USA Hockey has made its first roster cut with the 2018 Winter Olympics approaching in February. By Jan. 1, the national team needs to be whittled down to 23 players from the 25 who are currently with the team in residency. However, we already know who America's three goalies are going to be: Alex Rigsby, Nicole Hensley and Maddie Rooney.
Rigsby, Hensley and Rooney are an exceptionally youthful triumvirate. In 2014, the national team's goaltending core was headlined by a then 28-year-old Jessie Vetter. A 25-year-old Molly Schaus and a 26-year-old Brianne McLaughlin completed the trio. All three goaltenders also represented USA at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. So it's a safe bet that we could see this new trio, especially Hensley and Rooney, with the national team for quite some time.
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Rigsby, 25, is the veteran of the bunch, but like Hensley and Rooney she has no Olympic experience. What Rigsby does have is four women's world championship gold medals and an NCAA title with Wisconsin on her resume. She's no stranger to the national team; Rigsby was the first goaltender in the U.S. history to play for the U18, U22 and senior teams.
U.S. Women's National Team coaches Robb Stauber and Paul Mara warm up goalie Alex Rigsby on Tuesday at Agganis Arena. #TheTimeIsNow pic.twitter.com/sk5aLkbOcB
— USA Hockey Magazine (@USAHMagazine) October 24, 2017
"I've looked up to Alex Rigsby ever since I got into the program," Hensley told Sporting News. "She's also been my roommate a couple of times. She taught me how to go about being a pro when you get invited to camps, how to act in tournaments and on the ice. ... She's helped me on every step of my journey here."
Hensley is just 23, but she's already had some success playing in the greatest rivalry in team sports.
The Colorado native stole the show at the 2017 women's worlds championship that kicked off with an 18-save shutout against Canada. One week later Hensley faced Canada again in the gold medal game. She stopped 28 shots in an overtime victory to earn USA its fourth consecutive women's world championship gold. Beating Canada is something the Lindenwood University alumna takes very seriously.
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"Every time we get to play Canada it provides us with an opportunity to see how we measure up against them," Hensley explained. "It heightens the rivalry that much more. Our goal is to beat them every time we play."
Rooney, 20, is even younger than Hensley. In fact, she's the second-youngest player currently on the national team. But, like Hensley, she's coming off an impressive performance in a major international tournament. For Rooney that tournament was November's 2017 Four Nations Cup. She posted a .903 save percentage and a 3-0-0 record highlighted by an 18-save showing against Canada in the final.
In February, Rooney could become the youngest American goalie to play for the women's team in Olympic competition.
Rooney admits it was an easy decision to put her college career on hold for the opportunity to make history with the national team and chase gold.
"It's always been the ultimate goal of mine, but if someone asked me last September I wouldn't have expected that I could make this team," Rooney told Sporting News. "I didn't really get an idea that I could make this team until I was invited to winter camp, which was last December. I worked hard and got the call for the worlds team and I was grateful for the opportunity to get the experience under my belt."
Robb Stauber is the head coach of the women's national team. He's also a former NHL goaltender. Stauber has given all three of his goaltenders a chance to hone their skills and prove themselves against Canada during the Time is Now Tour. Rooney earned the most recent start on Dec. 3. She posted a .923 save percentage in 2-1 overtime loss against Canada.
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USA wraps up the Time is Now Tour in San Jose on Friday. After that, it's back to Florida for more scrimmages, film and preparation before the national team's first game in Pyeongchang on Feb. 11 against Finland. Right now, it's very much an open competition.
"It's pretty competitive because everyone wants to get that starting position," Rooney said. "But there's also a ton of support going into this national team. I was the youngest and [Rigsby and Hensley] were both great leaders for me. I actually live with Nicole and she and I have become great friends outside the rink. Riggs has been a great role model for me."
What Rigsby, Hensely and Rooney lack in Olympic experience they make up for in camaraderie. Residency with the national team in Florida means an almost university-like experience, but instead of schoolwork, there's just hockey. Lots and lots of hockey.
Women on the U.S. national team train every day for around five hours. As you can imagine that's a lot of film to watch and a lot of frozen rubber for Rigsby, Hensley and Rooney to stop. It's also a lot of time spent together on and off the ice socializing, comparing notes and talking hockey.
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At the end of the day all three goalies want to be between the pipes on game day, but they want the gold medal more.
"One of the best things about the three of us is that we're so supportive of each other," Hensley explained. "We try to control what we can control. I try to go out and stop as many pucks as I can at practice which is what helps our players get better and maybe help challenge Maddie and Riggs to stop more pucks. It keeps all three of us improving."
America's young goaltenders will need to be sharp when the Olympics finally arrive. Canada has a distinct edge in goaltending experience and Rigsby, Hensley and Rooney all know it. Shannon Szabados, 31, already has two Olympic gold medals and is 6-0-0 in Olympic competition. In all likelihood, she will be the riddle that the United States will have to solve in Korea.
Stauber will be counting on Rigsby, Hensley and Rooney to hold the fort behind his fast, aggressive group of skaters. All three goalies of his goalies have to be comfortable with waiting long stretches between shots. That kind of focus requires a great deal of mental fortitude. And when you're playing in the Olympics with and against the best hockey players in the world, it also requires nerves of steel.
The good news for Stauber is that all three of his young goalies have proven themselves capable in big tournaments before. The big question now: which goalie will be at the top of his depth chart in February? Stauber has less than 60 days to figure it out.