ST PAUL, Minn. — It wasn't too long ago that history was made with Minnesota's first professional women's hockey game in the PWHL played at the Xcel Energy Center in front of a record 13,316 fans.
It was a dream that became a reality for hockey pro Kendall Coyne Schofield, number 26 and a star forward on the team who is no stranger to the ice.
"I started playing hockey around 5," Kendall said. "I got on my first pair of hockey skates at 3 and started playing hockey 2 short years later."
Growing up, Kendall had to play hockey with the boys but as the sport grew in popularity among young girls, she skated over to the girls' side and hasn't stopped playing since.
"I went on to play at Northeastern in Boston which was a tremendous 4 to 5 years there," Kendall said. "Made my first Olympic team in 2014, and have played in three Olympic games since and now with PWHL Minnesota."
In addition to her impressive track record, Kendall also played a role in negotiating the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) on behalf of the players in the PWHL.
"The day that the CBA was ratified, I gave birth, so two things were born on the same day," Kendall said.
From hockey player to hockey mom, Kendall didn't let her pregnancy or the birth of her son stop her from doing what she loves. In fact, she was back on the ice just eight weeks after giving birth.
"I'm not going to lie," Kendall said. "I think it was the hardest thing I've ever done was just being a mom first and a hockey player second. But when you come home it doesn't matter how hard you've worked or how tired you are. The day is only beginning for Drew and I have to be on... but it's the best kind of tired."
From a young girl with a dream, to a new mom who never gave up on that dream.
"I think knowing that my son is going to grow up in a world and all he knows that a young girl and a young boy can grow up with the same dream, to be a professional hockey player and to be treated as so, to be compensated as so, to have the resources as so, is extremely important to me and it has been so hard to get to this point."
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