District girls lead the way for Voyageurs hockey team

When the Rainy River Community College Voyageurs girls’ hockey team won silver at its home tournament over the weekend, it was thanks in no small part to a new-look roster that’s more than half made up by Canadian players.
The seven Ontario girls, including four from Rainy River District, outnumber the six Minnesotans and one Manitoban on the Voyageurs—and are a big part of the team’s new harmonious attitude, head coach Jeff Wickstrom said.
“Right from day one this team has gelled together,” Wickstrom noted. “They’ve been working on-ice, off-ice. It’s definitely a change from last year.
“We tore ourselves apart instead of having a common goal in mind.”
Last year the team’s roster was comprised mostly of International Falls residents, peppered with a few out-of-towners—notably ACHA All-American centre and Emo-born Sarah O’Sullivan.
But this year has seen the number of players from Northwestern Ontario explode, with girls raised in Fort Frances, Dryden, and Red Lake on the roster.
“We just give local girls an opportunity, whether it’s [the] Falls, Baudette, Roseau, Warroad, or Fort Frances or Emo,” Wickstrom stressed.
Those opportunities are paying off. Although the 2007 Minnesota RRCC-ACHA Can/Am Showcase again went to the visiting Winnipeg Polar Ice after a 3-1 loss in the final, the Voyageurs’ second-place finish wasn’t too shabby.
RRCC trounced two divisional rivals—crushing Iowa State 9-1 and blanking North Dakota State University 4-0, backstopped by Fort Frances native Melissa Calder between the pipes.
Their strong play throughout the tournament, led by O’Sullivan with four goals and an assist, is encouraging to the team as the season dawns. They’re also encouraged by the rapport shared by the players—something no doubt related to their early successes.
“It’s a fun atmosphere to be in,” O’Sullivan said. “Just how we are with each other. We’re like a family. We don’t care what we do or say in front of each other.”
She insisted the difference between this year and last year isn’t that recruiting Canadian players has made for a reunion of high school players—it’s just upped the quality on the team.
“Everyone shows up,” O’Sullivan remarked. “It’s kind of easier to get along ‘cause we know what we were bringing.”
Wickstrom said bringing in girls raised in the Canadian hockey system was an easy decision considering the Voyageurs didn’t have to look far to find top players.
“I think the girls that are coming from Canada are already closer to the college game, a little freer, faster game,” he noted. “I definitely think they have more knowledge base in the game, and the skill is higher. . . .
“I do see the American program every year, [improving] more and more,” Wickstrom added. “We’re catching up.”
With the stereotypical Canadian hockey aptitude comes the stereotypical friendly Canadian attitude, it would seem, as the players agree they get along as well away from the rink as they do on the ice.
“Everyone works together with their own input,” O’Sullivan said. “We’re closer as a team.”
Emo’s Hannah Firth, one of the team’s returning players, agreed. “We’re going into this way better than last year,” she said.
Starting right-winger Cortney Caldwell, a rookie from Fort Frances, also is impressed with how the team has come together.
“I like it a lot, actually, being a first-year player. It’s great,” she enthused. “No drama or politics or anything. Definitely a step up from high school hockey.”
Wickstrom noted the team was going out together this past Monday to celebrate Firth’s 20th birthday. He said the party goes beyond having a good time and making his centre feel appreciated.
“We’re trying to make sure that occurs because I believe that creates team chemistry,” he stressed. “We did not have that last year.”
Team chemistry is something that needs to be monitored and encouraged like any other part of team conditioning, Wickstrom noted, and is just as important as any other aspect of their play.
Chemistry leads to consistency and cohesiveness, and the little things make his job easier in the long run.
He said he’s already seen the benefits of this team’s chemistry, saying his job with the Voyageurs is much easier now than in years past.
“The easiest coaching game is me going stand at the door, open the door, and let ’em walk out,” he grinned.