Robert Morris Starting New, But With A Veteran Lineup

Robert Morris is starting new, but with a veteran lineup. After two years away from NCAA women's hockey, RMU used the transfer portal to build an experienced roster.

Not many first year teams can claim a veteran roster, but that’s exactly what Robert Morris University will do in their return to NCAA hockey.

The program was originally founded during the 2005-2006 season, but in 2021, Robert Morris University announced they were suspending both the men’s and women’s programs. Shortly thereafter, the school decided to bring back a women’s program for this season.

After losing all of their roster from the 2021 season, Robert Morris relied heavily on the transfer portal this offseason, grabbing nine players from the available talent to help field a surprisingly veteran first year team.

“We have been very busy with the portal,” said RMU head coach Logan Bittle. “Being in the unique spot of restarting a program and wanting to spread our classes out the portal provided us an opportunity to do that. We are extremely excited with the quality of student athletes that we have coming in through the portal. They not only bring a wide variety of experience, but they also bring an excitement to be a part of this program, and the opportunity to get RMU hockey back to the level of success that we have had.”

Among those veterans were Madison Primeau from Syracuse, Shailynn Snow from St. Lawrence, and Emma Gorski, who was Merrimack’s starting goaltender.

“In getting these players with all of the experience they bring will allow us the ability to compete much quicker than we would expect had we brought in a class of all first year athletes. We will lean on them to provide leadership in showing our incoming athletes what it takes to compete at the highest level both on and off the ice. We want to compete for championships and that is what these players are coming here to do.”

Bittle is a graduate of RMU, and served on the RMU bench for ten seasons, including as the team’s associate head coach, prior to the program ceasing operations. Last season in the program’s absence, Bittle coached the Pens Elite 19U Girls Prep and 16U Girls teams in Pittsburgh.

Alongside the talent Robert Morris found through the NCAA transfer portal, a list that also includes Chloe Puddifant (St. Lawrence) and Courtney Hall (St. Cloud), Bittle is also excited about the school’s incoming recruiting class. The team also had six players at the school this year training in the absence of a team in preparation for next season. Some played at Robert Morris prior to the team taking their hiatus.

“We have a great mixture of young and veteran talent. We are very happy with our incoming freshmen class and how they performed over the course of this last season,” Bittle said. “Our staff fully expects them to come in and make a big impact right off the bat.”

The program has gone through highs and lows. Prior to shuttering the program in 2021, the team had competed in five consecutive CHA championships games, including winning Robert Morris’ third conference title and making an NCAA tournament appearance. Then, the program was dropped. It’s a process Bittle said impacted everyone in the Robert Morris hockey community.

“This has certainly been a roller coaster of emotions over the past two years,” he said. “The toll that took on our players, staff, alumni and supporters was tremendous.”

When Robert Morris returns to the ice as a team in August, Bittle expect his program to pick up where it left off as a contender in the CHA.

“Our goal for this season is to put RMU hockey back on the map and like all of our previous seasons to compete for a regular and postseason championship. We will spend the summer bringing our players together and getting everyone on the same page, so that we can hit the ground running when the girls get on campus in August. The only thing left to do is drop the puck.”

Robert Morris will rejoin the College Hockey America conference as the sixth member team.