Alana Blahoski tunes up for another hockey season

Originally published on ChickSports.com in 2000

By Lucas Aykroyd

Don’t call her Alanis.

Alana Blahoski may not sing like Ms. Morissette, but she’s one of America’s top female hockey players. At 25, the swift-skating forward from St. Paul, Minnesota has already enjoyed the thrill of winning an Olympic gold medal with the U.S. national team at the 1998 Nagano Games. She’s a committed vegetarian and a Grass Roots Hockey Advisor for the NHL’s latest expansion franchise, the Minnesota Wild. Alana is as excited as anyone about the 34,000-plus American women enrolled in hockey programs and the National Women’s Hockey League’s plans to expand. But she’s level-headed enough to admit there’s lots of work to do before women’s hockey can capture the public’s imagination and inspire a generation of young female athletes to chase their puck dreams.

ChickSports spoke with Alana by phone from Boston on January 25 in the midst of training camp with the U.S. national team.

ChickSports: How’s training camp going?

Alana Blahoski: Really well. It’s the first time, other than the pre-Olympic tour in 1997, that we have a standing national team throughout the season. It’s a great opportunity for us, because there’s really no place to play when we’re not together as a team. Last year was an off year. We just had two tournaments: the Three Nations Cup and the world championships in Finland. In between, we were responsible for training and getting ice time on our own. It’s difficult to find the level of play you get when the team is together.

ChickSports: What inspired you to take up hockey in the first place?

Alana: I have an older brother and a younger brother, and they both played. I was at one of my older brother’s practices when I was six years old and I wasn’t interested in watching. I was running all over the rink and getting in trouble! So my dad decided to take me out on the ice, and I skated for about an hour, falling most of the time. But I absolutely loved it, and that’s how I got started. Wow, it’s been nineteen years now!

ChickSports: What kind of encouragement do you give young girls who want to play hockey today?

Alana: Just to go ahead and do it. I haven’t met a lot of girls who come off the ice after playing hockey for the first time and say they didn’t enjoy it. A lot of parents push girls into figure skating, thinking hockey is too aggressive and dangerous. But the women’s game is not as violent as the men’s game, especially with the no-bodychecking rule. There is physical contact, but that’s not the purpose of the game. You’re not trying to injure someone. You use your body to take them off the puck. We have a skill-based game.

ChickSports: Who is the top female hockey player in the world today?

Alana: Hayley Wickenheiser from Canada is an absolutely incredible player. The European countries also have great respect or even fear when it comes to Canada, and I think they’d say Hayley is number one as well. On the U.S. team, we have players who are right up there, like Karyn Bye and Cammi Granato, and some good young prospects, like Laurie Baker and Katie King.

ChickSports: In most women’s hockey tournaments, the U.S. and Canada fight for top spot and Finland comes third. What’ll it take for other countries to become competitive?

Alana: Practicing together is a big key. We recently had a tournament with Sweden and Russia at Lake Placid, and they don’t get the opportunity to train together. They only come together a week or two before the tournament, and it’s noticeable. But they’re improving. China also has an incredible team and they’re going head-to-head with Finland at this stage.

ChickSports: What was the best part about winning the gold medal at the Olympics two years ago?

Alana: The best part was sharing the victory with such a great group of people. That includes everyone from my teammates to the coaches and equipment managers. We were all so innocent. We went into Nagano just wanting to win the gold, not knowing if people back home would care or if it would only be us and our family and friends. It was fantastic so many people got into it. But you know, along with that exposure comes a certain knowledge about financial gains and contracts and fame and all that stuff. I hope the innocence of ’98 hasn’t been lost when we come back to defend our title in 2002 at Salt Lake City.

ChickSports: How far away are we from seeing professional women’s hockey on the scale of, say, the Women’s National Basketball Association?

Alana: In all honesty, I think we’re a long way off. The talent pool isn’t deep enough. The world championships represent the best players in the world, and like you said, right now it’s basically three or four teams who have a chance to win. We need more. Also, I love the women’s game, but I think it’s difficult to market. Men who watch NHL or college games enjoy the hitting a lot, and it’s a selling point for the men’s game. Something is still missing in terms of women being able to draw a big crowd.

ChickSports: What do you think of women like the two Quebec goalies, Manon Rheaume and Charline Labonte, who have chosen to compete against men at the pro level?

Alana: If they’re physically able to match up with the men, I’m all for it. It’s going to help them because they face harder shots from the men and have to react quicker. It’s good for a female goalie’s game. But I don’t think there is a future for women in the National Hockey League, especially not for forwards or defenders. Physiologically, it would be very tough. I look at some of the girls on our team and see how strong they are, but it’s not the same. I’m about 132 pounds and I can pull my own body weight and more, but I can’t fight off someone who’s six feet and 200 pounds.

ChickSports: How do you structure your vegetarian diet to meet the specific nutritional demands of hockey?

Alana: It’s not too difficult. The main concern is to get enough protein. Vegetarian or not, everyone on the U.S. team is drinking some kind of protein shake. I’ve been a vegetarian since 1992, and it’s all about balance. The team is very accommodating about meals, too. They know the nutritional needs of each player. Some girls may not be vegetarians, but lots only eat chicken or don’t eat red meat. It’s all taken care of.

ChickSports: If you had to pick one word to sum yourself up, what would it be?

Alana: Determined!

ChickSports: Where would you spend your ideal vacation?

Alana: Out in Colorado. I’m a big skiing fan, and my mom does it too.

ChickSports: If you could invite any two people, living or dead, to dinner, who would they be?

Alana: My father, who passed away last December, and Adam Oates of the Washington Capitals.

ChickSports: If you could be any animal, which would it be?

Alana: A cheetah. I love their speed.

ChickSports: Looking down the road, how do you plan to be involved in hockey when your playing career is over?

Alana: I enjoy coaching, but I don’t think I want to become one. I find it a bit too predictable. The Minnesota Wild have offered me work, whether that’s in the office, doing promotions, or broadcasting. I’ve done some announcing at women’s games last year, and I really enjoyed it.

ChickSports: And you must have off-ice interests you want to pursue.

Alana: Plenty! I’m fascinated with the culinary arts. I’ve always wanted to be an actress. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to give up the thrill of competition, so I may have to look for other new avenues.