Generation Gold

The next wave of Minnesota talent hopes to continue its international success at the highest level

By: Nathan Wells

THEY HAD WON GOLD MEDALS and traveled the world representing the red, white and blue in hockey. However, October’s USA Hockey Evaluation Camp in Blaine was unlike anything Minnesotans Taylor Heise (Lake City), Gabbie Hughes (Lino Lakes), Natalie Snodgrass (Eagan) and Madeline Wethington (Edina) had ever experienced. The group of collegians were four of 53 players attending this fall’s camp, featuring the top women’s hockey players in the country. Each previously represented USA Hockey at the U-18 level.

All four hope to one day do the same with the senior U.S. Women’s National Team (USWNT).

“My ultimate goal is to make the Olympic team,” said Wethington, currently a sophomore defender at the University of Minnesota. “That’s my dream, ever since I was 4 years old, was to make that Olympic team and wear the USA crest at the Olympic games and to get an opportunity to win a gold medal.

“That’s every little girl’s dream when they’re playing hockey is to get that opportunity to sing the national anthem with a gold medal around their neck.”

Getting to this point in the dream requires years of hard work honed in Minnesota rinks. Playing with the national team requires a higher level of competition. Getting to the October camp itself involved needing to quarantine and passing two Covid tests before even getting on the ice.

As with the rest of the world, goals and training in 2020 have been uprooted. Heise spent the most time away from skating she had ever done in her life. Snodgrass could not train at a normal gym while Wethington lifted and shot out-side every day with her sisters. Hughes, a junior at Minnesota Duluth, focused on herself and the mental side of the game away from the ice, looking more at film.

“Working on those things throughout the offseason was a big focus of mine,” said Hughes.

An extended offseason gave more opportunities. COVID-19 restrictions pushed the camp, which was originally scheduled for August in Lake Placid, N.Y., back two months and 1,000 miles west.

Delays in the NCAA season made an October camp possible, according to USA Hockey director of women’s national programs Katie Million.

“We kept an open mind about when we could possibly get together again and what would be the safest route. Taking into account all the protocols and test-ing and bringing people in—not only players but staff too—from all over the country and different hot spots, we just kept working on a plan to hopefully get back on the ice together,” she said. “It seemed that we found a really great window (in October) in that the virus wasn’t spiking and things weren’t too bad.”

Working with lead physician Dr. Ally Howe, Million and USA Hockey came up with its own protocols and testing to safely conduct a camp during the pandemic. Constantly in touch with the USOPC and USA Hockey Chief Medical Officer Dr. Michael Stuart from the Mayo Clinic, the end result involved taking pieces of protocols from all different entities and making one that was their own.

“We had a lot of support from a lot of different reputable people and companies,” said Million. “Honestly, the protocols and testing that we put in place seemed to work well. We were very successful with the camp and through all of our testing, (there were) zero positive cases. To me, that was a win.”

While it was a new experience staying away from others, quarantining and not getting to fully catch up with those they hadn’t seen for a while, being on the ice felt normal.

For Heise, who has been a leader in her age group and part of USA Hockey since she was 15 and coached by Julie Chu, it helped playing with some of the best players in the world. Wanting to get 1 percent better each day, the University of Minnesota junior forward was happy having the chance to be evaluated for the first time in months. She also enjoyed being camp teammates with Olympians Brianna Decker and Kacey Bellamy.

“Being able to really connect with people who truly have the same love of the game as you is really interesting,” Heise said. “I feel if I look at myself and keep trying to get better as a person and as a hockey player, it’s much better than me comparing myself to other people because that sometimes brings you down and brings a negative attitude. I just try to take things day by day.”

Hughes, meanwhile, noted the speed and difference playing against older players who are more detail-oriented and think the game at a higher level. Two of those were familiar faces in former Bulldogs teammates Maddie Rooney and Sydney Brodt, both of whom regularly appear with the USWNT.

Playing on a different team than the two Minnesotans was a fun experience for Hughes, who had some other familiar faces on her camp team.

“Reuniting with some of the girls that I played with on the (2017 gold medal-winning) U-18 Worlds team when I was in high school and seeing them again,” she said. “Just seeing them at those camps, it makes it so much fun to reconnect with them and to see how much everyone has grown in their game.

“You always know that someone out there is working harder than you, but to go and see that everyone is still improving in their game, it makes you realize that you got to keep going and work harder than everyone else. It’s a cool experience to see that and have that little reminder.”

The work, Hughes believes, is paying off in her development. She is growing as a player, as is Snodgrass. The University of Connecticut captain came a long way from getting on her first national team “as a fluke” at 16 after a player got hurt and she flew out to Buffalo the day before the tournament.

With that experience under her belt, Snodgrass was much more comfortable the following year during the 2016 U-18 World Championships. The Eagan native was able to find a sense of calmness and focus on her game. She led the entire team in goals with six, including the overtime game-winning golden goal against Canada.

“With every (opportunity), I get more and more comfortable,” Snodgrass said. “I’m a senior in college now. I know the way that I can play and know what (USA Hockey) is expecting out of me. The sense of comfort and familiarity comes from what USA Hockey sees in me and what I can expect to bring to the table.”

Snodgrass is happy with the feedback she has gotten, believing she is close to making a World Championships roster. Her inter-national role is different from the one she plays at Connecticut. It’s more about creating turnovers and doing the small things as a forward than being the top offensive threat.

The same can be said for Wethington on defense. She wants to be reliable, move the puck quickly and be a shut-down defenseman. Typically more offensive-minded with the Gophers, Wethington is more than willing to adapt for Team USA.

“The more experience I get playing with the type of talent the U.S. produces is a great opportunity. I feel like I continue to grow with the number of camps I get invited to,” she said. “Something I took away from that camp is being a team player and trying to know your role.”

In the face of a successful camp, both on the ice and in USA Hockey implementing a successful bubble, the four Minnesotans know what it takes for future success. They aren’t alone, as the hockey world adapts and changes in the face of a global pandemic. Being able to see where the experience is getting them and adapting to the situation brings changes in future goals as well.

“These are all elite players and people we have our eye on, not only for the Olympics in 2022, but further down the road,” Million said.

It’s a connection the Minnesotans share—striving in the dream of being the next generation of women’s hockey players from the state to represent their country. They know each other well. Even Snodgrass, who got the opportunity to see her family for a few hours before the camp, skates together when she is back home during the summer.

“Being from Minnesota is the best. Everyone expects us to be hockey gurus, which we are,” said Snodgrass. “Even if a high school team isn’t the greatest, a superstar can be born from it. Minnesota should take some serious pride in producing so many star players.”

After an unusual October camp, she’s among a group comfortable working towards being the next Minnesotans singing the national anthem.