Considering the fact that Mikayla Ogrodniczuk literally grew up on the University of British Columbia (UBC) campus, it seems fitting that she is now donning the blue and gold as a member of their women’s varsity hockey team.

 

Ogrodniczuk, whose parents are both UBC employees, first learned to skate at UBC’s Father David Bauer Arena. She began playing at the age of nine (9) with the Vancouver Angels. She quickly caught on, then joining the Vancouver Thunderbirds Minor Hockey Association (MHA) and North Shore Female MHA before playing her Midget hockey with the Fraser Valley Phantom (now the Fraser Valley Rush).

 

In 2012-2013, her first season with Fraser Valley, she tallied two (2) goals and five (5) assists for a total of seven (7) points in 28 league games. The Phantom went on to win the FMAAA Championship and hosted the ESSO Cup, placing fifth.

 

In 2013-2014, she more than doubled her point total, earning 19 points on the strength of five (5) goals and 14 assists in 30 games. Thanks to the strength of their blue line crew, the Phantom won the prestigious Notre Dame Mandi Schwartz Memorial Tournament, along with the FMAAA Championship. The team once again participated in the ESSO Cup, placing fifth.

 

In her third and final season with the Phantom, she placed second in the league among defenseman, scoring 17 points off of eight (8) goals and nine (9) assists in 24 games. The Phantom finished second in the FMAAA Championship, losing in a close three (3) game series to the Northern Cougars (now the Northern Capitals).

 

Said Rush coach Al Wozney, “Mikayla contributed to the team on the ice with her tenacious style of play in both the defensive and offensive zones. Mikayla was often a clutch situational player who would make a crucial defensive play or would score the game winning goal in the last few seconds of the game with her hard slap shot from the point to bring the team to a win. Off the ice, Mikayla took charge of the team to keep the comradery and focus. Her continuous hard work and determination was admiring for teammates and would thus empower them to work just as hard, especially through adverse times.”

 

In addition to playing for the Phantom, Ogrodniczuk was also a member of Team BC in 2013-2014 and 2014-2015, attending the 2015 Canada Winter Games in Prince George, BC.

 

Ogrodniczuk is now in her first year of playing for the Thunderbirds, who are third in the Canada West Universities Athletic Association (CWAA) with a 6-5-2 record. So far, Ogrodniczuk has two (2) goals and one (1) assist for a total of three (3) points through the first 13 games of her university career.

 

Said Wozney, “Mikayla’s biggest development was her leadership skills through the years. The more comfortable and confident she became in her own skills and role as a teammate, the stronger the leader she became. Mikayla skyrocketed to becoming not only one of our top defencemen but one of our strongest players.”

 

The FMAAA program consists of six (6) zone-based teams across the province – the Fraser Valley Rush (Langley), Greater Vancouver Comets (Coquitlam), Kootenay Wild (Nelson), Northern Capitals (Prince George), Thompson-Okanagan Lakers (Vernon), and Vancouver Island Seals (Campbell River). The teams play a 30 game regular season, followed by the playoffs. The FMAAA Champion has the opportunity to compete for the ESSO Cup, Hockey Canada's National Female Midget Championship, which will take place in Weyburn, Saskatchewan from April 19 - 25, 2016.

 

The FMAAA program was initiated in the 2007-2008 season in response to the membership’s desire to provide an opportunity for elite female hockey players to come together on zone teams to challenge other elite female Midget teams. The league has had nearly 100 players move on to post-secondary hockey opportunities.

 

For more information about the BC FMAAA program, please visit the website at www.bchockey.net/fmaaa or email midgethockey@bchockey.net.