Katie Brickman
Coaching her daughter got Trula Seaward back into hockey and she’s enjoying every minute of it.
Growing up in Port aux Basques, Newfoundland and Labrador, Seaward played the game throughout the 1990s when she was one of the only women’s hockey players in her small community.
“It was very unheard of in my community when I played,” Seaward says. “I have a strong hockey background and played right through university.”
She eventually turned her focus from playing hockey to her career as a nurse and then starting her family.
When her daughter was 18 months old, Seaward put her on skates for the first time—and she loved it.
“Of course, I wanted her to be a hockey player just like me. When she was four, we enrolled her in hockey in Port aux Basques,” Seaward says. “I thought it would be a great opportunity to get involved again. You don’t realize how much you miss it until you take some time away from it.”
It all came full circle for Seaward when her daughter’s U7 Timbits program needed help on the ice during practices.
“When she started with the U7 program, I went on the ice more as a helper. There were some great coaches on the ice with me,” she says. “They showed me the ropes, how to run practices and how to build a positive relationship with the kids, because the more positive your relationship, the more the kids tend to respond to you.”
Seaward stayed behind the bench with her daughter’s teams, moving up to the U11 program where she currently coaches both the minor and girls' programs with Port aux Basques Minor Hockey.
One of the moments that cemented her decision to continue coaching was at a U13 girls’ provincial championship that took place in Port aux Basques two years ago.
“[A team] had a female coach, but the coach’s daughter got really sick during the first game of the tournament. Being certified to be on the bench, they asked me to help,” she explains. “I couldn’t see these girls forfeit, so I said I’d do it.”
As nervous as she was, Seaward helped lead that team to a provincial championship, winning all five games.
“I was a nervous wreck. I didn’t really know what I was doing, and I felt totally out of place,” she says. “When I walked into that dressing room, I was so intimidated, but we won, and it was probably one of the most rewarding weekends I’ve had.”
Seaward continues to be the head coach for the U11 rep team and still volunteers with the other minor programs. She also helps with her son’s team and other divisions needing support, and is the director of female operations for Hockey Newfoundland and Labrador.
“That tournament was my turning point. From that moment forward, I decided that I would keep on coaching,” she says. “It was a wonderful experience because it built my confidence and I’ve grown so much in that area.”
Getting back into the game in a different capacity revived not only her love for hockey, but it also brought a different kind of joy—watching the growth of the kids she coaches.
“For me, it’s just having the opportunity to be a part of the kids’ lives and trying to have a positive impact on them,” she says. “It’s not about the goals or saves, it’s the personal growth I get to witness in these kids. I think what I love about coaching the most is getting to pass on what the game has given to me.”
In Port aux Basques—with a population of just over 3,500—the growth of women’s hockey has taken off in recent years. Without girls playing in several of the minor divisions, they wouldn’t exist.
With the introduction and growth of the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL), young girls now see actual opportunities to go after their hockey dreams.
“We see the PWHL and a woman coach in the National Hockey League now. My little girl said she wants to play in the PWHL, but her back up plan is to be a coach,” Seaward says. “There was none of that when I was growing up. This generation of women’s hockey players are finally realizing there is no limit—you can be a coach, a referee, a trainer or a player.”
Being able to see women in roles throughout hockey also starts at the grassroots level—something Seaward is very aware of and willing to lead the way in her community.
“It is so important, and the girls love having a woman coach—they are more comfortable, and they can spread their wings, find their confidence and their comfort. They can just be themselves,” she says.
Not only has Seaward been honoured in her own community for her involvement and giving back to the game, but she was also recently announced as the national winner of the BFL CANADA Women in Coaching Award in the Community category.
“When they told me I won, I was quite shocked,” she says. “It’s pretty special to me and I’m very honoured.”
The accolades are nice, but Seaward hopes this personal achievement will provide a boost to the growth of hockey in Port aux Basques and other communities by showing girls and women that they belong and can dream big.
“I think it’s just so important not only for my community to see that, but it’s an opportunity to grow women’s hockey.”