ROCHESTER, N.Y. — With three months of the hockey season in the books and the calendar page having turned over to 2025, the BK Selects girls have plenty to show for their efforts.

 

As of the second week of January, the 19U team sits at 37-3-0 and is ranked second in the nation, while the 16Us are 28-8-4 and ninth. That’s a lot of tangible results, and great ones at that.

 

But as events over the past couple of months have reminded, the BK Selects experience is about much more than wins and losses, goals and assists, blocks and saves. 

 

For evidence of this, look no further than the annual Signing Day event the program puts on in November, spearheaded by Director of Girls Hockey Cari Coen. That’s when BK Selects celebrate the athletes who have put pen to paper on National Letters of Intent, or in the case of prospective Ivy League students, forms known as ‘Likely Letters.’

 

Either way, it’s a chance to both commemorate the accomplishment of securing a spot on a college hockey team while also showing younger students what’s possible.

 

The recent commitments celebrated were as follows:

 

Chloe Brinson - Princeton 

Lia Nevo - Princeton 

Lia Cericola - Princeton 

Nela Lopušanová - Wisconsin 

Shayla Beaudette - Wisconsin 

Megan Meola - RPI

Avery Ide - Providence College

Addie Tremel - Colgate

Kayla O’Donnell - Cornell 

Annika Stock - Quinnipiac

Kayla Gerson - Dartmouth

Lucy Thiessen - Boston University

Sadie Klein - Hamilton College  

 

“It’s a really cool experience,” said 16U Head Coach Jake Anderson. “And we try to pick a day and time that the 16Us can attend, so it’s tangible for them, too.

 

“You want to go to Princeton? There’s someone here who’s going to Princeton. We like them to see it and experience it.”

 

On top of that, the younger BK student-athletes can also see that achieving the college hockey dream isn’t the end of the road or a signal that it’s time to let off the gas pedal.

 

If anything, it’s just more motivation to maximize one’s time at one of the continent’s premier prep hockey programs, with all the improvement opportunities that come with it.

 

“Something I believe that separates this program and the people within it is that after an athlete commits, they don't relax,” said 19U Head Coach Chelsea Walkland, who was formerly an NCAA Division I assistant coach at Colgate and Robert Morris. 

 

“The commitment is viewed as just the beginning and it now serves as further fuel in their development so that they can make the most of every day in preparation for that opportunity. This gives the athlete the ability to hit the ground running. I know from experience that college and national team coaches truly appreciate this factor.”

 

Speaking of international action — and in-the-flesh examples of excellence — there’s been plenty of both over the past month for BK Selects.

 

Start with the annual World Under-18 Women’s Championship, put on by the International Ice Hockey Federation in Finland over the first 12 days of January. With BK 19U forward Stryker Zablocki (Prince Albert, Sask. / Northeastern University) on board, Canada claimed the gold with a 3-0 win over the United States in the final.

 

Zablocki led all scorers in the tournament with eight goals and 12 total points over six games, a performance capped by the clinching empty-net goal against the Americans; she was named to the all-tournament team by assembled media after the gold-medal game.

 

“It’s an experience like no other,” said Zablocki, who also won a bronze with Canada last year. “There is so much talent and everyone is so good. It really pushes me to my best and challenges me to become better.

 

“Our team had really good individual habits to focus on each game which ultimately helped us as a team. Everyone had a team-first mentality.”

 

In particular, Zablocki said squaring off with their North American rivals in the final required another level of execution to get the job done. The U.S. and Canada have met 14 times in the Women’s U-18 final, with each side claiming seven wins in those matchups. 

 

“The gold medal game was fun,” Zablocki said. “The game got a little faster once we played the States. It was more physical and a higher pace of play compared to the other teams. But it was just like any other game for us our mindset didn’t change.”

 

On the Team USA side of things, Bella Fanale (Webster, N.Y. / University of Minnesota) served as team captain and Megan Healy (South Burlington, Vt. / Princeton University) was her alternate captain.

