impressive résumé. Let's not forget that she was the first woman to call a QMJHL game on television, so breaking these glass ceilings that seem to be above her is nothing new. She's been setting the bar higher with each and every game she calls, and she legitimately sits among the best in the game today when it comes to calling the action in this writer's view.

If you missed the show, we spoke to Kenzie on May 13, 2021 on The Hockey Show before she reached TSN, and we were already impressed with all she had done to that point. You can add calling mostly all of Canada's women's national team's games plus a pile more IIHF games for TSN, and now we tack on the Sens-Leafs as another feather in her cap. Remember how we were already impressed? Make that "we're still impressed with everything she's doing"!

If there's one thing that can be learned from Kenzie's journey, it's that her hockey career didn't end when she graduated from university. Yes, she wasn't playing university hockey any longer, but her path into broadcasting is what literally kept her in the game. Whether it was calling AUS games or eventually landing with Eastlink to call QMJHL games, Kenzie Lalonde remained in the game by moving into the broadcast booth. I honestly believe a number of women who are playing hockey at high levels right now could also jump into that role.

As a realist, I'll be honest in saying that not every broadcasting opportunity will lead to TSN. Heck, it may not lead out of the local rink. What it can do, though, is inspire others to make that same jump from playing to calling games. No one is saying that one needs to give up the hockey dream to jump into the broadcast booth, but it is a reasonable jump if one reaches the end of the playing path without having another step to ascend.

That's what Kenzie did, and I really hope that more girls see her path as a viable way to remain in hockey. Again, it may not end with a job calling NHL or World Championship games for TSN, but calling the local university team's games or high school games is still something of which one can be proud. It may lead to bigger opportunities in the future for those who pursue it, but the next Kenzie Lalonde could be skating her last shift this season with questions about what she does next season for hockey. But maybe it doesn't have to be that way.

Let's encourage more women to get into the broadcast booth as both play-by-play broadcasters and as analysts. Yes, they should be encouraged to play as long as they can at the highest levels they can, but broadcast opportunities are still there. I want to see the next Kenzie Lalonde or Fiona Quinn or Cheryl Pounder or Daniella Ponticelli be part of some amazing broadcasts in U SPORTS or the NCAA where she can rise to the top as one of the best. From there, the world opens up and anything can happen.

Congratuations to Kenzie Lalonde for her call of an NHL game on TSN tonight as that truly is an accomplishment that was once a dream. My hope is that this amazing opportunity that Kenzie has gives more girls the same dream as they look to follow Kenzie's lead in being one of the best hockey broadcasters on the planet!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!