2022 Top 25 Under 25 | Honorable Mentions: Jincy Dunne and Jaime Bourbonnais

HM | Jincy Dunne | Defender | Team USA | PWHPA
Leighann Strollo

Last season

Fresh off of an Olympic silver medal, Dunne was discussed a lot during the tournament for unfortunately spending most of her time on the bench (to no fault of her own, if you ask anyone watching). She collected three points during the Olympics, despite not seeing the ice in Team USA’s last three games. She also had two important assists in the 2021 World Championship while also taking part in a handful of PWHPA showcases throughout the year.

Major Accomplishments

Most recently, adding an Olympic silver medal to her extensive list, Dunne has three U18 World Championship medals, a World Championship silver medal, a 2020 Female Athlete of the Year award at OSU, back-to-back WCHA Defensive Player of the Year awards, and was the first player out of Ohio State to win back-to-back First Team All-American honors, all while captaining the Buckeyes.

What Comes Next

Much like many of the younger players for Team USA, I would expect the next few years to act a her revenge tour. A silver medal to Canada in the Olympics has lit a fire in many Americans over the past few decades but nothing will light it more than knowing you didn’t see much ice time during the tournament. I would think as she gears up for the World Championship and next few years on an international roster, her plan is to make herself indispensable part of the team.

I hope we see more of Dunne consistently. She will age out of being on our list after this year, but make no mistake, she is on the rise.

Too High or Too Low?

Too low. The frustrating part about ranking a lot of these players is the consistency in which we see them. Dunne peaked on our list two years ago while she was at the top of her collegiate game, and despite spending more time on international ice since then, she hasn’t had the consistent opportunity to show us more. But I know she can and will.

Dunne is one of the best two-way defenders in the game right now. She’s quiet, but you notice when she isn’t there and for that, I’m shocked she didn’t at least crack the top 25.

HM | Jaime Bourbonnais | Defender | Team Canada | PWHPA
Michelle Jay

Last season

Bourbonnais started the season centralized with Team Canada ahead of the Olympics, which included three games at the 2021 World Championships. She netted one goal - in their 5-0 rout of Switzerland.

She was initially one of the last players cut ahead of leaving for China before being named to the taxi squad. Canada had a tough blueline to crack, especially considering how prolific their defense ended up being in Beijing.

She went on to join the PWHPA’s Team Harvey (Montreal) for the rest of the season. She played in at least one showcase - the Sonnet Showcase in Ottawa. The defender had a single assist in the two games stats are publicly available for and won the championship with Harvey in Ottawa.

Major Accomplishments

• U18 World Championship silver medal (2016)
• World Championship bronze medal (2019)
• Top 10 Patty Kazmaier Award Finalist (2020)
• World Championship gold medal (2021)/

What Comes Next

It’s tough to say what comes next for the Cornell alumna.

She was a taxi squad member and a late cut for Team Canada, and given the age of some of their blueline, she could still be in the mix there. It’ll be interesting to see if anyone retires and how that factors into Bourbonnais’ future.

With the PWHPA, look for her to return to Montreal, assuming their rumored new league has a Montreal team (though I can’t imagine why it wouldn’t).

Too High or Too Low?

It’s so tough to judge defenders, especially ones who don’t put up a big numbers like Bourbonnais. Knowing the rest of the list, this feels just right for her.