Sam Isbell came to the PWHL as a forward, but when injuries struck with PWHL Ottawa, she answered the bell and stepped up, stepping back to the blueline.

The life of a professional hockey player takes a toll physically on the body and mentally over the ups and downs of the season. It gets even harder when you're asked to transition to a new position midseason. That was the case for PWHL Ottawa's Samantha Isbell, who made the move from forward to defence when her team was in need.

“I like to think of myself as a sort of a defensive forward anyway. So, I think my mind naturally goes a bit more defensively,” said Isbell.

Isbell was asked by the coaching staff to switch to defence when she arrived in Ottawa. Due to injury and trade PWHL Ottawa currently only have six available defenders on the roster.

“We're a bit low on the back end here,” said Isbell. “I had a conversation with Carla [MacLeod] a couple months ago and just talked about transitioning to defence. It's just understanding your role on the team and it's not really about you, right?”

It’s not Isbell’s first rodeo in terms of playing defence. As a kid growing up Isbell was primarily a forward but then transitioned to play some defence when she played on a boys team. Then when she went to Mercyhurst University she was a forward until she played defence in her standout senior year and then played defence again in the PWHPA. She is used to the challenges of adjusting from forward and defence.

“I’ve played in the past (defence),” said Isbell. "My first year pro and my last year college I played on defence and then growing up a bit too, so definitely not new to it. But yeah, good to be back out there on defence.”

Despite the transition, Isbell feels she is rounding into form back on the PWHL Ottawa blueline.

“We had that good little break there for Worlds where we got to three weeks of practicing,” said Isbell. “So I definitely got a lot of reps that way but for me I think it's just to keep it simple and stick to the basics. Like do what I know and not try to get too fancy out there and that's what's working best for me right now.”

What has also helped her make the move to defence is how her teammates have taken her in under their wings.

“Definitely clicked with the girls right away,” said Isbell. “I felt right at home as soon as I got here and big thanks to the girls for that. Yeah, like I said they've been super welcoming and made the transition a bit easier for me too.”

Head coach of PWHL Ottawa, Carla Macleod, has been sheltering Isbell with less than 10 minutes of ice-time a game, as Isbell has partnered Ashton Bell and Emma Buckles at times.

“We're all just building trust with each other,” said Isbell.

In the end, Isbell has been gaining more trust from the coaching staff and showing her versatility to Ottawa.