Saskatchewan’s Kaitlin Willoughby reflects on becoming province’s first PWHL champion

The past week and a half has been a blur for Prince Albert’s own Kaitlin Willoughby.

Her voice may be a bit hoarse and sleep has been hard to come by, but they’ve been some of the most jovial of her life since winning the Walter Cup as Professional Women’s Hockey League champions.

Read more:

• Saskatoon’s Emily Clark is the highest earner in the Professional Women’s Hockey League
• Second half comeback leads to first victory of season for rebranded Saskatoon Mamba
• What does it take? Runners share stories, advice ahead of Sunday’s Saskatchewan Marathon

“A lot of celebrating,” Willoughby said.

“I kind of lost my voice in the process a little bit. It’s been spending a lot of time with my teammates, just taking it all in. We’re still on cloud nine, it’s been incredible.”

Willloughby helped the Montreal Victoire became the PWHL’s first Canadian franchise to lift the Walter Cup last week with a 4-0 shutout win over the Ottawa Charge in Game 4 of their championship series.

It was a moment of celebration the 31-year-old forward had been waiting years for as she became a Walter Cup champion for the first time in her career.

“I remember there was like 20 seconds left on the clock and we started jumping on the bench,” Willoughby said.

“It’s 4-0, at that point you’re like, ‘It’s not over until it’s over.’ But when it’s 4-0, you’re like, ‘Okay, we got this.’”

The University of Saskatchewan Huskies great became the first Saskatchewan-born woman to be crowned a PWHL champion with the win alongside some of the most talented players in women’s hockey including Marie-Philip Poulin, Ann-Renée Desbiens and Laura Stacey.

To this day, Willoughby said she still gets excited when people ask about her home province.

“Playing in this league, the amount of people that have supported me,” Willoughby said.

“The messages I get from people saying I’ve inspired their daughters to start playing hockey, this province is full of the best people. To be the first person from this province (to win), it means the world to me.”

Moments after lifting the Walter Cup in the biggest moment of her hockey career, Willoughby locked eyes with her parents Jeff and Dinah, who embraced their daughter and shared in a powerful, full-circle moment according to Kaitlin.

“You give them a big hug and you think of all the times when you were a little girl and they supported you on this journey,” Willoughby said.

“I wouldn’t be in that moment without them. I had a really extended hug with my parents because I decided let’s take this moment in … that moment will always stick with me forever.”

Prince Albert hockey star Kaitlin Willoughby, second from right, celebrating the Montreal Victoire’s Walter Cup victory in Ottawa on May 20, 2026 with former coach Robin Ulrich, far left, her dad Jeff, second from left, and mom Dinah. (Robin Ulrich/Submitted)

The Willoughbys weren’t the only supporters in the crowd for the Victoire two-way forward, as her former Huskies coach Robin Ulrich made the trip from Saskatoon to watch Game 4 in Ottawa.

Ulrich, who coached Willoughby as an assistant for four years and one season as interim head coach, said it felt right to be in the building to watch a special moment for an all-time Huskies competitor.

“It’s pretty amazing, right?” Ulrich said.

“We have a former member of our program who has made it to that ultimate level. Kaitlin has been somebody that’s always been a strong promoter of the Huskies, even when she finished her time there. I think it was just important for me to be there.”

Willoughby not only is the first player from her home province to have her name inscribed on the Walter Cup, but is one of only a handful of champions to come through the U Sports pathway.

She is a role model for other young Saskatchewan hockey players dreaming of being in Willoughby’s skates,  according to Ulrich.

“It’s pretty exceptional the first person from Saskatchewan is somebody that’s gone the U Sports route,” Ulrich said.

“(She) made the decision to stay home, play close to home, play close to her family, be a standout in close to her hometown team. To take that route is pretty exceptional.”

Ulrich added it’s equally impressive Willoughby had to fight, scratch and claw her way to stay in the league after not being selected in the inaugural PWHL Draft in 2023.

From there, she spent time as the 13th forward on the Toronto Sceptres after being signed by the team as a free agent out of training camp.

“It wasn’t easy, especially mentally waiting for that meeting with the GM to find out if you made the team,” Willoughby said.

“To look at myself now from those moments to now being a Walter Cup champion, it’s just been an incredible journey.”

The true turning point for Willoughby came at the 2025 PWHL trade deadline, as she was moved by Toronto to Montreal in exchange for defender Anna Kjellbin.

After getting over the initial shock and disappointment of the trade, her focus quickly turned towards the Victoire and a franchise which identified value in her game.

“I’m forever grateful that they saw something in me,” Willoughby said.

“Coming to this organization, I’ve been able to keep growing my game. I couldn’t thank them enough for seeing something in me and believing in me.”

Ironically, Willoughby’s two biggest moments of her hockey career both came at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa this season.

On April 3 in her 75th PHWL game, Willoughby finally netted her first career goal in the league with a snipe off the rush for a critical game-opening marker.

Less than two months later, she’d lift the Walter Cup far over her head to cap off a season to remember in the nation’s capital.

“The Ottawa Senators rink is now my favourite rink,” Willoughby said. “I scored my first goal in that rink and then I won a championship in that rink, so hoping for more good games in that rink next year.”

PWHL off-season business ahead

Willoughby’s future in Montreal is still up in the air heading into the 2026-27 PWHL season after signing a one-year contract extension last summer.

Set to hit free agency, she said there will be conversations with her agent after enjoying some down time after the Victoire’s championship win.

“We’ll definitely be having some meetings next week and seeing what the options are,” Willoughby said,

“For me personally, I think Montreal has treated me spectacularly and I don’t see myself wanting to leave. At the same time, you still have to put yourself first and still explore options.”

Another factor this summer will be the looming shadow of expansion, as four new franchises in Detroit, Hamilton, Las Vegas and San Jose will move the PWHL to 12 teams.

That includes the start of a new expansion draft process, which could leave depth players like Willoughby exposed to be selected.

As well, Willoughby commented on the move this week by the Professional Women’s Hockey League Players’ Association to publicly disclose athlete salaries.

Set to enter her fourth season in the PWHL next fall, she said it’s a good move for the future of the women’s game in raising the bar for salaries across the board.

“I’m grateful to be making money playing the game I love,” Willoughby said.

“I definitely think that means there’s room for increases in salary, but I also know that’s going to take time (as) this is a new league. I think the first step in us getting an increase in salary was to make all those salaries public.”

According to the PWHLPA salary guide, Willoughby earned $40,000 base salary on her contract extension signed last summer.

Read more:

• Saskatoon’s Emily Clark is the highest earner in the Professional Women’s Hockey League
• Second half comeback leads to first victory of season for rebranded Saskatoon Mamba
• What does it take? Runners share stories, advice ahead of Sunday’s Saskatchewan Marathon