By Sarah Tone, Communications Coordinator
Team Manitoba’s women’s hockey coaches are making history behind the bench in PEI as the team’s first-ever all-female coaching staff.
Head Coach Ashley van Aggelen (Winnipeg) is attending her fourth Canada Winter Games as a coach. Her assistants Karissa Kirkup (Virden) and Maddie Litchfield-Medd (Winnipeg) are both attending the Games for the first time.
“This is a huge step in the right direction for our province. If you look at other benches at the Canada Games, we were looking around, and almost every team has a female staff. It’s a huge honour to be here,” said van Aggelen.
“Watching these two [coaches] interact with the players, it’s obvious that the culture is a lot different with a female coaching staff, and to be able to make those memories and connect with the players on a different level, has been nice to watch,” she added.
The coaches are quick to remind the team that not everyone gets the opportunity of Canada Games. It’s about embracing the experience and taking it all in, because while they’re here playing for themselves, they’re also here playing for everyone that doesn’t get a chance to come to Canada Games.
“This is my first Canada Games and it’s been unreal to catch lots of sports and mingle, and get to meet lots of people from across the country,” said Kirkup.
Part of embracing the experience is going out to support other Team Manitoba teams. Supporting each other with cheers, seeing new venues, meeting new people, and building soft skills together as a team only helps them come back to the rink stronger.
“We watched badminton and boxing, and it’s been a blast so far,” said Kirkup.
“I needed earplugs on the bus! You don’t often get girls that want to hang out day and night and play hockey together, and go through emotional and challenging times, then at the end of the day they’re still cheering, and joking around, and being goofballs, it’s just a testament to the group of girls we have. They are great teammates,” added Litchfield-Medd.
This part of growing the game, the leadership and the opportunity, isn’t lost on this coaching squad. At an event like this, they’re facing off against the best of the best from across the entire country.
“Hockey in every province is just getting better and better. Hockey Manitoba has been doing a good job focusing on grassroots, to get females out coaching, and having girl hockey days and festivals, and drawing in players,” said van Aggelen.
“It’s cool for us to be here, but it’s cool too for the girls to see the level within Canada, that they’re playing against, and bring that intensity home. That skill level they’ve seen here, they take it back to their team they’ll go home and play playoffs with,” said Litchfield-Medd.
“And the best part about the group we have now, is they get to be their authentic genuine selves so you get that goofy side, which is nice to see in short-term competition,” she added. The coaches know what they bring to the table – their experience and expertise. They’re seeing the difference it’s making in how connected this team has been as a whole after a short nine months together.
“This is probably the first time I’ve really coached at this level where the bench has been quite positive the whole way through. The culture, the environment, and if the girls aren’t playing – they’re cheering for each other. It’s just something I haven’t seen – shows again growth of the game, of our players, of our competition and the expectations,” said van Aggelen.
There’s optimism in each of their tones as they speak about the culture and connections among the team. Something they all hope carries through for this and the next generation of players and coaches as the game grows.
