Prince Albert Northern Bears alumnus stars at Huskie Women of Influence breakfast
February 11, 2026
Special to the Herald
SASKATOON, Sask. – The centre stage spotlight of the University of Saskatchewan Huskie Women of Influence Breakfast was a deserving spot for Kaitlin Willoughby.
These days Willoughby skates for the Montreal Victoire as a checking forward in the PWHL. From 2013 to 2018, she was a star forward with the University of Saskatchewan Huskies Women’s Hockey Team skating to a legendary career where she still sits as the program’s second all-time leading scorer. Before that, she was a star with the Prince Albert Northern Bears, who were then known as the A & W Bears, of the SFU18AAAHL.
On Tuesday morning before a packed TCU Place in Saskatoon, Willoughby was the keynote speaker for the third annual Huskie of Women of Influence Breakfast that raises scholarship funds for the Huskies women’s programs. She took part in a sit down style question and answer session with emcee and local broadcaster Heather Morrison.
While Willoughby talked about her hockey journey through all parts of her life, she enjoyed the vibe at the breakfast.
“I think seeing this event, I think it is in its third year, and just to see the support of people in the community showing up for women athletes at U of S I think it is really incredible to see,” said Willoughby. “Events like this are what makes it possible to have female athletes play a sport at the university and be able to financially have a little bit of aid in getting their degree and also playing a sport.
“I’m all about supporting that and to see everyone turn up today and hear the stories of the athletes were just incredible.”
After the main festivities of the event wrapped up, Willoughby signed autographs and posed for pictures with numerous minor hockey players and visited with her old Huskies teammates and coaches. In Prince Albert, she has become someone young girls that are playing the game from the city and area look up to as well as players who are skating in the post-secondary ranks in the current day.
The same goes for Ottawa Charge defender Brooke Hobson, who was the captain of the Bears in their 2016-17 SFU18AAAHL title winning campaign.
When asked about that specifically, Willoughby chose to defer, saying there are other female athletes from “Hockey Town North” who inspire. She proceeded to refer to a basketball player that graduated from Carlton Comprehensive High School seven years after she did, and that basketball player had a video story package that was played at the breakfast.
“You’ve been seeing Gage Grassick today,” said Willoughby about the fifth-year point guard who was the overall U Sports female athlete of the year in 2024-25. “We graduated from the same high school.
“To see her be so successful at Huskies, it makes me emotional, because I know what it takes to get there. To see someone like her just surpass all probably what she envisioned, she surpassed everything she could ever imagine. It makes me so happy to celebrate women who have done those types of amazing things.
“I hope that I could have been somewhat of an inspiration for people who come from a similar area that I did. I mentioned Shaye Christiansen was someone who I looked up to, so I hope that I could have been a little bit of inspiration to them too.”
Christiansen was a forward from Canwood who played five seasons for the Huskies from 2005 to 2010. She played in 116 career regular season games collecting 28 goals and 40 assists to create the inspiration for Willoughby.
Willoughby blew past that bar just in her first year in 2013-14. She was named the U Sports rookie of the year appearing in all the Huskies 28 regular season games recording 10 goals, 15 assists and a plus-three rating in the plus-minus department. On March 2, 2014 in a series deciding Game 3 of the Canada West Championship Series against their provincial rivals the U of Regina Cougars, Willoughby scored the winner in double overtime for the host Huskies at the ancient Rutherford Rink for a 2-1 victory in the contest and the series.
She admitted that moment and her years with the Huskies do feel like they are from another lifetime.
“For sure, it feels so long ago,” said Willoughby, who had 50 goals and 61 assists for 111 points in 132 career regular season games with the Huskies. “It is still a moment of my hockey career that I’ll always cherish and will be a highlight forever.
“It still feels like a long time ago, but at the same time, it is near and dear to my heart.”
With the Bears, she played on a call up basis in 2008-09 during the regular season. Willoughby joined the Bears full time in 2009-10 moving away from Canwood and lived with a billet family in Prince Albert.
Her family would end up joining her in Prince Albert before the start of the 2011-12 campaign with her younger sister Morgan joining the Bears as a defender and father Jeff becoming the Bears head coach.
During Kaitlin Willoughby’s final campaign with the Bears in 2012-13, they advanced to the SFU18AAAHL championship series. In the best-of-five set, the Bears were swept by the Regina Rebels in three games.
“I remember obviously being devastated that we couldn’t win,” said Willoughby, who had 34 goals and 63 assists for 97 points in 96 career regular season games with the Bears. “That program we had a lot of years where we weren’t the best in the standings.
“To make it to the final that year, I think was a pivotal year for the program, and they were able to recruit a lot of good players after that.”
Following her time with the Huskies, Willoughby became a part of a group of women’s players who were trailblazers. In 2018-19, she played in the Canadian Women’s Hockey League with the Calgary Inferno helping the team win the Clarkson Cup as league champions.
The circuit proceeded to fold following that league title victory. Willoughby continued to skate with the Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association for four seasons, which ultimately led to the development of the PWHL. Willoughby has been in the PWHL since day one first with the Toronto Sceptres until a trade last season brought her to the Victoire.
The PWHL is currently on an Olympic break with many of the circuit’s players taking part in the Winter Olympics currently going on in Italy. The Victoire, who are third overall in the eight-team circuit with 10 wins and five losses, return to action on February 26 when they travel to New York to take on the Sirens.
Willoughby is looking forward to resuming a pursuit for another hockey championship.
“I’m looking forward to chasing the dream of a Walter Cup,” said Willoughby. “That has been the goal since I started in this league, and I would love to be able to retire knowing that I did accomplish that feat.
“I’ve won a Canada West championship and a Clarkson Cup. Next to top it off would be the Walter Cup, and that is my ultimate goal. I’m going to do everything I can to do that.”
Darren Steinke is a Saskatoon-based freelance sportswriter and photographer. He blogs frequently at stankssermon.blogspot.com.
