Penn State women's hockey head coach Jeff Kampersal didn't mince words when it came to his star player Tessa Janecke. The 21-year-old senior captain of Penn State is the reigning Atlantic Hockey America MVP, and two-time World Championship gold medalist with Team USA. In fact, at the 2025 World Championships in Czechia, Janecke scored the golden goal in overtime against Canada. For Kampersal, the opportunity to coach a player he referred to as "generational," it's an honor. "When you're in a position of being able to coach a generational player it's definitely an honor," said Kampersal. "Sometimes you can get sidetracked of being a coach and a fan of the player. I still remind myself we've got to be a coach and help her with little things that will hopefully help her for Penn State and at the next level." Janecke had 24 goals and 53 points in 38 games last season with Penn State, who she again helped to a national tournament appearance. Following the upcoming campaign, Janecke is projected to be a top five pick in the PWHL Draft [https://thehockeynews.com/womens/pwhl/pwhl-draft-2026-offseason-rankings]. For a player with her track record, Janecke could have jumped like many players have to a national title contender. She didn't. As Kampersal touted, Janecke's commitment to the Penn State program has been a facet of her career he admires. "The biggest thing for me with Tessa, like at the end of the day is just her loyalty and loyalty to Penn State, and coming in here and doing her thing at a high level."
