Rory Guilday, Maddi Wheeler, and several other additions give PWHL San Jose a group that won't shy away from the physical side of the game.
Rory Guilday had 57 hits last season. Maddi Wheeler had 51.
They finished third and fourth in the PWHL, respectively.
Now they're teammates in San Jose, giving Troy Ryan a pretty good starting point if he wants his expansion team to have some edge.
Ryan has been pretty open about liking the physical side of the PWHL. During the league's first season in 2024, he was asked about the physical style of the new league.
“I think the women, the coaches, the fans want to see that physical brand of hockey,” Ryan said. “I love the physicality.”
Two years later, he's had the chance to build a roster of his own. He didn't exactly shy away from players who like to make things difficult for opponents.
Wheeler was one of the league's busiest hitters last season. The 23-year-old forward had 51 in 29 games with the New York Sirens, one of just three forwards in the league to reach 50. She also finished her rookie season with 10 points.
The hit total is what stands out, but it isn't the only reason Wheeler fits this story. She's the kind of player who can bring some energy to a line, compete along the boards and make a shift uncomfortable for the other team.
San Jose is going to need players like that.
Guilday is an even more obvious example on defense. She finished third in the league with 57 hits last season while leading Ottawa with 35 blocked shots. She then played all eight playoff games as the Charge reached the Walter Cup Final.
That's a pretty good resume for a 23-year-old defenseman joining an expansion team.
Guilday isn't going to be expected to solve everything on San Jose's blue line, but she gives Ryan someone who has already shown she can handle the physical side of the PWHL.
There will be forwards trying to establish position around the net, pucks chipped into corners and battles along the boards. There will also be nights when San Jose spends more time defending than it would like.
Guilday has already played those games, and she's not the only one.
Daniela Pejšová gives San Jose another experienced defenseman who has played two PWHL seasons with Boston and six World Championships with Czechia. She was named the best defender and an All-Star at the 2022 World Championship.
Hadley Hartmetz brings another young defenseman with PWHL experience, while Mariah Keopple has spent the past three seasons in the league between Montreal and Seattle.
Keopple's game adds another piece to the picture. She blocked 40 shots in 29 games last season, putting herself in shooting lanes and doing the kind of defensive work that doesn't always show up in the box score.
It's a different way of playing a physical game than what Guilday brings, but it's valuable all the same.
And that's probably the more accurate description of San Jose's blue line. It's not a group of players who all play the same way. Ryan has defenders who can bring physicality through hits, others who are willing to sacrifice their bodies to block shots and others who have the experience to deal with difficult situations.
The same is true up front.
Kristin O'Neill isn't going to be mistaken for a bruiser, but she's difficult to play against in the middle of the ice. She won 272 faceoffs last season, fourth-most in the league, and has already established herself as someone Ryan can use in difficult situations.
Maggie Connors gives him another forward with plenty of professional experience and a willingness to do the work that comes with it.
That's starting to look like a pattern. Not a team full of players chasing hits, but one with plenty of players who seem comfortable when the game gets a little messy.
That's an important distinction for Ryan.
He isn't going to want San Jose taking penalties just to prove it can play a physical game. The useful stuff happens within the flow of play: winning a race to a loose puck, getting inside position, finishing a check when the opportunity is there, standing in front of the net or taking a hit to make the play.
Those details can wear on an opponent over the course of a game, especially when they're coming from all over the lineup.
San Jose still has plenty to figure out before its first regular-season game. Ryan has to settle on his combinations, determine which players fit where and figure out how all of these pieces work together.
But the early version of this roster suggests he won't have to teach his players to embrace the difficult parts of the game.
They already seem pretty comfortable with them.
