The 2018 USA Hockey Girls 16/17 Player Development Camp came to a conclusion today at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center in St. Cloud, Minnesota.
The camp provided a week of outstanding training and hockey development opportunities for 145 players representing all 12 of USA Hockey’s geographical districts. The camp directors this year included Joe Eppolito, Katie Holmgren and Walter O’Brien.
The final day of the camp featured a crossover tournament with the 17s teams and the two top 16s teams. The remaining 16 teams also competed in a final-day championship series. In the crossover tournament, Team Royal 17-year-old Celine Pietraszek (Colorado Springs, Colo.) scored the game winner against Team White. Assists were provided by Claire Hickey (Dyer, Ind.) and Hannah Johnson (Readfield, Maine).
In the 16s tournament, Team Black and Team Gold battled to a 0-0 tie in the championship. The shootout was decided with a goal by Team Black’s Ellie Bayard (Medfield, Mass.). Earlier this year, Bayard competed at USA Hockey’s Girls Tier I 16U Nationals in her home state.
CAMP STANDOUTS: Team Royal’s Pietraszek and Team Gold’s Jada Habisch (Buffalo, Minn.) led this year’s campers with five points apiece … Habisch was the camp’s top assist person with four helpers in St. Cloud. A quartet of Minnesotans including Pietraszek, Team White’s Cheyenne Abear (Merrifield, Minn.), Team Red’s Hannah Chorske (Edina, Minn.) and Team Royal’s Taylor Nelson (Carlton, Minn.) all led the camp with three goals apiece.
NET GAINS: Team Gray’s Suzette Faucher (Middleton, Wis.) paced the camp with a 0.76 GAA and a .976 save percentage. She only allowed one goal during the game and made 40 saves in 79:00 minutes of play. Faucher led Shattuck-St. Mary’s to the semifinals at USA Hockey’s Girls Tier I 16U Nationals this past April.
Team Black’s Caitlin Boudiette (Redding, Conn.) ranked second on the goalie leaderboard with a .939 save rate and a 1.52 GAA. She only allowed two goals and made 31 saves this week.
CAMPSITE: St. Cloud State University’s Herb Brooks National Hockey Center served as the home for this year’s USA Hockey Girls 16/17 Player Development Camp. The HBNHC also hosted the USA Hockey Girls 15 Player Development Camp earlier in July.