Lara Stalder (left) and Alina Muller (right, with Sinja Leemann in the middle) went to college hockey in the United States as a means of getting a good education and finding the best way to develop as a hockey player during these years of her life.
photo: Matt Zambonin / HHOF-IIHF Images
Two decades ago, pretty much the only coach seriously recruiting European players for the NCAA was Shannon Miller at the University of Minnesota Duluth. Soon after, Swede Peter Elander at the University of North Dakota followed suit. Today, virtually every NCAA coach sees the value of recruiting from overseas.
Two Swiss players represent the past and present of that strategy. Alina Muller is entering her final year at Northeastern, while linemate and captain Lara Stalder played at UMD from 2013 to 2017. They share their insights into what has become an evert-more-popular trend among European women.
“Yes, lots of Europeans are looking to play there,” Muller begins. “NCAA is an elite level, good infrastructure, good teams, super cool and fun life, so I can recommend it to everybody, obviously. But it’s important they play in Europe, too. For that we just need good players. Maybe now they’re all going to go overseas, but maybe in a few years I hope we don’t have to go overseas anymore and we can build something like that in Europe, too.”
“I think Peter Elander in North Dakota was also one of the first to start recruiting Europeans,” Stalder offers. “He started talking to us at under-18s, and Laura Schuler was also recruiting me. She followed Shannon Miller and wanted to keep that tradition. Before it was only UMD that did it, but then it moved out east and more and more teams got to know how to do it. It’s a lot of paperwork actually. It’s not easy to go over there and know exactly what you need and your eligibility. It’s a tough process, but more and more people learned about it, and now it’s common in every league in the NCAA.”
In the old days, players would often submit DVDs to NCAA coaches petitioning for a scholarship, almost like a job interview or job application. Today, it’s the other way around, the more traditional method of coach recruiting player.
“I had great role models like Laura and Florence Schelling and Julia Marti,” Muller said of her interest in leaving Switzerland to play in the U.S. a few years ago. “They all played overseas. A lot of coaches come to these IIHF tournaments, and in Switzerland we can play at a high level early on. I think a lot of teams saw me in Sochi when I was 15. That was a good year to be recruited, and people contacted me. I asked my teammates how they liked it over there. You have no idea as a European, but it was the best decision I ever made.”
Another factor in greater coach interest in Europe, almost like with NHL Europeans half a century ago, is that Europeans can bring a different skillset to the game. In Miller’s time, it was more about skill – or a lack of it – with the Europeans that was a stumbling block, but training and commitment have improved dramatically.
“A lot of coaches recruit European players because they like the style we play with the puck,” Muller continued. “And the game is changing. It’s not only north-south anymore; it’s a lot of puck possession, and European players can do that really well.”
Of course, the problem with NCAA in terms of player careers, is that it’s only four years long. The players graduate with a degree and excellent education, but they are on their own for finding a place to play. While the PWHPA hasn’t yet found its footing, and the PHF doesn’t have the very top players who feel it doesn’t pay a true living salary, Europeans in particular have little choice but to return home. But where do they play? Have Stalder and Muller kept informed on what’s happening in North America?
“I’ve talked to some players a little bit,” Stalder says, “but for now I’m pretty happy in Sweden because it’s a professional league with a professional structure every day. I’d like to hear more about what it’s like [with the PWHPA], but it’s still building. Of course, I wish there was one league where national team players could play and there was investment in one league, but now they’re kind of fighting each other, and that’s kind of sad, because we need to work together if we want it to get off the ground. But absolutely, I’d consider playing with the best. That’s a dream.”
While Stalder is happy in Sweden, Muller is one year away from having to make her own choices. “I don’t know what I’ll do yet,” she admitted. “That’s a good question. I know Sweden is a really good league, and I know the U.S. is working on building a good league, but I’m open to wherever I go. But my dream is to play against and with the best. That’s where I want to play in the future.”
“Right now, if we want to play professionally, we have to leave Switzerland,” Stalder added. “But we have to have the league and players back home to be role models if we want to grow the sport at home. If we had more good players, some would leave but some would also stay. We don’t have that depth yet.”
