If she can see it, she can be it.
It’s an often-used phrase in women’s hockey but one that rings true for so many Premier Hockey Federation players, and Sydney Brodt is no exception.
More than a decade before she was appointed captain of her hometown Minnesota Whitecaps, she aspired to be just like her idols.
“Growing up I can remember the Whitecaps would come out to our practices,” Brodt said. “I vividly remember Gigi Marvin coming to our practices as a Whitecap and getting her autograph and idolizing her. It’s definitely pretty cool to now be playing for the team and doing that for other youth players.”
Brodt’s positive experiences interacting with the future Olympian and Isobel Cup champion instilled a passion for the game and for empowering young females through sport because of how hockey shaped her own life.
“My goal is really to push professional women’s hockey forward, especially in Minnesota being the state of hockey,” she said. “There are so many great young girls coming up and they’re looking at us. It’s really cool to see all the support from the youth and high school players from Minnesota. We’re in a super important role for women’s hockey and I’m honored to be playing professional hockey in Minnesota.”
This is Brodt’s first year in the PHF but she’s no stranger to professional hockey and competing at the highest level. She represented the U.S. National Women’s Team and won gold at the 2019 IIHF Women’s World Championship, but after not making U.S. Olympic centralization ahead of the 2022 games, she picked herself up and moved to Sweden to further her career in the SDHL. It’s a moment the 24-year-old considers one of her proudest in the face of adversity.
“It’s definitely a different style of hockey, European compared to North American, but to be honest I was excited to come back and play here. I personally like the smaller ice.”
Her offensive game took shape with Linköping HC, scoring 29 goals and 56 points in 36 games while earning league MVP honors. She scored her first two PHF goals in her fourth game of the season and can feel her game taking shape.
“It’s been fun to play in this league,” she said. “There are so many strong players and smart players, so just being able to adapt my game and see the style of play. Now with four games under my belt I want to continue to play better and with that confidence.”
Brodt prides herself on her skating and considers it her strongest attribute, also describing her game as relentless, fast, and smart.
“I play with a lot of speed and a 200-foot game. I enjoy playing on the PK just as much as I do on the power play. I like to think of myself as a 200-foot player. My speed and hockey sense and shot are my strengths offensively.”
Those strengths are exactly what the Whitecaps need heading into their third weekend set against the Metropolitan Riveters, still in search of their first win after four games.
“Obviously we haven’t had the start that we wanted but I think each game as a team we’ve been getting better and better,” Brodt said. “We’ve been addressing some small things that we’ve been working on in practice, and now going into our second home series we’re really excited to take that next step and hopefully get a few wins here.”
The Whitecaps lost a pair of 3-2 decisions in Toronto to open the season, including one in overtime. Their first home series against Boston saw a 2-0 loss, followed by a 5-4 overtime defeat. Despite the result, the weekend launched a new era of Whitecaps hockey as the team dropped the puck for the first time at the Richfield Ice Arena. It’s a moment Brodt won’t soon forget.
“We came out in warmups and the whole arena was already packed and the music was blaring and there was just a loud buzz in there. It just put a smile on all of our faces to see that. The attention that women’s hockey is getting and that we’re getting here in Minnesota, it was super cool. I’m looking forward to more of those coming up.”
The North Oaks native played in Richfield a few times growing up, and even though it’s only been a few months since the move from TRIA Rink, it already feels like home.
“It’s been great for us moving in there,” Brodt said. “We have a great setup, a nice locker room, the weight room facility is there, and they’ve been putting some money into the arena as well. There are Whitecaps logos everywhere, logos on the ice, some nice things for the fan experience. Richfield has definitely welcomed us with open arms. I think we’ve really settled in and made things our own.”
Brodt’s first goal of the season is one for the record books counting as the team’s first ever scored at Richfield.
“It definitely felt good. I didn’t even think of it as that, but more for our team we just were really pushing for creating more offense and scoring goals and kind of breaking their goalie who had been playing so well. It was a monkey off everyone’s back and we were all pretty excited.”
Creating more offense has been among the points of emphasis for the team, and Brodt believes if they stay the course the tide can turn in the Whitecaps favor.
“From a team standpoint, I think we’ve gotten better at creating offense and also our defensive zone and overall toughness in our D-zone has improved and is something we’ve been talking about,” she said. “It was fun in our last Boston game to find ways to score. There are a lot of good goalies in this league and we’ve been working on that. Maybe so far it hasn’t come to fruition but I think in the next few weeks our hard work in those areas will shine through.”
Just as Brodt has been acclimatizing to her own PHF career, so too have many of her teammates. This year’s Whitecaps feature nine newcomers including five straight from NCAA which has helped raise the overall talent of the player pool.
“I think it’s been really cool to see so many elite players that were top notch college hockey players last year, and we have a bunch of them on our team,” Brodt said. “Liz Schepers won a national championship last year being Ohio State’s captain and now she’s become a big leader on our team. Natalie Snodgrass, Anna Klein, Olivia Knowles, Brittyn Fleming, there’s a bunch of really top end college hockey players on our team. I think it’s just a testament to where the league is going and I’ve seen and heard a lot of interest from players who are in college hockey right now and are going to be graduating soon, and they are looking to come and play in this league.”
The Whitecaps notoriously have a lot of homegrown talent with 14 players from Minnesota on their 2022-23 roster, plus many who played across the state’s many competitive collegiate programs. Brodt is a shining example of this, serving as a three-year captain at the University of Minnesota-Duluth where she played alongside current teammates like Ashleigh Brykaliuk, Anna Klein, and Sidney Morin.
“We take a lot of pride in our hockey here in Minnesota,” she said. “Right now I think it’s great that all of the top Minnesota players want to play for the Whitecaps. It’s been awesome just to play in Minnesota with a bunch of girls that I know and friends that I’ve had all on my team. The setup we have, the resources, and coaching, and just in general our whole staff has been great with us.”
Brodt is committed to her community, the Whitecaps, and continuing to make the PHF and women’s hockey in Minnesota thrive. Qualities that made her a fitting candidate to wear the ‘C’ upon her return back home.
“It was a huge honor for me to get that recognition from my teammates and coaches,” the captain said. “I think there’s been a narrative in the past about this league maybe not being the top league or the most professional league, but I think the PHF this year has really stepped up their standard and I think we’re really going to be the premier women’s hockey league here. It’s just really cool to be part of this for women’s hockey.”
Cover photo by Sam Silver
