The Dream Coming True for Kelly Browne

The pinnacle of American women's ice hockey is a game against Canada. The two national teams operate on a different talent plane, and the rivalry is more defined than the border separating the two nations. It's the sport's answer to the Hatfields and the McCoys, a never-ending turf war littered with wins and losses for both rosters.

The talent level is the most elite, so for the feeder programs, sending even one player into the matchup is a badge of honor. Programs sending more players become starlets in their own right, simply because legends born into the matchup are first hatched at the collegiate level.

Boston College knows all about that because the Eagles send so many different hockey players into the matchup. Conte Forum is more than just a hockey rink; it's a pipeline capable of producing the next great American or Canadian supernova. Players like Kelli Stack and Molly Schaus became Alex Carpenter, who in turn became Megan Keller and Kali Flanagan.

This past December, the pipeline replenished again when sophomore Kelly Browne received an invitation to a winter training camp and subsequent call-up to the senior women's national team as part of the USA's two victories in the 2019-2020 Rivalry Series.

"I was a late call-up to camp, so I was just excited to have an opportunity to attend camp," Browne said. "It was four days, so I was just determined to try my hardest, and then I made the roster for the two games. It was such a great experience to play with and against the best players in the world. I was very nervous at first in that first practice, but the older girls helped me do my thing to model my game and fit into their systems.

"It was awesome to play with Keller and Kali again," she said with a smile. "And then Cayla (Barnes) is there as my classmate. So there were some familiar faces, and it was great to get us back together again."

For Browne, the first apex of her hockey playing career happened in the midst of a breakout sophomore season in the NCAA. She enters this weekend already with a new career high in both points and assists. Her nine goals are two away from tying her total from last season, and she's already posted seven multi-point games on the season, including three four-point games and five games with multiple assists. She registered the program's 11th-ever four-goal game against New Hampshire, which in turn marked her first career hat trick and third career game-winning goal.

The numbers prove more than just her offensive prowess, though. Assists are generally earned through a player's ability to defend against an opponent, and the BC style of play is steeped in two-way hockey. She ranks third in the country with 321 face-off wins and has posted two games with 20 wins in the circle this season.

"I feel like I'm seeing the ice better," Browne said. "I'm gaining more confidence to make plays where I felt like I was passive last year. I built some personal goals for this year, now that I knew what to expect. There was an adjustment to coming in to how BC plays, to adjust to the forecheck and to understand the systems. It's much easier this year, and the pace didn't feel as fast as it did as freshmen, when everything is a step faster than what I was used to."

So though the team cooled after a flaming hot unbeaten streak to start the year, Browne's kept chugging as a leader for her class, which enters this weekend with 39 percent of the team's goals, 45 percent of the team's assists and 43 percent of the team's points.

"Our grade is really close, which makes our dynamic easier as a class," she said. "We're growing as a full class, coming into this year."

"She works so hard," head coach Katie Crowley said. "She's in the defensive zone doing what we want her to do. She does everything we ask her to do in a game. She's someone you want to build your team around, and now she's starting to take the reigns a little bit, which makes me excited to see her just keep developing."

It's the player Crowley expected when she watched and recruited the local product out of Burlington. Browne started her career at Burlington High School, scoring 78 goals and 46 assists in 45 games before transferring to Tabor Academy. Her development continued there, and she earned three team MVP awards with the Seawolves before being named the 2018 NEPSAC and ISL Player of the Year. Her reputation continued to grow with each game, and even the Boston Bruins took note, naming her the 2018 winner of the John Carlton Memorial Trophy, awarded annually to hockey players in Eastern Massachusetts who combine hockey greatness with academic excellence.

The track sent her straight into the national team's microscope, and every level seemed to produce another "Kelly Browne moment." Her club team, the Boston Jr. Eagles, won the 2015 U-14 USA Hockey Tier 1 National Championship, and she scored the game winning goal in the U12 championship game - in overtime, no less. In 2018, she skated as part of Team USA's U18 World Championship team in Russia, scoring a goal and an assist as part of the Yanks' gold medal effort.

"I got to play with my twin sister (at Burlington), and that was awesome," Browne said. "But Boston has so many great schools and teams. I always knew I wanted to go to a Beanpot school, having grown up watching those games. Once I set foot on campus, I knew BC was the place for me. We have great coaches, a great school and a great team. From the start, this was where I wanted to be."

Her on-ice accomplishments give her plenty of reasons to smile or humble-brag, but that's also not her style. Interviewing Browne came with the warning that she would automatically deflect all of her accomplishments and success to everyone around her. It wasn't meant maliciously or ironically but rather truthfully. She harbored a completely genuine appreciation for her teammates, and her quickness to deflect her success is something that everyone knew would happen in a player deemed a "throwback" as both a person and a leader.

"It's all my teammates, honestly," she said. "I'm so lucky to have such great players to play with, and it's been so fun playing with my linemates. I've played with a lot of people over this year, but every one has been making me better."

"She's quieter in the locker room because she's a leader by example on the ice," Crowley said. "But that's what we expect of her right now. We have players like Delaney Belinskas, Erin Connolly, Lindsay Agnew, and Molly Barrow, and they're our more vocal leaders. The best part about Kelly is that she knows that role on and off the ice. She's learned from her upperclassmen teammates on how to do things. She's had good leaders, and they love her. She's going to look to everyone for insight but take the initiative to learn from her experience. She's starting to get to that level now where I think she could probably be a little bit more vocal."

It's why Boston College remains a threat in Hockey East despite going through a cold stretch. The Eagles enter "trophy season" with 24 points in conference play, eight points behind league-leading Northeastern and tied with Boston University for second, though the Terriers have two games in hand. The Beanpot lurks on the horizon, and the Hockey East tournament is starting to incorporate more parity in a league once recognized for its top heaviness. As a program, BC understands the storminess of the month, but it's something the players, including Browne, all embrace.

"I think that she is one of the most underrated players, not only in Hockey East but across the board," Crowley said. "I was so happy for her to be picked for Team USA in December because she's a dream. She's one of those kids; you never hear anything negative come out of her mouth. She's extremely humble and genuine, and she puts her head down to work hard every day. She does everything you ask of her. I honestly can't say enough good things about her."

"We have a great conference," Browne said. "We don't take any game lightly, and we get up for every game. This has been so fun and competitive to play in Hockey East. Some of the teams are obviously more rivals, but every game makes it tough. You never know the outcome."

Players Mentioned

Lindsay Agnew

Molly Barrow

Delaney Belinskas

Kelly Browne

Erin Connolly

Kali Flanagan

Megan Keller

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