The Wraparound: Early October

The SDHL is in full swing, and men’s NCAA hockey is starting to get back meaning there’s a little more movement on the women’s side. Plus some really interesting articles about hockey in non-traditional countries: Mexico and Hungary.

If you only read a few things this week...

Canadian women’s hockey team forward Sarah Nurse ready for change | CBC Sports
Sarah Nurse has stood in the crosswinds of societal and sport upheaval. Her hockey career in flux because of a collective movement to further the women’s game, the COVID-19 pandemic threw another layer of uncertainty on top of her hockey future.

Wilson fueling rise of women’s game in Mexico | Color of Hockey
William Douglas has been writing The Color of Hockey blog for the past eight years. Douglas joined NHL.com in March 2019 and writes about people of color in the game. Today, he profiles Luisa Wilson, the first Mexico-born athlete to win a Winter Olympics medal.

Haley leading Hungary to the top | IIHF
New coach brings international experience to Hungarian Women’s team

NCAA

Women’s WCHA still working toward ‘attainable and agreeable’ COVID-19 testing protocol for 2020-21 season | Duluth News Tribune
WCHA commissioner Jennifer Flowers says that’s a bigger challenge for single-sport leagues like the WCHA and many others in college hockey compared to multisport leagues like the Big Ten.

Beavers play the waiting game with season start date not yet known | Bemidji Pioneer
BEMIDJI — This weekend ought to have marked the beginning of a new season for the Bemidji State women’s hockey team. Instead, players can only practice and wonder when they’ll play their first game.

College hockey: Clarkson, St. Lawrence itching to get going, but following COVID protocols | nny360.com
The future of the 2020-21 NCAA Division I college hockey season depends on many factors outside the control of coaches and players at both Clarkson and St. Lawrence University.

Muzerall respects delay of season decision from WCHA and HCA | The Lantern
The Hockey Commissioners Association announced the delay of the season for their 11 conferences, one being the Big Ten, Sept. 10 due to COVID-19 safety concerns. This decision meant the original season start date of Oct. 6 for Ohio State women’s hockey was pushed back even further to a new, not-yet-announced start date.

Regina’s Alyssa Hein has seen the worst of COVID-19 | Regina Leader Post
Alyssa Hein, an NCAA women’s hockey player from Regina, has been working on the frontline of COVID-19 as a nurse in New York.

Rivier University launching men’s, women’s hockey with NCAA D-III play beginning in ‘22-23 | College Hockey | USCHO.com
Rivier University announced today it will add men’s and women’s hockey in the fall of 2021.

SDHL

In the star’s footsteps: “She has meant a lot to me”
Hanna Olsson was one of Swedish hockey’s greatest talents ever when she arrived. Now Skärgårdens SK has another big promise that is about to make a name for itself: Gothenburg’s 14-year-old Tilde Utbult.

“Mini-Henke”: “It has always been fun to be in goal” - Hockey Sweden
Gothenburg’s goalkeeper talent knocks on the national team door.

The giant talent - who did not choose sports: “Wants to bet on both”
She is one of Swedish ice hockey’s greatest talents - but Mira Markström herself has not decided whether she will invest in ice hockey. She herself wants to combine hockey playing with continuing to play floorball as well.

SDHL in collaboration with Dynamic Code for testing of Covid-19 | SDHL.se
Swedish hockey has jointly developed an operating protocol with a number of infection control measures. SDHL, in collaboration with SHL, is now initiating a collaboration with the HealthTech company Dynamic Code to be able to test people with suspected infection in a fast and efficient way.

“Come up players who were born with a silver spoon in their mouth” | Hockey Sverige
How is Swedish women’s hockey? We asked that question to Linköping’s Madeleine Östling, and she gives her view on where Sweden stands right now, how it ended up there - and the problems the SDHL clubs face when it comes to securing the future of Swedish women’s hockey.

The SDHL’s website has video recaps of every game!

PWHPA

Winchester’s Lillian Ribeirinha-Braga skates at high level with PWHPA | The Winchester Star - Winchester, MA
Winchester’s Lillian Ribeirinha-Braga saw one of the highest levels of the game make its return last weekend, when she skated for the Professional Women’s Hockey Player’s Association during their event in New Hampshire.

Milton’s Courtney Turner keeps hockey career alive with the PWHPA | The Patriot Ledger
When the Canadian Women’s Hockey League folded, Turner had to look elsewhere to get on the ice.

Player’s Own Voice in studio: Where are women’s pro leagues in Canada? | CBC Sports
Player’s Own Voice In Studio premier episode: Building professional women’s sports leagues in Canada

NWHL

Madison Packer embarks on new journey in season six | The Ice Garden
The Riveters captain talks expansion team, the pushed back season, and becoming a new parent.

Whitecaps should seek secondary scoring in free agency | The Ice Garden
Minnesota needs to replace Schammel’s offense and speed, but that is easier said than done.

NWHL enters 3-year partnership with K1 Sportswear | The Ice Garden
Another day, another brand partnership for the NWHL

Misc.

The Olympic star from 2014 | Hockeysverige
In this week's Old School Hockey, you will meet one of Swedish women's hockey's greatest goalkeeper icons - Valentina Lizana Wallner.

Hockey took Sudbury’s Danielle Rancourt on quite a journey | Sudbury Star
‘I tell some of the athletes that I work with that hockey was a vehicle for my success. I had always thought that it would be my success, but it turned out to be a vehicle for other kinds of success.’

Hockey Canada unveils limited edition Nike heritage jersey for 2020-21 season | Hockey Canada
New jersey to be worn by Canada’s national teams at upcoming world championships

Get Ready for ‘Battle of the Blades’ Season 6 | The Ice Garden
Three female hockey players are set to make history in figure skates

Q&A with Sami Jo Small on ‘The Role I Played’ | The Ice Garden
This week, Sami Jo Small released her first book, ‘The Role I Played.’ In it, she looks back at her years on Team Canada, telling behind the scenes stories and giving a raw and honest glimpse into...

How head coach Don MacLeod prepared Team USA for the full-contact 1990 Worlds | The Ice Garden
Hear from Team USA’s coach on the first Worlds tournament