Team Transfer Portal

There's an annual rite of passage after all the games have been played where NCAA hockey players step back, examine their current situation, and make a decision on whether they should stay where they are or leave for another school. The NCAA Transfer Portal has made this easier for both players leaving schools and teams seeking players to coordinate, at the very least, discussions, but I'm not certain I'm all that enthused in seeing all the players who want to transfer elsewhere. If one is recruited to play somewhere, what is causing this change of heart from either the player, the program, or both? Secondly, what is happening with one's education if one moves to a new school?

Those are questions that need to be answered by students looking for a new school's jersey to wear, and I'm not here to examine that side of the coin. Players are free to move if they choose, and they're certainly welcome to examine the other side of the fence if they believe the grass is greener. Instead, I'm going to pull off a little academic exercise today that should prove interesting.

With there being some 107 players in the NCAA women's hockey transfer portal at the time of this article being written, there undoubtedly is a smattering of Canadians in that group. In knowing this, I sat down and looked at building a team out of these players looking for new places to play. Let's call this team "Hope College" that will feature a roster of fourteen forwards, eight defenders, and three netminders for a total roster of 25 players. Would this team be competitive? Could it compete in, say, Canada West? Let's find out.

I need to set some ground rules on how I selected players. The first thing I did was look for players who had room to grow in terms of having more than one year of eligibility left. If one is "starting a program", the last thing one wants is a mass exodus of rostered players after Year One. The second thing I did was open it up to all provinces across Canada since U SPORTS teams are certainly becoming more national in their constructions. Lastly, if there were rosters spots that needed to be filled, senior players would be taken based on academic achievement. You're at school for an education so hockey may help a player in the future, but the education will have a much longer-lasting effect on that student's life.

In posting all that, let's see who I'd recruit from the transfer portal to make up the inaugural season for "Hope College"!

Goalies

Name	Current	Yrs	From	GAA	SV%
Julia Bachetti	St. Cloud State	4	ON	DNP	DNP
Ariella Merlino	Syracuse	3	ON	0.00	1.000
Emma Gorski	Merrimack	1	ON	3.46	.895

Bachetti was an easy selection after she red-shirted for St. Cloud State. The Tecumseh-born netminder posted an 8-4-2 record with the OWHA U22's Kitchener-Waterloo Jr Rangers along with a 1.28 goals against average and a .956 save percentage while being an Honour Roll student throughout high school. She'll get every chance to start for Hope College.

Merlino's stats are a little deceiving as she saw action in three games with Syracuse, but only in spot duty. That said, her 8-5-2 record with the OWHA U22's Mississauga Hurricanes saw her post a 2.21 GAA and a .943 save percentage prove she's a competitor. She was recruited in Grade 9 by Dartmouth before making the switch to Syracuse, so it's pretty clear that her grades are important to her as well.

Emma Gorski comes in as the veteran after playing 83 games over four seasons with Merrimack. Her 16-54-9 record doesn't reflect how often she was called upon to help Merrimack stay in games, but the 915 saves over 34 contests proves she's a reliable starter. Her 12-2-0 record with the PWHL's Kingston Ice Wolves was powered by a 1.54 GAA and a .927 save percentage, so she'll be key in getting Merlino and Bachetti ready for future seasons with her mentoring.

Defenders

Name	Current	Yrs	From	G	A
Jamie Grinder	Ohio State	2	BC	1	3
Anna-Liese King	Dartmouth	2	SK	4	7
Chloe Puddifant	St. Lawrence	2	AB	6	36
Tarryn Mozes	Syracuse	2	ON	1	6
Victoria Proulx	Post	3	ON	0	1
Olivia Groulx	Union	1	ON	1	4
Alexie Guay	Boston College	1	QC	20	46
Stephanie Markowski	Clarkson	1	AB	16	49

Grinder's 14 games over two seasons seems very low, but her work at the Delta Hockey Academy where she posted 8 goals and 19 assists in 55 games is promising. King was a fantastic player with the Notre Dame Hounds, and she'd be encouraged to push the envelope on the blue line. Puddifant's production at all of the AFHL, CSSHL, and JWHL levels were solid, and she's been good on the Saints' blue line. Mozes made the ACC Honour Roll in her freshman season, and she plays a very controlled game. Proulx is the only Canadian with three years of eligibility remaining, so she's the future.

