Kelly Talbot The Hardest Job In Hockey
M
oving to a new city for a job can be extremely stressful. Uprooting your life, finding a new place to live, developing new friendships and finding a new place to stay active all add to the anxiety. But in many cases, it can also be a rewarding experience with its new adventures and a feeling of starting fresh. For professional athletes, it’s part of the job. Unless your name is Steve Yzerman or Maurice Richard, you’re unlikely to finish out your career in the same city that you were drafted to. It’s tough on the players to bounce from city to city, but it’s even more difficult on their family or partner. While the player is off on the road for half the season, their significant other is often left back home to hold down the fort and keep things running smoothly. When Cam Talbot was traded by the New York Rangers to the Oilers in 2015 it was a move that allowed him to move out of the position as a back-up to Henrik Lundqvist and earn the chance to be a starting goalie in the NHL. A dream opportunity for any young hockey player. The life of a hockey wife however can be quite different. Kelly Talbot grew up in Texas after moving there from Michigan in 2002 for her sophomore year in high school. Her parents owned an ice rink and her dad and brother played hockey, so you can say that hockey has always been part of her life. It was a rough transition moving to a new city and a new school, but Kelly made the best of it by trying out and playing nearly every sport she could. Texas is still home to this day with her family still living there. She and Cam married in 2012 and life has been an adventure ever since. “Life as a hockey wife is great,” she says. “It definitely has its ups and downs. You get to see your husband pursue a childhood dream which is worth it in itself.”
PHOTOS BY JEFF KELLY
ARCHIVE FOUR FORTY FOUR PHOTOGRAPHY
20
Y EG F IT N ESS
J U L Y/ A U G U S T 2 0 1 8
The excitement and experience that comes with traveling and living in different cities is not for everyone, but the opportunity to make so many lifelong friends makes it worthwhile.
