Local players Chan, Gardiner turn hometown heroes for Vancouver Goldeneyes

By Canadian Press on December 17, 2025.

VANCOUVER — A few months ago, Katie Chan was playing hockey overseas.

Now she’s scoring goals in front of a hometown crowd.

The 22-year-old forward from Richmond, B.C., notched her first PWHL goal in dramatic fashion and helped bring her Vancouver Goldeneyes to a 2-1 win over the Ottawa Charge on Tuesday.

Hannah Miller set up the strike, blasting a shot off from inside the faceoff circle — only to see it turned away by Charge goalie Gwyneth Philips.

The puck popped out to Chan, stationed at the side of the net, who swatted it in from mid-air to give Vancouver a 1-0 lead 7:50 into the game.

The next moments were a blur to Chan, who said she “blacked out because the fans went crazy.”

“It was a really surreal moment, for sure,” she said. “It was definitely a dream come true. To be able to be home and to score my first goal really meant the world to me.”

Chan was one of three local players to put up points for Vancouver (3-3-0-0) on Tuesday.

Miller hails from North Vancouver, B.C., and Jenn Gardiner, who’s from Surrey, B.C., added the home side’s second goal 3:36 into the second period.

The top-line forward picked a puck off a stick in the neutral zone, sprinted into Ottawa territory while holding off Charge defender Rory Guilday, and fired a shot in off the crossbar for her second goal of the season.

Both of the tallies have come in Vancouver, and the privilege of playing in front of friends and family isn’t lost on Gardiner.

“It’s pretty special,” she said. “Just to know the future of female hockey in B.C. as a whole, and where it’s going, it’s going to be an incredible future.

“And to see all the young girls in the crowd, it means so much to all of us who grew up here and maybe didn’t have this to cheer for.”

There were no guarantees Chan would be part of the Goldeneyes’ inaugural season. After playing four seasons at Cornell University, she headed to Sweden for a stint in the SDHL before getting invited to Vancouver’s training camp.

There, head coach Brian Idalski found Chan to be a “super dependable, super reliable” player with a solid all-around game.

“She’s someone who’s earned my trust quickly just because she’s such a smart player all over the ice and plays a good 200-foot game for us,” he said.

Earning a spot on the team was a matter of staying confident and working hard, Chan said.

“Just believing in myself and knowing that I can play in this league. And each and every day building off of that and trying to get better and learn from everybody,” she said.

“And here I am today.”

CAMPBELL’S CREASE

Kristen Campbell made 33 stops to earn her first victory in a Goldeneyes’ jersey.

The 28-year-old goalie spent the past two seasons in Toronto before getting dealt to Vancouver in June.

“It’s been incredible, honestly. I’m having so much fun here,” Campbell said Tuesday. “Just the team, the staff, everyone’s been so supportive and uplifting. I just couldn’t be happier here.”

Vancouver’s No. 1 netminder is Emerance Maschmeyer, who’s off to a 2-2-0-0 start with a .925 save percentage, a 2.28 goals against average and one shutout this season.

The goalie duo have a great relationship, Campbell said.

“(We’re) pushing each other and supporting each other and being vulnerable with each other,” she said. “And I think that makes a goalie partnership super strong.”

FINE LINES

The Charge saw their losing skid stretch to three games Tuesday. The team has not won since Nov. 26 when they beat the Goldeneyes 5-1 in Ottawa.

Charge head coach Carla MacLeod said there wasn’t a massive difference in how her team played across those two games.

“This is this league,” she said. “When the puck drops, it can go either way on any given night. Every team is a great team.

“Sometimes you get the opportunity to put a few goals in … I think there’s a lot of respect between all the teams in this league, and that showed again tonight.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 17, 2025.

Gemma Karstens-Smith, The Canadian Press