The PWHL’s Walter Cup made a stop in Prince Albert Wednesday, thanks to a hometown hockey hero. Kaitlin Willoughby, who recently won the PWHL championship with the Montreal Victoire, brought the Walter Cup to her hometown of Prince Albert for a meet-and-greet with fans. “This could be a once in a lifetime opportunity,” Willoughby said at the event at the Art Hauser Centre. “I wanted to make sure I brought it back to my community and had some time available for them to share it with me.” The forward helped the Victoire take home the title after defeating the Ottawa Charge in the league’s first all-Canadian final. Each player on the team gets to celebrate the victory with a day with the cup. Willoughby will return to Montreal next season, recently signing a two-year contract extension. “It’s so exciting. I couldn’t be happier to sign, coming back to our championship team. I think it’s really special, and with all the expansions that were happening, to be landing back on that same team was my end goal.” Willoughby met with her fans for a full two hours, with the line of people stretching out the door of the arena. Kaydia Rowe says it was exciting to meet the hockey star. “I had to quit hockey because of a knee injury, and it’s cool because she got to win a cup,” Rowe said. Some young hockey players in attendance were excited to meet a professional that hails from their community. “She’s a famous hockey player and the cup is rare to win,” explained Cali, a young fan who dreams of becoming a professional hockey player. Willoughby says her message for young athletes is to keep having fun, as ultimately that’s what sport is about.
