Ravens women’s hockey alumna and women’s hockey assistant coach Tricia Zakaria is no stranger to being the odd one out on the ice.
Growing up, she had to play on a boys’ hockey team, as there were not enough girls to form their own team.
“I had to prove that I could play and that it was worth it for me to play,” she said. The growth she’s seen over the last 30 years of playing, and now coaching, makes her hopeful for a future where female athletes are celebrated the same as male ones.
This new era has also led to opportunities of organizational growth in professional hockey.
In November 2020, Kendall Coyne Schofield was appointed the Chicago Blackhawks player development coach. She became the first woman to hold a coach position for the Blackhawks, and one of a number of women hired into traditionally male-dominated positions in the NHL over the past few years.
To members of the Ottawa Girls Hockey Association (OGHA), young girls seeing women in positions of leadership in sport is essential. According to Kelly Arcangeletti, president of OGHA, having more women in positions of athletic leadership will undoubtedly open more doors for girls in sports.
“ This will allow young girls and women to feel more confident to push boundaries and have the confidence to say, ‘Why not me?’” Arcangeletti said in an email.
Kirk De Fazio, OGHA vice-president of operations, echoed this sentiment. He said the hiring sends a positive message to their young aspiring female hockey players to take their skills to the highest level.
In her new role, Schofield will work with Blackhawks prospects through their AHL affiliate, the Rockford IceHogs, preparing them for a career in the NHL. The Olympic gold medalist also plans on continuing her “Golden Coynes” program, which aims to create a more inclusive environment for young girls to learn the game.
The six-time world championship gold medalist has been working with the Blackhawks since she was a rising junior in college, from a summer internship to teaching youth hockey and fan development, before being hired into her current role.
Tracy Gillies is the president of the Nepean Girls Hockey Association. She said by considering the best person for a coaching position the Blackhawks have acknowledged the talent and contributions women bring to the sport of hockey.
“By showing our young female athletes that opportunities exist for them to pursue their love of the sport at a professional level—beyond the role of players, and within the National Hockey League no less—they are given something to strive for and be inspired by as they develop their skills and knowledge,” she said.
Zakaria added it’s important that young players have female leadership on their teams to learn from.
“There’s a highly disproportionate rate of female and male coaches, so [having female coaches] gives players something to work towards. They know they can be leaders, and as they get older it shows them they can give back to their community,” she said.
While there is still a long way to go in achieving gender equity in sport, seeing women in respected positions of authority is important for the continued development of the game, according to Carleton women’s hockey scout and assistant coach Tawnya Guindon.
“We’re going somewhere. The process is long, it won’t happen tomorrow, but … we’re going in the right direction,” she said.
“The sport is evolving year after year [and] the hockey is getting better. People are noticing that women’s hockey is actually interesting, that we play the exact same game,” she said.
Guindon and Zakaria are hopeful that one day, women won’t have to prove their worth when they are promoted to roles of leadership in sport, and that they will be treated the same way a man getting the job would be. They are hopeful this will continue the pursuit of equality between men’s and women’s sports.
“I tell my boys, ‘Oh, when I was growing up there were no women’s teams to play on,’ and they’re super confused by that,” Zakaria said about her sons. “One day there won’t be an elitism to men’s sports, and women’s [teams] won’t just be an aside.”
While the future of women’s hockey is still evolving, one thing is for certain: as women of all ages take to the backyard and public rinks, and Carleton’s women’s hockey team eventually returns to the Ice House, the players will have one more role model to keep an eye on in Chicago.
