Nowhere to go but up

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 22/12/2021 (1393 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Westwood Collegiate Warriors varsity girls hockey team is reaching new heights, following a string of off-kilter years.

The Warriors broke out into the 2021-22 season after a year of cancelled ice time, owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. During the 2019-20 season, the Warriors couldn’t secure a win. Before that year, the varsity girls hockey program was on again, off again.

Narrow wins and losses have marked the season this lap around the sun — putting an end to the Warriors’ rocky streak. At press time, the team stood in fifth place in the Winnipeg Women’s High School Hockey League’s Hire Marketing Division.

“We get down, but we don’t give up,” the Warriors’ team captain, Hannah Coukell, said. “Every team has been very beatable; it just comes down to which team plays better or shows up.”

Coukell is leading the team this season as a forward and blueliner. During power plays and penalty kills, the 17-year-old Grade 12 student takes to the ice as a forward. Coukell has previously played hockey for the Central Plains Capitals, and, in the summer, she plays softball.

Despite staying active this summer, returning to the ice was a different animal, Coukell said. The movements are different. The arena air is chilly on the lungs. Nevertheless, with the fundamentals of the sport under her belt, Coukell’s personal goal this season is to be more confident with the puck during breakouts.

The Warriors squeaked by with just enough players to fill a 17-player roster this season. Grade 9 and 12 students make up most of the team, while a few sophomores and juniors round out the lineup.

“It’s been a big year for them,” Tytan MacKay, one of the Warriors’ coaches, said. “They bought in, and they want to be a part of this team.”

MacKay, 26, coaches the girls with his father, Todd MacKay. This is MacKay’s first season with the Warriors, but he’s taught upwards of eight different teams. The love of hockey and mentoring young athletes was all it took for MacKay to dedicate a handful of evenings to the group each week.   

“I’ve been in hockey since before I could walk, it feels like,” MacKay said. “For me to be able to take that passion and pass it on to others has always been something that I enjoy doing.”

MacKay has committed to the Warriors for the foreseeable future, he said. The coach would like to see the team make championship runs in the future. As for this year, MacKay wants to see the athletes bring home an even 10 wins.

Jordyn Szwaluk, 15, plays defense for the Warriors. This year is the Grade 10 student’s first time representing Westwood Collegiate. Her father played for the team in his youth, too.

“I’ve been seeing a huge improvement with our team,” Szwaluk said.

She added that it’s been rewarding to see the team’s new players—some of whom were shaky on their skates at the beginning of the season—find their footing.

The girls held a record of 4-7-0 going into a Dec. 17 game against the West Kildonan Collegiate Wolverines on home ice at Allard Arena. The Warriors took to the ice at Transcona East End Community Centre on Dec. 20 to play its final game of 2021 against Murdoch MacKay.

Gabriela Lerat was the Warriors’ top scorer at press time, with 14 goals and three assists.