Kate Reilly Katie Chan interview on mistakes and medical school

In the Kate Reilly Katie Chan interview, Ottawa Charge player Reilly told Chan that she treats mistakes as chances to practice her response under pressure. She also explained how a year of medical school changed the way she thinks about emotions and feedback, and why she is excited for another season with Ottawa after the team fell short in the Walter Cup final.

How did Kate Reilly start playing hockey?

Kate Reilly started hockey at about eight years old with the Richmond Ravens, even though no one in her family had played. Friends helped introduce her to the game, and she persuaded her hesitant parents to let her try it. She later played at Shattuck-Saint Mary’s School and Quinnipiac University before taking a year away from hockey.

Starting with the Richmond Ravens

Reilly did not start because she was following the Vancouver Canucks. Other children at her school played hockey, including another girl, and a close family friend who played for the Ravens told her it was fun. Reilly wanted to try it, enjoyed herself and kept playing through her teens.

She remembers being a beginner who was not getting much of the puck. That did not diminish her interest: she said she is still amazed by how much she loved the game when she was starting out.

Shattuck-Saint Mary’s School and Quinnipiac University

Reilly attended Shattuck-Saint Mary’s School from grades 10 through 12 and then spent five years at Quinnipiac University. After college, she took a year off hockey before finding a place in the Professional Women’s Hockey League with the Ottawa Charge.

What did Kate Reilly say about medical school and coaching feedback?

Kate Reilly completed one year of medical school and sees two connections between that experience and professional hockey: managing emotions and responding to feedback. She said both settings can require a quick response to what has just happened. As a player, she also believes listening respectfully to a coach is the first step toward making a change.

Leah Inan’s biology class

Science had intimidated Reilly until grade 10. At Shattuck-Saint Mary’s School, biology teacher Leah Inan changed her view of the subject. Reilly had considered studying English in college and thought becoming a lawyer sounded appealing, but she came to love biology and chose to study sciences at university. She credits Inan with helping set her on that path.

Feedback in medicine and hockey

Reilly said emotions, goals and anxieties can affect how a person works with others in either setting. Feedback can also shape what someone does in the next few minutes. In hockey, there may be little time to correct a problem between shifts. As Reilly put it, “I don't have hours to fix this. I just have to fix it now.”

When Chan asked about players who agree with a coach but do not apply the instruction, Reilly distinguished listening from follow-through. She was taught to turn toward a coach, make eye contact and listen. If she were coaching a player who still could not make the requested change, her first assumption would be that the player had not understood it; she would try video or coaching away from the ice before concluding that the player did not care.

How does Kate Reilly feel about another season with the Ottawa Charge?

Kate Reilly is excited about her second season with the Ottawa Charge after the team reached the Walter Cup final but did not get the ending it wanted. She pointed to meetings over the summer, her affection for her teammates and the team’s identity and culture as reasons for looking forward to returning.

Chan asked whether falling short had given the team more fire. Reilly’s answer was brief: “Just more fire.” She did not set out a particular change to Ottawa’s play or make a prediction about the coming season.

The opportunity followed an unusual break in her playing path. Reilly spent a year away from hockey after her five years at Quinnipiac University, then joined Ottawa. She described herself as grateful to have found the league and eager to play with the women on the team again.

How does Kate Reilly approach handling mistakes in hockey?

Kate Reilly tries to treat her reaction to an in-game mistake as practice for the next time she makes one. Rather than stay with the pressure of the immediate play, she asks how she would want to handle the same feelings years from now. She said the approach helps her step back, though she is still working on it.

Reilly described the choice as one between spiraling over a mistake and practicing a better response. Thinking about the habits she is building can take some emotion out of the moment and help her assess the mistake more objectively. She did not present it as a method she always gets right.

She also mentioned Devin Cooley’s broader perspective on the stakes of a shift or a play. For Reilly, that is another way to step back when one moment feels too important. When Chan described cheering on teammates to get out of her own head, Reilly said she uses that approach too.

The conversation returned to relationships beyond any one result. Chan recalled being told in college that how people treat one another lasts longer in memory than wins. Reilly agreed that it matters more than players may realize and said people who understand that earlier do better.

What are Kate Reilly’s pregame routine and hockey preferences?

Kate Reilly likes a pregame skate to move, get repetitions and feel the ice, but she does not follow a rigid superstition. She retapes her sticks and enjoys playing sewer with teammates, despite saying she is not very good at it. Her quick answers also covered meals, rinks and small equipment preferences.

Pregame skate and sewer

For an evening game, Reilly likes to nap after the pregame skate before following the team’s schedule. She does not retape a collection of sticks to select a favorite, and she does not need to win a certain number of pregame games.

Reilly joked that her limited sewer skills eventually became clear to her teammates. Rory, Greco and Marky gave her tips, which she said helped. She enjoys the game even though other players’ soccer experience gives them an advantage she did not have.

Favorite rinks and rapid-fire answers

The rink at Quinnipiac University stands out because Reilly remembers walking in and immediately wanting to play there. She also loves Ottawa’s rink for its feel, crowd and fans. Her favorite meal both before and after a game is chicken and rice; on the road, she chooses trail mix.

Reilly picked black tape over white tape and coffee over tea. She called style overrated in hockey, joking about her own, and chose a well-timed stick lift in front of the net as underrated. The last song she had listened to was Gwen Stefani’s “What You Waiting For?”

What advice did Kate Reilly give young hockey players?

Kate Reilly wants young athletes to make plenty of mistakes, learn to handle them and keep enjoying hockey. She believes that being able to have fun after a difficult game helps a player continue improving. It also leaves room to learn skills from the sport that can be useful beyond it.

Her advice applies in practice as well as in games. A young player, she said, should be able to make repeated mistakes without letting them take away the pleasure of playing. At higher levels, she sees that resilience and a willingness to keep improving as important to loving the game.

Reilly put her central advice to young athletes this way:

So I'd say learn to make a lot of mistakes and still have a lot of fun.

That view matches the approach she is trying to use herself during professional games. She does not expect a player to avoid every error; she wants them to get better at what happens next.