For our Newsletter each quarter we will reach out to a different goaltender for the “Quarterly 5 (Q5)”. Asking 5 questions in an effort to examine the unique perspectives they have on their games.

In our 8th installment we introduce our first female goaltender to be featured in the Q5. She is heading to Division 1 Hockey East University of Connecticut in the fall, after wrapping up her youth career with a 2nd trip to the USA Hockey National Championships with the HPHL Chicago Young Americans. Having worked with GDI Midwest Regional Manager Johnny Rutledge for years, and now having a full season with GDI Midwest Women’s Director, Sanya Sandahl, she is poised for future success. Let’s now bring you the Q5, with Nicki Mueller!

Q1: As a role model for our female goaltenders, what message do you have for them? You’ve survived the adversity of the Tier 1 grind and are moving on.

I survived adversity by working hard. I’ve dreamed about playing college hockey since I was six years old. But I knew to achieve that goal I needed to work for it and it was not going to just come to me. My family was very supportive and wanted to see me achieve my goal. They drove hundreds of miles, spent a lot of money, and stayed up through late practices. I had to spend extra time on and off the ice sacrificing some of my social life but I knew one day it would be worth it and one day my dream would come true. The message is hard work and family support. 

Q2: You have worked with a few goalie coaches in addition to the GDI USA team; tell us about those experiences and who has been the biggest influence on your game.

I had a very interesting experience with goalie coaches growing up. Many of them tried to change me, and change who I was as a goalie. I was stubborn and refused to let anyone completely change my game. I had one goalie coach trying to get me to buy a new glove…for my opposite hand. He told me that being a full right goalie would take me nowhere and I needed to switch glove hands. I never went back to see that coach again. I wanted a goalie coach who would improve my game and offer suggestions to fix it without changing the whole thing. I liked to know WHY I was doing things they asked, why one movement was better than the other, why going down in some situations was better than standing up. I like explanations and many goalie coaches would not give me any. My whole game changed when I went to play at CYA and met Johnny Rutledge. I was a very raw, un-technical goalie and we started from the bottom. It was not easy for either of us. He was coaching a thirteen year old goalie how to do a proper butterfly. We had a lot of ground to cover in a little amount of time. Johnny never gave up on me, and he never tried to change my style of play, he only improved it. I owe most of my success to him because he was the first goalie coach I was excited to work with every time we were on the ice, and he explained everything I asked and helped me improve to where I am today. 

Q3: Now making the jump to college and college hockey, do you feel you are prepared for it?

As I move on to the next journey of my life, I feel prepared because of the hard work I have put in. As a girl college is not only about hockey. The school aspect is really important. The work I put into my grades and Honors and AP classes throughout high school has prepared me for the schooling at UConn. As for the hockey, I feel prepared but not to the extent I should be. This summer will consist of working out and being on the ice a ton. I get the privilege to working alongside three other experienced goalies which is helpful so I can improve from watching their techniques.  I also get the chance to work with some of the best goalie coaches in the country, Ryan Honick, Johnny Rutledge and Sanya Sandahl. I have many resources to prepare me for college and working with them this summer will make me even more ready than I could imagine. 

Q4: What’s the most important facet of a winning season in your eyes?

I believe there is not just one most important aspect of a winning season but many. Yes, goaltending has a huge impact, but also teamwork and hard work play huge roles. If I had to choose one aspect, it would be teamwork. Sanya Sandahl was our assistant coach this past year and the best thing she taught us was teamwork. When we started the season, we did nothing with each other as a team, we had been a team for four years, and had little team chemistry. Sanya came in and started doing team bonding and team dinners and our team chemistry sky rocketed. We became a team off the ice, which impacted and helped our team on the ice. Our chemistry was amazing. It was both mine and my teams’ best season at CYA and it was all because of the team bonding and chemistry that was created throughout the year. Many things go into a successful winning season but if it were not for Sanya showing us how to be a team on and off the ice, I don’t believe we would have been as successful.

Q5: We have you on staff this off-season, working with our young goalies at clinics and lessons; can you describe the transition from player to coach?

Changing from player to coach has been exhilarating!  Along with helping other goalies, it has made me realize many aspects of my game better. Growing up I had bad experiences with goalie coaches until I met Johnny, so being able to go out and coach these kid is something I never got growing up but longed to have. I can help and have an impact on these goalies, and that is an unbelievable feeling. I can offer advice and show them ways to improve their own game. Coaching has improved my game by making me more aware of what I do on the ice. If I tell a student to keep his glove up and out, then I go on the ice, I cannot be hypercritical and keep my glove back. Coaching has made me a better goalie because it makes me think about my own game on an intense level and analyze my movements more closely. Coaching is an awesome feeling, I love that I have the opportunity to do it. 

Bonus Q: Tell us about your affinity with cars and motorcycles.

I have a huge love for cars and motorcycles. Growing up I was really close to my grandfather. He was my biggest hockey fan and we were inseparable. We would go to car shows and I loved seeing the old muscle cars and the engines and the smell of gas, it was a time I cherished. My grandpa bought my siblings’ first cars and in 2008 I saw a Dodge Challenger and I fell in love. My grandpa then promised me I would have that car. In 2010, he unexpectedly passed away and I was a wreck. Once my 16th birthday came around I knew my parents couldn’t afford a Challenger and I was okay with it because my grandpa had promised me the car and not my parents. So one day we planned to go car shopping and instead my parents picked me up in my car, a Dodge Challenger, and in my grandpa’s favorite color silver. My parents knew the bond between my grandpa and I and they did everything they could to get me the car and now every time I go anywhere I think of my grandpa and remember the great times we had together. People think I am just spoiled, but my car has more meaning than anything I have. As for the motorcycle aspect, my dad always owned motorcycles while I was growing up, and my mom also rides one. So I talked my parents into letting me get my motorcycle license when I was 16. So this year my dad surprised me with a Harley Davison Sportster. I grew up around cars and motorcycles and ever since I was young have had a big fascination with them. 

Thank you for sharing Nicki, best of luck heading to UConn. We look forward to watching you develop as a player and now coach. Follow Nicki and her college career @NickiMueller31 on twitter.