Last Sunday, the Bristol Huskies started their 2024-25 season in both the WNIHL Division 1 and Division 2 at Planet Ice Bristol.

With the a further development team in the Frank Wright Conference Cup and an U16 team in the WNIHL U16 South, it means that in less than three years since Planet Ice Bristol opened, there are now four women’s teams playing under the Huskies umbrella.

Bristol is also now the home of the annual British Women’s Ice Hockey Friendship Tournament.

This rapid growth is all down to the vision and drive of Becci Osman and the support she has received from her incredible off-ice team. It’s all the more impressive given Osman is also responsible for all junior ice hockey in Bristol through the Bristol Ice Hockey Academy.

From a fragment of players who followed her from Swindon Topcats to form Bristol Huskies in 2021, there are now around 70 female players registered in Bristol across the Huskies and the Academy.

But this isn’t just a numbers game in Bristol.

The Huskies won the Division 1 league/play-off double in their very first season. This season’s squad has two of the brightest 16-year-old prospects in the British women’s game: Milla Pironi and Elin Pereira-Morrey.

Pironi was named Huskies captain at the end of last season having finished the team’s third top point scorer.

She was also named alternate captain for the Great Britain U16 Women’s national team. Pereira-Morrey opened her season with a four-goal performance against MK Falcons, one more goal than she scored in the whole of last season.

As a result, the Huskies haven’t just built an inclusive community around the women’s game. They are also building the foundations of a pathway to success.

Photo credit: Flyfifer Photography

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