The senior players who will get a chance to patrol the blue line have a range of skills. Olivia Groulx who is a pure defensive defender which every team needs. Guay is a solid offensive defender who can carry the play while being strong in her own zone. Markowski, like Guay, has a ton of offensive upside, but she plays a very responsible game in her own zone as well.

Defenders

Name	Current	Yrs	From	G	A
Emerson Jarvis	Ohio State	3	AB	1	2
Reese Chuback	Union	3	MB	0	2
Alexandrea Bednar	Post	2	MB	0	2
Morgan Giannone	St. Lawrence	3	ON	1	0
Ryann Perrett	Lindenwood	3	AB	1	0
Ashlyn Garnett	Providence	3	NS	1	2
Alyssa Kawa	Mercyhurst	2	ON	3	2
Sydnee Wilson	Syracuse	3	BC	0	0
Sarah Marchand	Syracuse	2	ON	18	23
Alexa Pongo	Merrimack	2	ON	15	7
Rhéa Hicks	Syracuse	3	ON	6	13
Olivia Cvar	St. Cloud State	1	MB	25	19
Reece Hunt	Bemidji State	1	BC	20	39
Catherine Proulx	Post	1	ON	14	12

Jarvis was exceptional as an Edmonton Panda, and it was curious to see her under-utilized at Ohio State. Chuback was a shifty, skilled forward with St. Mary's Academy, and her two helpers in ten games seems to indicate Union should have played her more. Bednar never found her game at Post, but there's hope she can become a consistent player as she was with Eastman in the MFHL. Perrett was an outstanding playmaker with the Notre Dame Hounds as she had 16 goals and 30 assists in her final season with the Notre Dame Hounds.

Giannone showed skill in her final season with the PWHL's Oakville Hornets as she lit the lamp 17 times. Garrett was on an upward trajectory with Dartmouth, but she didn't play in 2022-23. Kawa was solid in her final season with the PWHL's Stoney Creek Sabres, but she seemingly was under-utilized at Mercyhurst. Wilson is a former captain of the Delta Hockey Academy, but she didn't see much action at Syracuse. Marchand scored 25 points in her freshman season before dropping to 16 points, but she's shown a knack for the net. Pongo showed that she can score with 12 goals last season. Hicks was a CHA All-Rookie Team member following a great freshman season.

Cvar, as a senior, is a solid two-way forward, but she's been a WCHA Scholar Athlete and a two-time WCHA All-Academic player. Hunt is a former captain of Bemidji State, a two-time WCHA Scholar-Athlete, and a two-time WCHA All-Academic player. Catherine Proulx is the sister of Victoria Proulx and a sister combo is always appreciated, but Catherine was a three-time All-Academic player.

As you can see, there is an exceptional amount of Canadian talent available on the transfer portal. This list didn't even include names like Anna Leschyshyn (Syracuse), Amy Landry or Kaitlyn Yearwood (UConn), Chace Parker (Maine), and Caitlyn Whitehead (St. Lawrence) who are all in the transfer portal as well. I would have included Presleigh Giesbrecht, but it seems she already committed to another Canada West school at this time. In short, there's no shortage of Canadian players who could be contacted if Canadian schools were looking to add players.

Will we see any players come home like Courtney Kollman, Jada Burke, and Joelle Fiala did? I can't say that it will happen, but you'd think that a few of these young women would take a long look at some of the programs north of the border when it comes to their education and hockey futures. I get that the bright lights of the NCAA are appealing, but when you see the growth and sustained success of programs like Mount Royal, Concordia, Nipissing, and UNB, you can't help but wonder if these fantastic schools couldn't use a couple more good students and hockey players.

Would Hope College fare well against Canada West or any other U SPORTS program? I can't say for certain, but I do know that there's enough talent there for the program to get a jump-start on its own growth and evolution. Having a number of these women join rosters across Canada will only make all those teams and conferences better, so it might be time for Canadian schools to keep an eye on the NCAA transfer portal when looking for recruits.

Perhaps one of these players listed above is the last piece of a roster on the verge of standing atop the U SPORTS mountain.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!