Rink Rat

The level of compete is high

Winny Brodt Brown skates the Isobel Cup onto the ice for the Whitecaps’ 2018-19 NWHL Championship celebration prior to the team’s home opener vs. the Metropolitan Riveters on Oct 12, 2019 at TRIA Rink. (Photo by Tom Morris)

Two other components that have kept Winny playing hockey for so long at such a high level? Her competitiveness and her passion for the game. You’d be hard pressed to find someone more competitive than Winny, according to Wendell.

“She just has this compete of, ‘I don’t care how old I am, how small I am, I can compete with anybody,’” Wendell said. “She’s fearless and competitive, and has this, ‘there’s no way I’m going to fail’ attitude.

“As much as you knock her down, or try to, she just keeps getting back up. She’s just resilient.”

She never wants anyone to beat her in anything, said Whitecaps teammate, Meaghan Pezon.

“She just loves being out there and still competing and playing games,” Engelhardt said. “She’s driven, too. But I think a lot of it just comes from the passion.”

So, really, how much longer will Winny keep playing for the Whitecaps?

It’s “up in the air,” and her stance hasn’t changed much in the past couple of years either.

“That’s a really good question,” Winny said in March 2020. “I don’t know. It’s obviously getting tougher with my own kids, because they’re getting busy. … I’m going to be like my parents; I don’t want to miss my kids’ stuff, because that’s the most meaningful thing for them, and it goes so fast.”

Asked in 2022 about when she’ll step away from playing, and her answer is pretty much the same. Her boys are still in mite hockey, so not hitting the travel-hockey barrier yet makes things a little easier, Winny said. Though her kids still keep busy with figure skating, golf and soccer, too.

And yes, Jack and Marlene Brodt still play hockey in their 70s. So that’s a bit of a factor for the ultra-competitive Winny, too.

“How do you not still play the game that your parents still play, right?” Winny said. “When I see my mom going to open hockey at 1:45 p.m. on Tuesday, if she can do that, I’m pretty sure I can get my butt to the rink and do it.”