Wakatipu Wild

The Wakatipu Wild is a New Zealand amateur ice hockey team from Queenstown, Otago, New Zealand. Founded in 2020, the Wild are a member of the New Zealand Women's Ice Hockey League (NZWIHL). The Wild are based at Queenstown Ice Arena, located at Queenstown Gardens. Wakatipu are one time NZWIHL champions and premiers.

Wakatipu Wild
CityQueenstown, Otago
LeagueNew Zealand Women's Ice Hockey League
FoundedSeptember 2020 (September 2020)
Operated2020–present
Home arenaQueenstown Ice Arena
ColoursYellow, blue, white
     
General managerNew Zealand Rebecca Dobson
Head coachColin McIntosh
CaptainKellye Nelson
WebsiteWakatipu-wild.com
Franchise history
2020–presentWakatipu Wild
Championships
Premierships1 (2022)
Championships1 (2022)
Current season

History

The Wakatipu Wild was founded in 2020 and applied and joined the New Zealand Women's Ice Hockey League (NZWIHL). The Wild was established to bring women of all ages and nationalities together to further the development of woman's ice hockey locally i Otago and nationally in New Zealand.[1] Wakatipu appointed Rebecca Dobson as their maiden general manager and former Skycity Stampede player Colin McIntosh as head coach.[1][2] Thew Wild's first ever game was played on 16 October 2020 against Otago rivals Dunedin Thunder on the road at Dunedin Ice Stadium. Young kiwi forward, Tallulah Bryant, scored the first ever goals for the Wild in the first period against Dunedin. Wakatipu doubled their lead in the second period before the Thunder pulled one goal back in the third. That third period goal proved a simple consolation as the wild won the game 2–1, for their first ever victory.[3] Queenstown finished their first season in the NZWIHL in third place, qualifying for the bronze medal game in the NZWIHL Finals. The Wild won bronze in Finals on 1 November 2020 by defeating the Thunder 4–2. Wakatipu came from behind to claim their first Finals win, with American import and team captain, Kellye Nelson, scoring a hat-trick of goals over the course of the second and third periods.[4]

Half way through the 2021 NZWIHL season, the Wild's second season, the league was cancelled due to the lock-downs implemented by the New Zealand Government during the COVID-19 pandemic.[5][6] The team had started the season well with two wins from their first three games before the season cancellation.[7]

In 2022, the Wild had a breakout season in their second full NZWIHL season. Rather than tournament style weekends, the league moved to a proper round-robin format that the Wild players enjoyed.[8] Wakatipu almost went the entire season undefeated to finish top of the league standings a secure their first NZWIHL Premiership title.[9] Queenstown followed up this success in the NZWIHL Finals with a big 7–2 victory over the Thunder in the semi-finals before being crowned Champions of New Zealand and winning goal medals with a 2–0 win over Canterbury Inferno in the grand final.[10][11][12]

All-time record
Wakatipu Wild all-time record
Season Regular season Finals Top points scorer
P W T L OW OL GF GA GD Pts Finish P W L GF GA Result SF BF GF Name Points
202062–4––818−1063rd11–42Bronze–Won–United States Kellye Nelson9
20212021 NZWIHL season was not completed and cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic1
202265–––1337+26161st22–92ChampionWon–WonUnited States Kellye Nelson19
2023––––––––––––––––––––––
Totals127–4014125+16330134
1 At the point of the 2021 season cancellation, the Wild had played three games, won twice, lost once, scored 15 goals and conceded eight goals.[7]
ChampionsRunners-upThird place

Championships
  • Championships
1st place, gold medalist(s) Champions (1): 2022
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runners-up (0):
  • Premierships
1st place, gold medalist(s) Premiers (1): 2022
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runner-up (0):

Players

Current roster

Team roster for the 2022 NZWIHL season.[13]

Wakatipu Wild roster - 2022 NZWIHL season
Active RosterCoaching staff
Goaltenders
  • 37 New Zealand Lilly Forbes
  •  1 New Zealand Sara Leadbetter
  • 78 New Zealand Danielle Strayer
  • 25 New Zealand Jordan Wichman

Defencemen

  • 27 New Zealand Lucy Boniface
  • 92 New Zealand Gracie Hellmrich
  • 33 New Zealand Kimberley Helmersson
  • 32 New Zealand Caitlin Hollyer
  • 11 Canada Alexandra Laframboise (I)
  • 79 New Zealand Aoife Orr
  • 12 New Zealand Zanzee Pielak-Jones
  • 74 New Zealand Phaeora Sims
 Forwards
  • 19 Canada Emma Ahvennie (I)
  • 15 United States Amanda Albertson (I)
  • 36 New Zealand Polly Bennetts
  • 23 New Zealand Tallulah Bryant
  • 18 New Zealand Gina Davis
  • 14 New Zealand Rebecca Dobson
  • 81 Sweden Lova Holmqvist (I)
  •  8 New Zealand Inge Kemp
  • 17 Canada Coco Lund (I)
  • 16 New Zealand Harriet Miller-Brown
  •  5 New Zealand Ella Mills
  •  2 New Zealand Gabrielle Mills
  • 22 United States Kellye Nelson (I) (C)
  • 10 Canada Kristyn Ouimet (I)
  • 48 New Zealand Manuella Pedrosa
  • 13 Finland Minna Ruski-Jones (I)
  • 11 New Zealand Neve Spooner
  • 24 New Zealand Jessie Strain
  •  7 New Zealand Nicole Watts
  •  6 Canada Bobbie Weeks (I)
 Head Coach
  • Canada Colin McIntosh

