2019 Women’s Hockey Top 25 Under 25 | No. 2: Victoria Bach

Victoria Bach makes her second appearance on The Ice Garden’s Top 25 Under 25, jumping up eight spots to number 2.

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2019 Women’s Hockey Top 25 Under 25 | The List

Past accomplishments

Last season, Bach was named the CWHL’s Rookie of the Year. She finished the season tied with Brianne Jenner for second in the league in goals with 19. Thirteen assists put her at 32 points, also tied for fourth in the league with Jenner. On the Markham Thunder, she was first among all skaters in goals and points, outpacing her teammates by seven goals and points each. In the Thunder’s CWHL history, Bach’s rookie outing was good for 7th all-time in single season goals. She proved she’s a dangerous goal-scorer by scoring five game-winning-goals as well as 11 goals in 12 games while the Thunder were on their playoff push.

With Hockey Canada, she won gold at U18 in 2014 and played on the Developmental Team (U22) in 2015, 2016, and 2017. She cracked the senior roster for Hockey Canada at the 2018 Four Nations tournament. She didn’t record a point in the games, but was a last-minute addition to the team.

Bach’s name is all over the Boston University record book from her four years at the Hockey East school. She had two four-point games, the only player in their history to do so. She holds the single season records for goals (39 in 2017-18) and points (67 in 2017-18) and is second in shorthanded goals in a season (4 in 2017-18) and game-winning goals (7 in 2017-18). She holds the career records in all-time goals at 104 as the only player in Terrier history to break triple digits. Bach is also the all-time points leader at 198. Her senior season was her best, so it’s no wonder she was a Patty Kazmaier Top-3 Finalist, though she lost to then-Commonwealth Avenue rival Daryl Watts.

Future impact

Her last two seasons have been her best of her career, and she’s really only just getting started. She proved that she’s a dangerous, goal-scoring forward who can come through in the clutch.

Bach is a member of the PWHPA. You can bet that she’ll be out there tearing it up in whatever they have planned.

With Hockey Canada, Bach falls into a weird middle ground. There’s younger players that she gets passed over for, as seen in 2019 World Championships when she wasn’t named to the roster. However, Hockey Canada will announced their Fall Festival roster soon, as the preparation for the 2020 World Championships in Nova Scotia. Expect to see Bach on the Festival roster and maybe even the Worlds roster. It’s the early stages of a quad cycle and that’s in Bach’s favor.

Is this ranking too high or too low?

There are reasons to say this is too high if you’re looking at this list with a futuristic mindset. Bach has little National Team experience, was left off the Worlds roster, and there’s no guarantee she’ll see long term time on there team.

But, if you’re looking at the top 25 players under 25 during last season, there were few better than Bach — we literally only thought there was one player better than her. She stormed onto the Thunder — and the CWHL — and put up huge numbers. It wasn’t even a question who would win the CWHL Rookie of the Year award by the halfway point of the season honestly.

I’m a “last season” voter, so for me, this spot feels exactly right.