In their first Wednesday Women of the year, Candace and Arlan look at Merrimack’s win over Minnesota, the uncertainty for top teams in an Olympic year, what Jeff Kampersal’s move to Penn State means for that team and his former team, Princeton, and the overall state of the women’s game after several big events in the spring.
The ECAC should be a battle to the end, but expect Clarkson to emerge on top.
Rensselaer announced recently the hiring of Tara Connolly as an assistant women’s hockey coach. Connolly joins Christie Cicero on the staff of first-year head coach Bryan Vines. “We could not be more excited to welcome Tara to the RPI women’s hockey family, said Vines in a statement. “She is a tireless recruiter, great teacher and even better … Read more
Defending national champion, ECAC Hockey regular-season and 2017 league tournament champion Clarkson was selected the team to beat in the 2017 women’s coaches’ preseason poll. The Golden Knights earned 10 first-place votes and a total of 119 points. In addition, the league announced its preseason All-League Team.
The National Women’s Hockey League held its third annual draft Thursday night and all 20 players selected came from the NCAA Division I ranks, led by Boston College goaltender Katie Burt, who went first overall to the Boston Pride. Boston College, Boston University and Northeastern had the most players drafted with three each. Hockey East … Read more
Liz Keady has been named an assistant coach of the Boston University women’s team. Keady joins the Terriers after spending the previous two seasons as an assistant coach at Harvard. Prior to her stint with the Crimson, Keady coached one year as an assistant at Union and before entering the Division I coaching ranks, served … Read more
Former New Hampshire captain Courtney Sheary has joined the Boston College women’s hockey team as an assistant coach. Sheary will work with the team’s forwards and handle the team’s video scouting system, as well as assist in recruiting and team administrative duties. She replaces Gillian Apps, who departed the staff in July to enroll in … Read more
Kelly Nash has been hired as Princeton women’s hockey assistant coach. “We are so excited to have Kelly joining our staff at Princeton,” said Princeton head coach Cara Morey in a statement. “Kelly was an excellent player and her experience will translate well to our athletes. Kelly is one of the best player-development coaches I … Read more
Dartmouth announced Friday that Joe Marsh will serve as women’s hockey interim head coach for the upcoming 2017-18 season while Laura Schuler assumes head coaching responsibilities for the Canadian Olympic Team. Marsh is the former longtime head coach of the St. Lawrence men’s hockey team, guiding the Saints from behind the bench for 27 years … Read more
Rensselaer has named Bryan Vines the interim head women’s hockey coach. John Burke was let go last week after 14 seasons at the helm. Vines has been an assistant coach for the Engineers men’s hockey team for the last eight seasons. “Bryan is a total professional who brings extensive hockey knowledge and leadership to our … Read more
Matt Woodard, who spent the past four seasons at RIT and helped the Tigers make the NCAA tournament for the first time in school history, has joined the Yale women’s staff as an assistant coach. “We are excited to Have Matt join the Yale athletics family,” said Yale head coach Joakim Flygh in a statement. … Read more
Penn State announced Thursday the appointment of Jeff Kampersal as the second head coach in the history of the women’s hockey program. Kampersal comes to Happy Valley after serving as the head coach at Princeton for the past 21 seasons, where he won 327 contests. “We are thrilled to have Jeff Kampersal joining our family … Read more
Cornell announced Tuesday that Dean Jackson has been named an assistant coach for the school’s women’s team. Jackson joins the staff after most recently serving as the interim head coach at Penn State during the 2016-17 season. “We are very excited to hire Dean Jackson,” Cornell head coach Doug Derraugh said in a statement. “We … Read more
Cornell senior goaltender Paula Voorheis has been named the winner of the 2017 Sarah Devens Award. Given as a joint award between ECAC Hockey and Hockey East, the award is presented annually to a player who “demonstrates leadership and commitment both on and off the ice.” The award is named in honor of former Dartmouth … Read more
Holy Cross announced Tuesday that it would join Hockey East for the 2018-19 season, the culmination of a process that started a year ago. Next season, the Crusaders will play a mixed schedule that will include teams from Hockey East, the ECAC, and the CHA. There is some speculation as well about whether the men’s team will follow.
National champion Clarkson swept the final women’s Hockey Commissioners’ Association awards for the 2016-17 season. Forward Loren Gabel led the Golden Knights to a 5-0-0 record last month, while helping the Green and Gold earn their third ECAC Hockey regular-season title with a 19-1-2 league mark, the program’s first ECAC Hockey tournament championship and second … Read more
According to Q30 Television, former Quinnipiac women’s coach Rick Seeley allegedly abused his players as far back as 2009. Seeley was terminated on April 9, 2015. The Q30 report states that the most recent memorandum filed in Seeley’s lawsuit against Quinnipiac revealed that players at the school reported abusive behavior by Seeley as early as … Read more
National champion Clarkson led the All-USCHO women’s D-I teams with five players, while runner-up Wisconsin placed four players on the teams. Nine schools in total were represented.
She earned many nods during a spectacular rookie season in which only Wisconsin standout and Patty Kazmaier Award winner Ann-Renée Desbiens posted a better save percentage. Princeton goalie Steph Neatby is our rookie of the year in women’s D-I.
Clarkson’s Cayley Mercer was a Patty Kazmaier Award top-three finalist, and while the award was captured by Ann-Renée Desbiens, Mercer led her team to victory over Desbiens’ in the national championship game. Her clutch play has earned her USCHO player of the year.,