Coaches

  • New Zealand Dave Dubnick
  • United States Kellye Nelson


Legend
(C) Captain
(A) Alternate Captain
(I) Import player

Statistics
Average age: 21.3 years
Average height: 167.4 cm
Average weight: 64.1 kg

Last updated on: 25 February 2023
Elite Prospects

Player records

These are the top-five all-time/career player records in franchise history. Current as of 2022 NZWIHL season.[14]

All-time Appearances
# Name Pos GP
1United States Kellye NelsonF13
2New Zealand Gabrielle MillsF13
3New Zealand Zanzee Pielak-JonesD13
4New Zealand Caitlin HollyerD13
5Canada Emma AhvennieF13
All-time Points
# Name Pos Pts
1United States Kellye NelsonF28
2Sweden Lova HolmqvistF16
3New Zealand Gabrielle MillsF10
4New Zealand Gina DavisF9
5New Zealand Zanzee Pielak-JonesD9
All-time Penalties
# Name Pos PIM
1New Zealand Gabrielle MillsF26
2Canada Emma AhvennieF16
3New Zealand Tallulah BryantF12
4New Zealand Gracie HellmrichD8
5New Zealand Caitlin HollyerD6

Team staff

Current as of 2023 NZWIHL season.[1]

Wild staff
RoleName
Head coachCanada Colin McIntosh
Assistant coachNew Zealand Dave Dubnick
Assistant coachUnited States Kellye Nelson
General managerNew Zealand Rebecca Dobson

Leaders

Team captains

The Wild have had one captain in the team's history.[15]

No.NameTerm
1United States Kellye Nelson2020–present

References:

Further information on team captains in ice hockey: Captain (ice hockey)

head coaches

The Wild have had one head coach in the team's history.[2][1]

No.NameTerm
1Canada Colin McIntosh2020–present

References:

Further information on head coaches in ice hockey: Coach (ice hockey)

General managers

The Wild have had one general manager (GM) in the team's history.[1]

No.NameTerm
1New Zealand Rebecca Dobson2020–present

References:

Further information on general managers in ice hockey: General manager (ice hockey)

Broadcasting

Current:

  • YouTube (2020 – present) – The NZWIHL self broadcast league games live on YouTube on their official channel. Due to limited resources, not all games are broadcast.[16][17]


References
  1. "Wakatipu Wild". New Zealand Women's Ice Hockey League. Archived from the original on 24 February 2023. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  2. "Wakatipu Wild – Team Staff History". eliteprospects.com. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  3. "Game Summary" (PDF). New Zealand Ice Hockey Federation. 16 October 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on 19 June 2021. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  4. "Game Summary NZWIHL Play-offs Game 13" (PDF). New Zealand Ice Hockey Federation. 1 November 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on 19 June 2021. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  5. "NZIHF COVID-19 Announcement". New Zealand Ice Hockey Federation. 20 August 2021. Archived from the original on 18 February 2023. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
  6. "NZWIHL Round 2 Cancellation". New Zealand Ice Hockey Federation. 10 November 2021. Archived from the original on 18 February 2023. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
  7. "NZWIHL 2021 season". New Zealand Ice Hockey Federation. Archived from the original on 24 February 2023. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  8. "Wakatipu Wild Reflect on 2022 NZWIHL Season". New Zealand Women's Ice Hockey League. 24 October 2022. Archived from the original on 24 February 2023. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
  9. "NZWIHL Schedule and Results: Season 2022". New Zealand Women's Ice Hockey League. Archived from the original on 2 December 2022. Retrieved 1 February 2023.
  10. Wormald, Lucy (29 September 2022). "Wild makes history". Mountain Scene. Archived from the original on 24 February 2023. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
  11. Meikle, Hayden (26 September 2022). "Wild wins league trophy for first time". Otago Daily Times. Archived from the original on 12 October 2022. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
  12. "2022 Season Recap". New Zealand Women's Ice Hockey League. 14 October 2022. Archived from the original on 24 February 2023. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
  13. "Queenstown 2021–2022 Roster". eliteprospects.com. Archived from the original on 24 February 2023. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  14. "Wakatipu Wild – All Time Regular Season Player Stats". eliteprospects.com. Archived from the original on 24 February 2023. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  15. "Wakatipu Wild – Team Captaincy History". eliteprospects.com. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  16. "Live Stream". New Zealand Women's Ice Hockey League. Archived from the original on 2 December 2022. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  17. "New Zealand Women's Ice Hockey League Live". New Zealand Women's Ice Hockey League. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
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