On Saturday evening, New England Hockey Journal contributor Mark Divver tweeted that the University of New Hampshire men’s program looked into using one of the UNH women’s team goalies as their backup but couldn’t fulfill NCAA requirements in time to make it happen.
Was told UNH looked into using a goalie from the women's team as its second goalie tonight, but there wasn't enough time to work out details with NCAA
— Mark Divver (@MarkDivver) January 9, 2022
While New Hampshire looked into the option of dressing a women’s team goalie as backup, but was unable to follow through, another team had completed the paperwork in time.
Before their weekend games against Harvard and Yale were canceled, the Princeton men’s team was set to have women’s goalie, senior Rachel McQuigge, on the bench as their backup goalie.
Covid has forced both men’s and women’s teams to scramble to fill goalie roles this season. A combination of sickness and injuries forced the Minnesota State Women’s team to use current Maverick tennis player and former high school goalie Avery Stillwell in net against Ohio State back in November. The New Hampshire men’s squad had a former high school goalie dress as their backup in the game Divver referenced in his tweet.
McQuigge said she was on the ice last Monday after team practice doing breakaway drills when men’s hockey coach Ron Fogarty dropped by and asked a question McQuigge thought was a joke.
Would she be willing to serve as the men’s team backup goalie?
She initially demurred, thinking of her own team’s two games scheduled for the weekend and unsure how serious the request was.
A few days later, Fogarty was back. He spoke to the school’s compliance office and verified having McQuigge dress as the backup goalie was a possibility. That made McQuigge understand Fogarty’s request was serious and this was something she needed to consider.
Both the men’s and women’s teams at Princeton were hit hard by Covid heading into last weekend’s games. The women’s game against St. Lawrence was canceled on Wednesday of that week and when the women took the ice against Clarkson on Friday, it was with just 15 women listed on the line sheet – including McQuigge as the only available goalie.
School is not yet back in session at Princeton and Fogarty knew McQuigge was a solid option for his team to be able to meet the conference requirements and still play their games.
“I’ve watched Rachel play in the women’s program over the years and she’s a capable, capable goaltender,” said Fogarty.
From there, it was about figuring out logistics.
Fogarty said the Princeton Compliance office handled the details of getting McQuigge approved to serve as the men’s team backup. According to Greg Johnson, Associate Director Communications at the NCAA, the process would include a school submitting a request to the NCAA academic and membership affairs staff. The staff reviews the request and works with the school to ensure the case is complete and facts/mitigation are documented and then issues their decision. There is also an appeals process.
“A student-athlete has to be certified as a “final amateur” in every sport you compete in, so even though (McQuigge) is a final amateur in women’s ice hockey, she needed to be certified as a final amateur in men’s ice hockey,” said Johnson.
Beyond the paperwork, with the women’s team’s schedule, could McQuigge rest and recover enough between the end of the women’s game against Clarkson that started at 3 pm on Friday and the men’s game, which was scheduled to begin at 7 pm?
Since she was the only available goalie on the women’s side, McQuigge wanted to make extra sure that her teammates were ok with her taking on the role.
“They had a game on Friday at three o’clock and I wanted to make sure it was not going to impede on the women’s program if they played Saturday, but that game was postponed because of Covid. Cara Morey was ok with it, Rachel was ok with it and even more so, our players were ok with it,” said Fogarty. “I can tell you that our guys were excited to see her there in warmups, for sure.”
For McQuigge, it was important that her dressing for the men’s team wasn’t treated as a gimmick. She was reassured, in part, by the respect Fogarty has always shown the women’s program.
“Representation is really important. That’s something I’m passionate about, having women in positions of visibility and leadership,” said McQuigge.
It was a tumultuous, uncertain week for McQuigge, though she said she’s come to be ok with the unknown over the past two years. With constant Covid testing, the roster is always changing and in flux.
The Ivy League schools did not take the ice last season. McQuigge took a year off of school so that she would still be eligible to play in her senior season. Yes, there is a lot of unknown, but (so far) there has been a season. That’s reason enough to be positive.
“(The year off due to Covid) has definitely given me a new perspective and made me appreciate every moment I’ve been given at Princeton,” she said. “I’m just happy to play. I took a year off to be here and I’m so grateful for any opportunity I get.”
On top of everything else, Princeton’s game on Friday was against Clarkson, where her two sisters, Brooke and Kirstyn, both play. Since she didn’t take the ice last season, it was the first time all three sisters were on the ice together in college. Rachel’s plan for recovery and readiness on Friday, condensed though it may have been, still included time to see her sisters.
McQuigge said she doesn’t have a lot of experience playing with or against boys and men. She was able to play on girls teams the entire time she was growing up. The first time she spent any significant time playing co-ed hockey came during Covid, when ice time was difficult to come by, particularly in her native Ontario, Canada, so she returned to Princeton and practiced with members of the men’s and women’s teams. This week, she joined the men’s practice on Thursday so she could get acclimated to the men’s game.
“Their releases are different. They shoot higher up. They have longer sticks, which is probably one of the most frustrating parts,” McQuigge said.
In the end, the opportunity didn’t materialize as the men’s games ended up being called off, so the story became about what could have been.
McQuigge was disappointed – and said that some of the men’s players told her they were saddest about their game cancellations because it meant she wouldn’t suit up for them – but philosophical about it.
“I was excited. It was going to be fun, but just wasn’t meant to happen. It wasn’t meant to be, I guess. It deserves to be somebody else’s first. I’ll be really excited to see it if it happens in the future. I hope it does.”
