Hannah Bilka

Hannah Bilka
Born (2001-03-24) March 24, 2001 (age 23)
Coppell, Texas, U.S.
Height 5 ft 5 in (165 cm)
Weight 130 lb (59 kg; 9 st 4 lb)
Position Forward
Shoots Left
PWHL team Boston Fleet
National team  United States
Playing career 2019–present
Medal record
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2023 Canada
Silver medal – second place 2022 Denmark
Silver medal – second place 2024 United States
World U18 Championship
Gold medal – first place 2018 Russia
Silver medal – second place 2019 Japan

Hannah Bilka (born March 24, 2001) is an American professional ice hockey player for the Boston Fleet of the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) and member of the United States women's national ice hockey team. She was drafted fourth overall by Boston in the 2024 PWHL draft. She played college ice hockey at Boston College and Ohio State.

Playing career

College

Bilka began her collegiate career for Boston College during the 2019–20 season.[1] During her freshman year, she recorded 14 goals and 23 assists in 34 games. She led the team in points with 37, and led all rookies in the country in total points per game (1.13), assists per game (0.71) and shots on goal per game (4.06) during the regular season and tied for first in shots on goal (126). her 30 points in Hockey East play marked the ninth-highest total by a first-year player in league history. Following an outstanding season, she was named to the Hockey East Second Team, a unanimous selection to the Hockey East All-Rookie Team, and the USCHO All-Rookie Team.[2] She was also awarded the Hockey East Rookie of the Year and the Women's Hockey Commissioners Association National Rookie of the Year.[3][4]

During the 2020–21 season in her sophomore year, she recorded seven goals and nine assists in 19 games, in a season that was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. She ranked third on the team in scoring with 16 points and was subsequently named to the Hockey East Third Team.[5] During the 2021–22 season in her junior year, she recorded 16 goals and 17 assists in 34 games. She ranked second on the team in points with 33 and led the team with a career-best plus-18 rating.[1] Following the season, she was named to the Hockey East First Team, and New England Hockey Writers Association All-Star.[6][7]

On August 19, 2022, Bilka was named a captain of the Eagles for the 2022–23 season.[8] During her senior year, she recorded 12 goals and 29 assists in 34 games. She finished tied for fourth overall in conference scoring with 32 points, and 1.28 points per game. Her 24 assists in conference games tied for second most in the league. Following the season she was named a Hockey East Second-Team All-Star.[9]

On March 25, 2023, Bilka announced she was transferring to Ohio State for the 2023–24 season.[10] During her graduate transfer year she led the team in points with 22 goals and 26 assists in 39 games. During the 2024 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey tournament she assisted on the game-winning goal to help lead the Buckeyes to the national championship.[11][12]

Professional

On June 10, 2024, Bilka was drafted fourth overall by PWHL Boston in the 2024 PWHL draft.[13] On July 9, 2024, she signed a three-year contract with Boston.[14]

International play

Bilka represented the United States at the 2018 IIHF World Women's U18 Championship where she recorded one goal and two assists in five games and won a gold medal. She again represented the United States at the 2019 IIHF World Women's U18 Championship, where she recorded one goal and two assists in five games and won a silver medal.[15]

On August 14, 2022, she was named to the roster for the United States at the 2022 IIHF Women's World Championship.[16][17]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2019–20 Boston College HE 34 14 23 37 12 — — — — —
2020–21 Boston College HE 19 7 9 16 2 — — — — —
2021–22 Boston College HE 34 16 17 33 26 — — — — —
2022–23 Boston College HE 34 12 29 41 14 — — — — —
2023–24 Ohio State University WCHA 39 22 26 48 22 — — — — —
NCAA totals 160 71 104 175 76 — — — — —

International

Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2018 United States U18 1st place, gold medalist(s) 5 1 2 3 0
2019 United States U18 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 5 1 2 3 0
2022 United States WC 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 7 5 7 12 4
2023 United States WC 1st place, gold medalist(s) 7 4 3 7 2
2024 United States WC 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 7 1 3 4 4
Junior totals 10 2 6 8 0
Senior totals 21 10 13 23 10

References

  1. ^ a b "Hannah Bilka Bio". bceagles.com. Archived from the original on August 27, 2022. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  2. ^ "Hannah Bilka Named to USCHO All-Rookie Team". bceagles.com. March 27, 2020. Archived from the original on August 27, 2022. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  3. ^ Healy, Emma (April 5, 2020). "Hannah Bilka Earns National Rookie of the Year Honors". The Heights. Archived from the original on March 16, 2021. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
  4. ^ "Boston College freshman Bilka takes home national rookie of the year honors". uscho.com. April 3, 2020. Archived from the original on August 27, 2022. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  5. ^ "Hockey East Names 2020-21 Women's All-Star Teams". hockeyeastonline.com. February 27, 2021. Archived from the original on August 27, 2022. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  6. ^ "Hockey East Names 2021-22 Women's All-Star Teams". hockeyeastonline.com. February 25, 2022. Archived from the original on August 27, 2022. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  7. ^ "Bilka Named New England Hockey Writers Association All-Star". bceagles.com. April 26, 2022. Archived from the original on August 27, 2022. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  8. ^ "Eagles Announce 2022-23 Captains". bceagles.com. August 19, 2022. Archived from the original on August 27, 2022. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  9. ^ "Quartet of Eagles Earn Hockey East All-Star Honors". bceagles.com. February 24, 2023. Archived from the original on March 9, 2023. Retrieved February 24, 2023.
  10. ^ "Ohio State Signs Cayla Barnes and Hannah Bilka for 2023-24 Season". ohiostatebuckeyes.com. March 25, 2023. Archived from the original on March 25, 2023. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
  11. ^ Newland, Jason (March 24, 2024). "Ohio State Women's Hockey Team Beats Wisconsin To Win National Championship". The Hockey News. Archived from the original on June 11, 2024. Retrieved June 10, 2024.
  12. ^ Ryan, Conor (June 11, 2024). "PWHL Boston's 2024 Draft class headlined by former Boston College star". Boston.com. Archived from the original on June 11, 2024. Retrieved June 11, 2024.
  13. ^ Benwell, Cee (June 10, 2024). "Hannah Bilka Selected 4th Overall By Boston". The Hockey News. Archived from the original on June 11, 2024. Retrieved June 10, 2024.
  14. ^ Kennedy, Ian (July 9, 2024). "Fourth Overall Pick Hannah Bilka Signs Three-Year Deal With PWHL Boston". The Hockey News. Retrieved July 14, 2024.
  15. ^ "Hannah Bilka". USA Hockey. Archived from the original on August 27, 2022. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  16. ^ "U.S. Roster Announced for 2022 IIHF Women's World Championship". USA Hockey. August 14, 2022. Archived from the original on August 14, 2022. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  17. ^ "Four Eagles Named to U.S. Roster for World Championships". bceagles.com. August 14, 2022. Retrieved August 27, 2022.