The Toronto Sceptres have nine new faces in the lineup heading into Year 2 in the PWHL, which begins on Saturday afternoon when they host the Boston Fleet at the Coca-Cola Coliseum.
The opening-day roster makeup will definitely change when forward and reigning league MVP Natalie Spooner and second-round pick Megan Carter return from the injured list, but for now there’s plenty of new in the Toronto lineup.
It starts with Daryl Watts and Emma Woods, two high-profile free agents.
It’s also not a surprise that high draft picks such as Julia Gosling and Izzy Daniel earned roster spots.
But that leaves five newcomers with whom you might not be as familiar. Here’s a quick look at the those five:
Defender Lauren Bernard (Madison, Ohio)
One of four defenders from the NCAA-champion Ohio State factory vying for jobs in the PWHL this year after that victorious season a year ago. Cayla Barnes in Montreal, Stephanie Markowski in Ottawa and Hadley Hartmetz in Boston were the other three. Bernard was a fourth-round pick by the Sceptres in the draft. She has been working through training camp with Allie Munroe in the defensive pairings. A five-year collegian, Bernard has quick feet and while not necessarily big for the position, is never shy with the physical aspect of the game. Began her collegiate career at Clarkson before making the move to Ohio State after her first two years.
Defender Rylind MacKinnon (Cranbrook, B.C.)
This UBC product is just one of two players to make it directly from USports to the PWHL this season. She joins the New York Sirens’ Emmy Fecteau as the first two players to make the jump. MacKinnon’s path was a little tougher as she came to camp on an invite while Fecteau was drafted by the Sirens. It looks like MacKinnon will start the year partnered with veteran defender Kali Flanagan, though the eventual return of second-round pick Megan Carter may create some shuffling on the Sceptres’ back end.
Forward Noemi Neubauerova (Czechia)
Nuebauerova — or Nemo as she is affectionately known around the Sceptres — is about as close as you could find to a Sceptres-style player. She’s a big, physical forward who thrives when the game gets a little nasty. She’s also fast and skilled around the net making her a perfect addition to the Sceptres. Neubauerova earned head coach Troy Ryan’s immediate respect following the draft when she called asking for additional input from him on what he thought she could do to be impactful in the PWHL. “Very open to being coached,” Ryan said. “Competes hard. Plays both the centre and right wing. Likes being physical, I think. We’ve probably thrown a lot at her in a short period of time, but she seems to be a sponge for it. She wants more. I love her attitude and a lot of times, that’s all you need to keep growing, so she’ll be someone that grows.”
A member of the Czechia national team, Neubauerova is no stranger to North American hockey having played five years between Colgate and Providence. She has experience in the Swedish league and is coming off a championship run in Switzerland where she played immediately before coming to Canada to join the Sceptres for training camp. Neubauerova opens the year playing on the Sceptres’ fourth line alongside Victoria Bach and Maggie Connors.
Forward Anneke Rankila (Lino Lakes, Minn.)
A 2023 graduate out of the University of Minnesota-Duluth, which also counts Sceptres defender Jocelyne Larcocque among its graduates, Rankilla played in Sweden last season for Djurgardens. At 5-foot-10, Rankilla brings some added size to the Sceptres roster. In Sweden, she picked up right where she left off at Minnesota with 14 goals and 17 assists in 36 games. A big body who can put the puck in the net, Rankilla is recently married and thought nothing of making the 14-hour drive with her new husband from her home in Minnesota to join the Sceptres at training camp. Right now, Rankilla is listed as the Sceptres, 13th or 14th forward, but that could easily change.
Goalie Raygan Kirk (St. Anne, Man.)
Kirk arrives as the heir apparent to Erica Howe, the wildly popular Toronto backup to Kristin Campbell in Year 1 who recently retired and then shared via social media that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer. Big shoes to fill no doubt, but Kirk is a proven commodity, having backstopped Ohio State to a national championship last season. She arrives with some built-in familiarity as she is joined by her Ohio State roommate Lauren Bernard, who was also drafted by Toronto. She’s also got a fellow St. Anne, Man., native in Larocque on the team and another fellow Manitoban in Campbell in the net with her. Kirk even worked at Campbell’s summer camp this past off-season. Playing time, certainly in the coming year, is expected to be minimal, given Campbell’s track record of carrying a heavy workload, but Kirk’s two-year contract, despite being the 42nd and final pick of the draft, speaks to how valuable the Sceptres expect her to be.
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