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This summer, Emily Engel-Natzke became the first full-time female coach in NHL history when the Washington Capitals hired her as video coordinator.
“It’s hard to describe the feeling of being the first,” says Engel-Natzke. “First of all, I think I am honored, proud and grateful for the opportunity and for everyone who has helped me get to this point.”
While Engel-Natzke can’t cite a specific reason why she became the first, she believes her work ethic certainly played a part.
“I’ve always tried to give my best and give my best in whatever I do, so I think that’s a big part of it,” says Engel-Natzke.
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She also credits the people around her who have been with her for every step of the journey.
“The saying ‘it takes a village’ is certainly true in this case, and I don’t think I would be here without the love and support of those closest to me,” says Engel-Natzke. “There are a lot of sacrifices that our family and friends make to achieve our goals, so I hope they feel as proud as I do.”
Along with her family and friends, she has had a few mentors who have been integral to her success and development. These include her University of Colorado club hockey coach Kristen Wright and University of Wisconsin men’s hockey head coach Tony Granato. Wright and Granato pushed Engel-Natzke outside her comfort zone to achieve her goals.
Her coaching journey
The dream of working in professional hockey was born from Engel-Natzke’s love for the game. She originally enjoyed watching the sport as a fan, which soon morphed into Engel-Natzke starting her playing career.
Once that chapter was over, Engel-Natzke was determined not to let that be the end of her hockey story.
She says, “I wanted to find a way to stay involved with the game because I loved it so much.”
Her first opportunity came after graduation when she was asked to work at the 2013 World University Games. From there, Engel-Natzke says she was lucky enough to be surrounded by people who helped her find various jobs to apply for and to further build her resume and experiences.
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It also helped that she had a background in film and video production from her major in college.
“The creative mindset I had in college definitely comes in handy for my job now,” says Engel-Natzke. “When you’re working with technology, so many things can go wrong, so it’s really helpful to think creatively to solve problems. It also helps to understand the more technical side of video in case something goes wrong too.”
Looking back at how far she’s come, Engel-Natzke is immensely proud, but not completely satisfied. She describes her success as “just getting started.” For Engel-Natzke, success means setting goals and working towards achieving them. It’s not about the league, the title or how much money she makes, it’s about pushing the needle forward.
“I hope to be someone who can help other women get into the sports world and find success like me,” says Engel-Natzke. “It’s really important to me to open that door and help others who may not have the resources I have to get into sports or hockey specifically.”
Janice has been with businesskinda for 5 years, writing copy for client websites, blog posts, EDMs and other mediums to engage readers and encourage action. By collaborating with clients, our SEO manager and the wider businesskinda team, Janice seeks to understand an audience before creating memorable, persuasive copy.