 

Both contributed tangibly in large ways, with Fanale leading all U.S. skaters in goals (five) and points (nine), while Healy was the team’s highest-scoring defender with six points, all assists. Fanale was twice named USA’s player of the game, including after her two-goal performance in a semifinal win over Sweden.

 

“I think as a team we put together a very strong tournament,” Fanale said. “We played with so much heart and I know every single one of us gave it our all. It sucks that we didn’t get the result we wanted, but overall I’m very proud of the group.”

 

Of course, Team USA fell short of its ultimate goal, but Fanale said she takes it as a learning experience even as she herself counseled her younger teammates during important moments.

 

She said it was “such an honor” to be named captain, a role she “didn’t take for granted” even though it was her third time competing in the World U-18 event.

 

“In my three years of being on this team, I’ve developed leadership skills and habits that I never would have imagined I’d be capable of,” Fanale said. “One of the biggest ones for me is the importance of staying composed in high-pressure moments. There’s so many ups and downs throughout these games that it’s very easy for your emotions and the mental side of the game to get very twisted. 

 

“As a captain it was important for me to be there for reassurance for my teammates, so they’re able to look at me and know that it’s all good. I know during the Canada game, it was some of the girls’ first time on the biggest stage playing in the biggest rivalry in our sport. I was once that girl who gripped her stick tight and was so nervous and just tried to be perfect, but over time I’ve developed a mindset where I’ve played this game so many times and this one’s just another one, so I tried to help my teammates feel that as well.”

 

Slovakia didn’t make the medal round, but BK’s Nela Lopušanová made history by claiming the tournament MVP award for the second time; she also won it as a 14-year-old two years ago. 

 

Lopušanová scored six goals and assisted on five others, finishing behind only Zablocki on the tourney scoring list. Furthermore, Lopušanová factored in on all but three of Slovakia’s as the nation successfully fought to stay in the top division for next year. She, Fanale and Zablocki were named the most outstanding forwards of the tourney by a media panel.

 

Meanwhile, in Poland, BK 16U forward Olivia Olesen scored a goal and an assist to help her native Denmark to a perfect 5-0 record in the U-18 Worlds’ third division, boosting the Danes back to the second division next year after a brief relegation. 

 

Coach Walkland herself was part of the international fun, too, as she served as assistant coach for Team USA at the Six Nations Tournament from Dec. 11-15, also in Finland. 

 

With six former BK players — Caroline Harvey, Kirsten Simms, Laila Edwards, Haley Winn, Kiara Zanon and Ava McNaughton — among a group of elite college players, the Americans won gold with a 4-0 record, capped by a thrilling 5-3 victory over Canada.

 

“Any time you have an opportunity to represent your country it is an absolute honor and privilege,” Walkland said. “It was really special for our BK program to have so many alumni present at the tournament.  You could certainly feel their love and excitement for BK!

 

“Throughout the years in my previous role within the collegiate game, I have been able to watch these players grow and develop from afar. To have the opportunity to work with players of that caliber and character was so much fun. I am grateful to be a part of this BK program that has been able to play such a pivotal role in these athletes' young careers.”

 

Whether you donned your nation’s colors over the break or not, the work has begun anew back in western New York as the BK Selects look ahead to further competition, culminating in the state and national tournaments several weeks from now.

 

“We’re looking to make some memories this spring,” Anderson said. “For a lot of teams, January isn’t as much fun, not as much enthusiasm, but we look at it as a month that we can catch and pass teams that are ‘ahead’ of us.”

 

As she moves into the second half of her first season at BK, Walkland said she’s blown away by the workmanlike habits of the players.

 

“This BK program is full of ‘everydayers,’ “ she said. “These student-athletes show up each day, both on and off the ice, with a hunger to get better and really play an active role in their own development.  

 

“The break allowed for a really nice mental and physical reset for our players and staff alike. Upon return, the focus, energy, and excitement level has been really high. 

 

“It certainly feels like there is something special about this group. They continue to impress us with their desire to get better everyday and also the fun that they have while doing so.”

Reach the author at matt.gajtka@gmail.com.