Reversal of fortune: Displaced Brandon goalie digging new life with Badgers

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This article was published 31/10/2017 (2881 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Seven months ago, Kristen Campbell was one of the unlucky ones.

An unfortunate victim of politics when the University of North Dakota made the shocking announcement it was shuttering its women’s hockey program in a cost-cutting move, the 19-year-old goalie from Brandon despaired about her hockey and academic future.

By late April, she had found a new home in Madison, Wis., with a hockey scholarship at the University of Wisconsin. Former UND players were not required to sit out a season and were able to transfer and play immediately.

Getting settled in the new school and at the rink has gone almost seamlessly. Almost like hitting the lottery.

“Yeah, it’s been really good,” said Campbell via telephone earlier this week from Madison where she has played and won 12 consecutive games in net for the top-ranked Badgers. “For the last six weeks we’ve been the No. 1-ranked team in the country so it’s been a great start.”

At Wisconsin, Campbell started the season as one of four goaltenders on the roster. The program had recently witnessed the departure of graduating senior Ann-Renee Desbiens, who was the Patty Kazmaier Award winner in 2016-17 as the top player in women’s college hockey. Desbiens, now a member of the Canadian Olympic team, was not easily replaced.

“They didn’t make any promises but said the job was wide open,” said Campbell, who has a miniscule 1.00 goals-against average and .946 save percentage. “Coming in, my goal was to start… I took steps at UND to get to this point so I’m really thankful for the opportunity I’ve gotten with the Badgers.”

Badgers head coach Mark Johnson has been pleasantly surprised by Campbell’s rapid ascent.

“I give her a lot of credit because it’s a tough task coming into an unfamiliar situation and trying to get comfortable around your teammates,” said Johnson. “We’ve got a pretty close-knit group of players. They get along well and I think they accepted her with open arms… she adjusted very quickly, not only to what’s going on on the ice but equally important what’s going on in the classroom.”

Wisconsin has made a habit of contending for national titles. Johnson guided his team to national championships in 2006, ’07, ’09 and 2011 and last spring, the squad was ranked No. 1 at the Women’s Frozen Four before falling 3-0 to Clarkson in the national final.

Last weekend, Campbell backstopped the Badgers to pair of crucial conference victories on the road over No. 6-ranked Minnesota.

“That was really exciting,” said Campbell. “Two rivals, the Gophers and Badgers going at it. The games were pretty exciting and quite intense. We were exciting to get a 3-2 win Saturday and to come back Sunday and pull off a second win in overtime was a really great start for the border battle series.”

This weekend, Wisconsin host undefeated Ohio State in another important Western Collegiate Hockey Association twinbill. The Badgers, who have forwards Emily Clark (Canada) and Annie Pankowsky (United States) currently taking the year off to play for their respective Olympic teams, still expected to be part of the national title picture.

“I believe we did,” said Campbell. “Last year we actually maintained the No. 1 ranking all season until the national championship game. Coming back this year we’re pretty young, I think 16 underclassmen, so it’s a really young group but I think we’re still very talented and from the get-go believed we could be the No. 1 team.”

Campbell, who redshirted as a freshman and saw action in only five games in 2016-17, has impressed Johnson with her ability to handle a heavy workload — playing every minute of every game so far — despite minimal college experience.

“She’s very professional about it,” said Johnson. “She’s got a great routine, she wants to get better and so whatever her record is right now, that’s irrelevant to what she’ll do today in practice,” said Johnson. “She’s focusing on what she needs to improve on and how can she get better as an individual and give her team an opportunity to win.”

Said Campbell: “My (time) at North Dakota really prepared me for this opportunity. Of course, it’s different playing back-to-back. You really have to have a quick turnaround. Usually you’re playing less than 24 hours after the game ends. It’s about finding that consistency in your game and being able to manage your energy and workload throughout the week.”

In between her busy hockey and academic schedule, Campbell has kept in touch with former UND teammates, who are scattered around the hockey world. In December, she’ll be facing Minnesota Duluth, which includes ex-teammate Ryley Houston, a Winnipegger, and Ashton Bell, a Deloraine product who had been recruited to play for UND before the program was shut down.

“I try to keep in touch with a lot of them, to see how everything’s going and how they’re doing,” said Campbell. “Because I think the girls are facing the same thing, just with transitioning (to a new school). Just to help each other out and talk about things when we need to.”

mike.sawatzky@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @sawa14