The Hardest-Working Goal

As a person who follows Canada West women's hockey very closely, it's always great to see a player get rewarded for the hard work she puts in playing the game. Earning a professional contract somewhere across the planet is a big accomplishment for any player, but keeping a roster spot year after year takes dedication and hard work to continue to be an asset to a team. The player pictured with the Montreal Victoire has done that since she decided to make the jump into the professional ranks, and Friday night may saw the culmination of a lot of hard work finally pay off for her. Having watched forward Kailtin Willoughby score a pile of goals for the Saskatchewan Huskies, she finally got one with the Victoire after years of hard work!

I really wanted to see Kaitlin score during the Victoire's stop in Winnipeg after all the big goals she scored in Winnipeg while playing against the Manitoba Bisons, but the Victoire could only light the lamp once last weekend. On Friday night, though, Willoughby broke out of her goal drought with two goals against the Ottawa Charge at Canadian Tire Centre, removing any doubt as to whether she belongs among the world's best. However, it's all the hard work that you don't know about that made this moment even better for what it means.

Before we go any further, let's get Willoughby's goal posted from TSN.

What you didn't see when Willoughby scored for the first time in 75 PWHL games were all the overnight shifts at hospitals and early morning training sessions after a long night of work as a nurse. In her final year at the University of Saskatchewan where she was earning her degree, Willoughby shuttled between Calgary and Saskatoon often as she was playing for the CWHL's Calgary Inferno, working at Calgary Foothills hospital, and attending classes in Saskatchewan!

"I was living in Saskatchewan, living in Calgary, finishing my nursing degree and flying back and forth," she told Kerry Gillespie of the Toronto Star in 2024. That was the reality for players in the CWHL.

She'd continue to work as a nurse as the CWHL folded into history while training alongside the players from the Inferno. That would turn into an opportunity to play in the PWHPA where she couldn't play every weekend, but she squeezed in as many games as she could to keep her professional hockey dreams alive. After all, paying the bills that come with life and hockey means she had to keep working.

"Life is definitely expensive... so just trying to be financially in a good spot once hockey's done," she told Gillespie.

A new path opened up for women's hockey, though, and it has changed how Willoughby has approached the game. No longer does she need to work to play, but she can now focus on working on her play as her full-time career. Finding a roster spot with the Toronto Sceptres in 2023 allowed her to move into a more casual nursing role in the offseason while she continues to chase a Walter Cup.

"Looking back, it was some crazy long days and hard work and sacrifice, but I wouldn't have it any other way to get to where I am right now," she said to Gillespie about playing with the Sceptres in 2024. "Living this dream life, like, it's still a job, but it doesn’t feel like it because it's the best job in the world."

Being a professional hockey player doesn't come without some hardships, though, as Willoughby would need to pack up her life and head east on March 13, 2025 when the Sceptres traded her to the Montreal Victoire at the PWHL trade deadline for defender Anna Kjellbin. After 43 games in Toronto with one assist to her name, she was on the move as Montreal added her as forward depth.

In seven games with the Victoire, she doubled her assist and point total with another assist, and she was an addition that Victoire general manager Danièle Sauvageau was happy to have made as the Victoire re-signed Willoughby in the offseason to a new deal.

"Upon her arrival last season, Kaitlin quickly developed chemistry with our existing players, both on and off the ice. She played valuable minutes with us at the end of the season and during the playoffs," Sauvageau told The Canadian Press.

Without having to work overnights at the hospital or squeeze in shifts between games thanks to her PWHL contract, Willoughby circled back and began to put the work in to focus on improving her game.

"You're now pouring all of your energy into the sport and the training, so you can give 100 per cent every day," she told Gillespie in 2024. "I'm turning 30 next year and I still feel like I haven't reached a plateau. I'm still seeing myself get better."

Clearly, she knows what she's talking about as Willoughby had three assists this season before Friday night to eclipse her career total in one season. Her play alongside Catherine Dubois and Alexandra Labelle on Montreal's "U SPORTS line" has been excellent as a checking unit, but these three women have been showing some jump in recent weeks as they push the offensive side of their talents.

Of course, Friday night saw Willoughby toss the 800-pound gorilla off her back as she scored her first PWHL goal against Ottawa before doubling her output with an empty-netter late in the game! That night saw Ottawa play in front of its largest crowd at 17,114 fans while the win marked Montreal's 50th PWHL win in franchise history and the 39-save shutout for Sandra Abstreiter was also the first of her career on what was a big night for the Victoire in Ottawa!

Upon returning to the bench, Willoughby got hugs from both head coach Kori Cheverie and assistant coach Caroline Ouellette as they've been witness to just how hard Willoughby works everyday at practice.

"It's not for lack of chances I've had throughout the years; but my teammates, my coaching staff, everyone has just continued to believe in me and keep my confidence up," Willoughby said to habseyesontheprize.com's Jared Book about her big night after the game. "The support I've had from my teammates just keeps me going. They're like – 'it's going to come Willow'. And eventually it did, and now the floodgates might be open for me."

My hope is that it does exactly that - open the floodgates for a woman whose U SPORTS career saw her dent twine 50 times in 132 games. She's an incredible player to watch, and seeing that smile after she scored her first PWHL goal felt like the old Kaitlin Willoughby that terrorized Canada West goalies was back again.

I've heard from several professional hockey players that making the roster isn't where the hard work ends, but that the hardest work comes in keeping that roster spot. Kaitlin Willoughby has travelled between cities to practice and play hockey, work as a nurse, and take classes, so it was clear that she knew how to work hard before ever being signed by the Sceptres and re-signed by the Victoire.

It may have taken 75 PWHL games, but the hours put into reaching that pinnacle for Kailtin Willoughby are countless. Her ear-to-ear smile during the celebration says that all of the hard work, hours away from family, and sacrifices that she made were worth it. It may have been the hardest goal she's ever had to work for, but that's the effort that Kaitlin Willloughby brings to the rink everyday.

Congratulations, Kaitlin, on your first and second PWHL goals!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!