VANCOUVER ISLAND SEALS ADD ASSISTANT COACH MALIKA MCDONALD FOR THE 2026-2027 SEASON.

Malika was born in Port Alberni and started her hockey career by playing for Alberni Valley Minor Hockey. She followed in her older brother’s footsteps and started playing hockey when she was 6. Throughout the years, she always played for the Rep teams here in Port Alberni. She then transitioned into female hockey and played for the VI Seals from grade 10-12. In the spring of grade 11,  she committed to Brock University to play for the Brock Badgers. In Grade 12, she had the honour of being Captain for her last year of playing for the VI Seals.

In 2022, she started her first year at Brock University. 4 years later, she finished her last year playing as a Badger and graduated with a Kinesiology (Honours) Degree. 

McDonald is now working for Alberni Physiotherapy as a Rehabilitation Assistant in the long-term care facilities here in Port Alberni. After finishing hockey, she wanted to gain more work experience before applying for a master's program. This upcoming fall, she is planning to apply for Physiotherapy in hopes of pursuing a career in Cardiac Rehabilitation. 

She is very excited to stay within the hockey community and transition from a player to a coach. Playing Seals allowed her to create friendships that are still present today. She had the pleasure of playing against her friends throughout her university career, and whenever they would play each other, they would make sure to share a hug after each game. That was always truly special and shows how hockey is so much more than a sport. Her hope is to help inspire these young athletes and help navigate them through this chapter of their life. It is such an honour to give back to my community and she is looking forward to this season! 

Welcome to the Seals!  #bleedteal