Rinkside Rundown

This week on the show, I'm joined by Viivi Vainikka, Finnish national team member and forward with Brynäs IF of the SDHL, as she shares her journey from Espoo, Finland, where she started playing the game as a way to spend time with friends to becoming a star in the Swedish league.

Viivi talks about how her competitive nature helped her to discover a passion for hockey, how that passion drove her to make the leap to Naisten Liiga, the top league in Finland, when she was only 15 years old, and how she's continued to see success at every step of the way, including internationally. We also discuss why she spent an extra season in the SDHL before declaring for the upcoming PWHL Draft, and why now is the right time for her to take the next step and play in the best league in the world.

Discover more at www.rinksiderundown.ca, and follow the podcast on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/rinksiderundownpod.

On this week's episode of Rinkside Rundown, I'm joined by College of Holy Cross standout forward Charlotte Sonntag as we skate our way through her journey from Sun Valley, Idaho, through the Shattuck St Mary's organization to her record-setting collegiate career with Holy Cross.

We talk about the important lessons Charlotte learned during her junior career and how they helped set her up for a collegiate career that saw her leave a lasting legacy on the ice while successfully balancing an academic career away from it. We also discuss Charlotte's excitement for the upcoming PWHL Draft and the preparation she's putting in to achieve her ultimate goal of playing professional hockey alongside the best in the world.

Discover more at www.rinksiderundown.ca, and follow the podcast on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/rinksiderundownpod.

This week on Rinkside Rundown, I'm joined by forward Carina DiAntonio, captain at Yale University, to discover more about her journey from the outdoor rinks in Mississauga, ON, where she was an active kid who wanted to be just like her sister and play hockey, to becoming captain at Yale, and preparing for the upcoming PWHL Draft.

We talk about the leadership experience she gained during her junior career with the Brampton Jr Canadettes, the lessons she's learned through her four years at Yale University, and what it would mean to have the opportunity to play professionally in the PWHL.

This is an exciting episodes with one of the most reliable and effective forwards in the NCAA, and a name that you'll definitely want to know heading into this year's PWHL Draft.

Discover more: www.rinksiderundown.ca

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Thea Johansson, a forward at the University of Minnesota Duluth, joins Rinkside Rundown to talk about her path from Sweden to NCAA hockey and now toward the 2026 PWHL Draft. Read and subscribe at www.rinksiderundown.ca.

Growing up in a competitive athletic family in Sweden, Thea was surrounded by sport and learned early how to train, compete, and handle pressure while still enjoying the game. She walks through her early years in the SDHL, what it meant to leave home for Mercyhurst University, and how transferring to Minnesota Duluth challenged her and helped her grow as both a player and a person at the NCAA level.

Thea also reflects on her mindset and professionalism, the skills she has worked to refine, and what she took from her time with the Swedish national program, including Olympic dreams and the reality of chasing them. With the 2026 PWHL Draft ahead, Thea also shares how she is preparing for that next step, what excites her about the opportunity, and the advice she would give younger players: have fun, be in the moment, be curious, ask questions, and remember that you love this sport for a reason.

Discover more at www.rinksiderundown.ca
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Visit Meg's Etsy store: https://www.etsy.com/shop/madebymegsimon14

Middlebury College forward and 2026 Hockey Humanitarian Award winner Meg Simon joins Rinkside Rundown to share how a life spent around the game shaped who she is on and off the ice.

From moving more than 50 times for her dad’s pro hockey career and growing up in NHL locker rooms, to coming to Middlebury as a golfer and betting on herself to join the women’s hockey team, Meg’s path has been anything but typical.

We talk about the team culture she fell in love with, the community work inspired by watching her parents use their platforms to give back, and how she now tries to be “more than just a hockey player” for the kids and community around her. She also opens up about homesickness, finding home in a small Vermont town, running a little Etsy shop on the side, and the three simple rules from her parents that still guide everything she does: play fair, play hard, have fun, and be a good person.

Since our conversation, Meg was named the 2026 Hockey Humanitarian Award recipient, and you discover more here: https://hockeyhumanitarian.org/news/middlebury-colleges-meg-simon-named-2026-hockey-humanitarian-award-recipient/

Discover more at www.rinksiderundown.ca
Follow the podcast on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/rinksiderundownpod

Friend of the show Alyssa Regalado returns to the show for the first time since Episode 35, and shares how Cornell University has helped to prepare her for the next chapter of her hockey career with the upcoming 2026 PWHL Draft.

