The Botchford Project, a mentorship program created to honour the memory of late Vancouver sports journalist, Jason Botchford, is expanding thanks to a new collaboration with Hockey Canada.
Established by Botchford’s widow Kat Botchford in 2019, the initiative started with a partnership with the Vancouver Canucks and has since provided more than 30 aspiring sports journalists with the opportunity to cover an NHL game as a credentialed member of the media, receive on-site mentorship from Canucks beat reporters and publish a paid article on Canucks.com.
Many of The Botchford Project mentees are now working full-time in sports media, including CanucksArmy Editor-in-Chief David Quadrelli, NHL.com contributor Chris Faber, Daily Faceoff Vancouver writer Tyson Cole, and Nicoletta Panos, co-host of the Hockey, Actually podcast,
As part of the initiative’s expansion with Hockey Canada, two successful applicants will be chosen to cover a Team Canada game during the 2027 IIHF World Junior Championship in Edmonton and write a paid feature on Canada’s National Junior Team for HockeyCanada.ca. Leading up to and during the experience, they’ll also receive mentorship from journalists at The Athletic, one of the program’s supporters.
“Jason prided himself on mentoring young writers and championing authentic storytelling, and my family and I are so grateful that his legacy continues through this incredible initiative,” said Kat Botchford, in a Hockey Canada announcement. “Expanding the program in partnership with Hockey Canada will connect us with even more aspiring journalists from across Canada and help preserve the art of real journalism.”
“Media play a critical role in telling the stories of Hockey Canada and hockey in Canada and we believe the more opportunities there are to welcome additional voices to coverage of the game, the better it is for the sport,” added Katherine Henderson, president and chief executive officer of Hockey Canada. “We are inspired by Kat’s vision to positively impact even more people who dream of working in sports media through the expansion of The Botchford Project , and we look forward to hosting this year’s cohort with her at the World Juniors in Edmonton.”
Applications for The Botchford Project are open until Sept. 25.
