The 2025–26 regular season is still a ways away, but PWHL fans and players alike still have lots to be excited about. For some fans, it’s the energy around a league entering its third season with two brand-new teams. For some players, it’s the chance to prove themselves and leave a good impression on what could be their next team.
Katie Chan is no stranger to this feeling. As a winger who recently earned herself an invite to PWHL Vancouver’s training camp in the fall, Chan knows that there’s a sea of high-end talent to draw knowledge from in Vancouver. Having skated for Team BC when she was in high school, she knows what it’s like to be surrounded by experienced players.
“That was a huge honour and a really great time in my life, where I met really amazing people and got to go to Nationals on several occasions,” she said of playing for Team BC, a program that boasts alumni such as PWHL Vancouver’s own Hannah Miller. “It was a really cool experience, especially at such a young age, to be exposed to older players who taught me more about the game and a different level of compete when I was younger. I think it really helped prepare me for college.”
Chan is currently coming off four seasons in the NCAA — two with Colgate University (2021–2023), and two with Cornell University (2023–2025). She is currently under contract with Färjestad BK of the SDHL for the 2025–26 season, but will still be making the trip out to Vancouver’s training camp.
Changes to the SDHL’s schedule this season will give Chan an advantage over other players attending Vancouver’s training camp in the fall. The SDHL officially begins their season during the first week of September, a week earlier than usual, meaning Chan will have a good month or two of regular season play to work with when she comes back to Vancouver.
“Being able to train and play pro hockey in Sweden and get quite a few games in before camp is really going to help me with that transition back to camp, because I’ll be coming in peak shape, and then also have quite a few games under my belt,” she explained, also noting that she leaves for Sweden at the end of this month. “I don’t think I’ll be rusty coming in. I’ll be more than ready to hit the ground running.”
Another benefit that Chan has had is her connection to players currently in Vancouver’s organization. She returned to BC after her graduation at the beginning of June and has been skating with players such as Jennifer Gardiner, Nina Jobst-Smith, and Ashton Bell. In terms of her college career, she also shared the ice with Sydney Bard while at Colgate, as well as played with Izzy Daniel for the past two seasons at Cornell.
Work ethic was something that came up frequently when Chan discussed the development of her career and how this will help her come training camp. Rather than focusing on improving general skills such as shooting and passing, Chan honed in on some of her bigger strengths. Details such as speed and stick-handling were parts she concentrated her efforts on as her career progressed through college. With speed on her mind, Chan listed Minnesota Frost forward Kendall Coyne Schofield as a player she looks up to, both for how she plays and what she has accomplished. That, in itself, is a big indicator of what Chan is like as a player.
“As a winger, I take a lot of pride in my puck retrievals off the wall in a breakout, because I view that as me getting the puck out can determine whether or not I spend an entire shift in the offensive zone or defensive zone. So when the defence passes me the puck or rims it on my side, I really try to learn different ways on how to get the puck out or break out the puck, because then that could shift the momentum completely.”
With such a loaded roster, it’ll be hard to crack Vancouver’s lineup; not just for Chan, but for any player regardless of their status with the team. Right now, Chan’s focus has been narrowed down to two specific things — being the best teammate possible and filling whatever role is asked of her.
“I know that I will bring a lot of work ethic and positivity to the locker room, and I really do believe in myself as well, to be playing with those players and just be challenged by everybody,” she explained. “I believe I can do it, so being able to have the opportunity to go out there and give it my all is everything I could have asked for and more.”