No matter what, Muller believes a happy player makes a good player, and in that scenario, each player is different. “It’s not the same for everybody. Not everyone is happy to leave home at an early age. I’m confident that wherever you feel the most comfortable, you will develop the best. And there are a lot of places in Europe and North America. NCAA is great, but we have a lot of great players on our team who never went overseas, so they showed that it’s possible.”
Two Swiss players represent the past and present of that strategy. Alina Muller is entering her final year at Northeastern, while linemate and captain Lara Stalder played at UMD from 2013 to 2017. They share their insights into what has become an evert-more-popular trend among European women.
“Yes, lots of Europeans are looking to play there,” Muller begins. “NCAA is an elite level, good infrastructure, good teams, super cool and fun life, so I can recommend it to everybody, obviously. But it’s important they play in Europe, too. For that we just need good players. Maybe now they’re all going to go overseas, but maybe in a few years I hope we don’t have to go overseas anymore and we can build something like that in Europe, too.”
“I think Peter Elander in North Dakota was also one of the first to start recruiting Europeans,” Stalder offers. “He started talking to us at under-18s, and Laura Schuler was also recruiting me. She followed Shannon Miller and wanted to keep that tradition. Before it was only UMD that did it, but then it moved out east and more and more teams got to know how to do it. It’s a lot of paperwork actually. It’s not easy to go over there and know exactly what you need and your eligibility. It’s a tough process, but more and more people learned about it, and now it’s common in every league in the NCAA.”
In the old days, players would often submit DVDs to NCAA coaches petitioning for a scholarship, almost like a job interview or job application. Today, it’s the other way around, the more traditional method of coach recruiting player.
“I had great role models like Laura and Florence Schelling and Julia Marti,” Muller said of her interest in leaving Switzerland to play in the U.S. a few years ago. “They all played overseas. A lot of coaches come to these IIHF tournaments, and in Switzerland we can play at a high level early on. I think a lot of teams saw me in Sochi when I was 15. That was a good year to be recruited, and people contacted me. I asked my teammates how they liked it over there. You have no idea as a European, but it was the best decision I ever made.”
Another factor in greater coach interest in Europe, almost like with NHL Europeans half a century ago, is that Europeans can bring a different skillset to the game. In Miller’s time, it was more about skill – or a lack of it – with the Europeans that was a stumbling block, but training and commitment have improved dramatically.
“A lot of coaches recruit European players because they like the style we play with the puck,” Muller continued. “And the game is changing. It’s not only north-south anymore; it’s a lot of puck possession, and European players can do that really well.”
Of course, the problem with NCAA in terms of player careers, is that it’s only four years long. The players graduate with a degree and excellent education, but they are on their own for finding a place to play. While the PWHPA hasn’t yet found its footing, and the PHF doesn’t have the very top players who feel it doesn’t pay a true living salary, Europeans in particular have little choice but to return home. But where do they play? Have Stalder and Muller kept informed on what’s happening in North America?
“I’ve talked to some players a little bit,” Stalder says, “but for now I’m pretty happy in Sweden because it’s a professional league with a professional structure every day. I’d like to hear more about what it’s like [with the PWHPA], but it’s still building. Of course, I wish there was one league where national team players could play and there was investment in one league, but now they’re kind of fighting each other, and that’s kind of sad, because we need to work together if we want it to get off the ground. But absolutely, I’d consider playing with the best. That’s a dream.”
While Stalder is happy in Sweden, Muller is one year away from having to make her own choices. “I don’t know what I’ll do yet,” she admitted. “That’s a good question. I know Sweden is a really good league, and I know the U.S. is working on building a good league, but I’m open to wherever I go. But my dream is to play against and with the best. That’s where I want to play in the future.”
“Right now, if we want to play professionally, we have to leave Switzerland,” Stalder added. “But we have to have the league and players back home to be role models if we want to grow the sport at home. If we had more good players, some would leave but some would also stay. We don’t have that depth yet.”
No matter what, Muller believes a happy player makes a good player, and in that scenario, each player is different. “It’s not the same for everybody. Not everyone is happy to leave home at an early age. I’m confident that wherever you feel the most comfortable, you will develop the best. And there are a lot of places in Europe and North America. NCAA is great, but we have a lot of great players on our team who never went overseas, so they showed that it’s possible.”