Alyssa shares more about the mental side of the game, how she's grown as a leader, and the lessons she's learned through the ups and downs of collegiate hockey.

We also discuss what it would mean to Alyssa to see her professional dreams become a reality with the PWHL Draft on the horizon.

Check out Episode 35 here and discover Alyssa's origin story: https://youtu.be/Gmv92jxJlRs

Subscribe to Rinkside Rundown for weekly conversations with players from around the world of women's hockey, and for ongoing coverage of the upcoming 2026 PWHL Draft. And visit www.rinksiderundown.ca for even more coverage.

Issy Wunder is the top-ranked Canadian prospect heading into the 2026 PWHL Draft, but her journey to the professional ranks began long before the league’s inception.

From the backyard rink her mother built in Toronto to her tenure as captain of the Princeton Tigers, Issy has defined her career through a balance of elite athletic performance and strong academics.

In this episode, we move beyond the scoresheet to explore the person behind the "C." A neuroscience and psychology student at Princeton, Issy explains how understanding the brain allows her to "reframe" the immense pressure of the collegiate and professional game as a privilege.

We discuss her junior roots with the Toronto Aeros and Durham West, the influence of Olympic legend Sami Jo Small, and why she views being a role model as a non-negotiable responsibility.

As she prepares to transition from the Ivy League to the PWHL, Issy reflects on the growth, leadership, and community that made this path possible.

Discover more at www.rinksiderundown.ca
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"I didn't prove anyone wrong. I proved myself wrong."

Alaina Giampietro joined Robert Morris University in 2023 as part of a newly reinstated program, but her journey in the game started much earlier at her grandfather's local rink in Ohio. Now, as the captain of the Colonials, she is balancing the weight of Division I hockey with the responsibility of building a team culture from the ground up.

On Episode 119 of Rinkside Rundown, Alaina shares:

• The Ohio Origins: How early mornings skating with her grandfather laid the foundation for her career.
• The Rebuild Reality: What it actually takes to establish a culture and a legacy in a program’s first years back on the ice.
• The "Prove Myself Right" Mindset: How shifting from external validation to internal growth changed her development as a player and leader.
• The Impact Beyond the Scoreboard: Why leaving the program better than she found it is her ultimate goal at RMU.

Join the community: If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to the show and follow along on Instagram for more behind-the-scenes coverage of women’s hockey: https://www.instagram.com/rinksiderundownpod

Episode 118 of Rinkside Rundown continues the “Road to the PWHL Draft” series with Union College defender and captain Stephanie Bourque.

A native of Moncton, New Brunswick, Bourque has built a standout NCAA career defined by consistency, durability, and production. She became Union’s all-time leader in points and assists among defenders and set an ironwoman streak, appearing in over 140 consecutive games. This season, she was also among the most utilized players in NCAA women’s hockey, averaging more than 28 minutes per game.

In this episode, Bourque reflects on her journey through junior hockey and the NCAA, her development as a leader, and how she’s preparing for the next step as she looks toward the 2026 PWHL Draft.

“Trust the process and be patient.”

Discover more at www.rinksiderundown.ca
Follow the podcast on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/rinksiderundownpod

Tory Mariano grew up in a household where sport was everything. Her dad took her to events across every discipline imaginable, and where she started in tee-ball, competed in multiple sports, and carries all of that athletic foundation into the way she reads the game today.

And it was her grandfather, a professional tennis player and someone she never got to meet, who has been a role model and North Star through it all. "I want to be as good as him," she said.

That drive led her to Northeastern, where she found the right coaching staff and the right environment to help push her to become the player she always knew she was. "Everything just kind of clicked. This is where I need to be."

In Episode 117 of Rinkside Rundown, Tory shares that journey from where it all started to being on the cusp of the 2026 PWHL Draft. She talks about her first championship team in 8th grade, how competing across multiple sports shaped her hockey IQ, what drew her to Northeastern, what her year of focused preparation actually looked like, and what she wants a PWHL team to know about her before draft day.

"Everything that I've done, I feel like it's starting to pay off. I'm proud of myself, and it's been hard, but I'm glad to see where I am now."

This is the first episode in my "Road to the 2026 PWHL Draft" series, so be sure to subscribe to Rinkside Rundown for more conversations with players and leaders shaping the future of hockey. Discover more at www.rinksiderundown.ca
Follow the podcast on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/rinksiderundownpod