Abby Lunney, a top player in U Sports with Nipissing University, has leaned on her family to inspire her in hockey, and to keep her moving forward.
Family. It’s important in all aspects of life, and especially so for those who desire an athletic career. So many factors can create barriers of entry and opportunity to those interested in such a lifestyle. Early morning practices before heading off to work; driving to and from home and away games, sometimes in other countries; the financial side of it, which includes equipment costs, paying for ice time, fees to travel to events, and training. But when someone is driven by their passion for the game, family always finds a way.
That was exactly the case for Abby Lunney, a Newmarket, Ontario native and forward with the Nipissing University Lakers in U Sports. As she explains, family has meant everything to her as she’s continued her incredible career.
“Family was a big aspect of the reason as to why I started to play and the reason I'm still playing today,” Lunney shared. “Hockey has been a big part of my family for many generations. My granddad, my dad, and my brother have all played.”
But there was one person in her family with whom made the biggest impact on her, both early on and to this day.
“Growing up, I kind of wanted to do whatever my brother was doing,” Lunney remembers. “So I followed in his footsteps and kind of the first time I ever stepped foot on the ice was in our backyard rink. And I was just following in his footsteps.”
Lunney has been able to translate those initial first strides on the ice, inspired by her brother and family, and parlay them into a career in which she’s had the opportunity represent Canada internationally, where both her parents and grandparents flew over to support her on every shift, and continue her career in U Sports, with an eye on joining the PWHL.
She’s also carrying on the tradition of inspiring family members to fall in love with the game of hockey. “It’s a really cool thing to feel,” Lunney shared. “We live really close to each other, train together, and go out to support each other all the time.”
In her first season with the Lakers, Lunney finished with 23 points in 28 games, which she attributes to her coaches throughout her career, both past and present. “I felt as though my coaches over the years have definitely trained and prepared me for the university level,” she said. “I was given many opportunities as a rookie, and I never expected to have them necessarily as a first year, but I'm very fortunate for that.”
For Lunney though, she’ll never forget the impact her family, at every level of the game, both close and extended, had on her as she continues to pursue the game she fell in love with at such an early age.
“I definitely never credited my parents enough for driving me all over the world to play, but I wouldn't have been able to do it without them.”