PALMER — Teri Weiland remembers reading an article in the Frontiersman about a local girl who played hockey.

It was more than 15 years ago. The girl was quoted in the story saying she wanted to play in the National Hockey League when she grew up.

One of Weiland’s daughters, Kerry, was another young girl playing hockey in the Valley. But Kerry had a different idea.

Photo courtesy of Bruce Kluckhohn/USA Hockey Former Palmer High School standout Kerry Weiland skates up the ice for the Team USA women’s hockey team during a game against the WCHA All-Stars late last year. On Sunday, Weiland made her Olympic debut, recording an assist during a 12-1 win over China.

“Kerry thought that was kind of silly,” Teri Weiland said of the reference to a woman playing in a professional men’s league. “Men have so much bigger muscles and so much more strength than a girl.

“(Kerry’s) goal, she decided, was to have hockey pay her way through college, and her dream was to go to the Olympics.”

Weiland satisfied the first part of her goal when she graduated from the University of Wisconsin after playing four years as a full-scholarship player on the Division I squad.

And on Sunday, the Palmer native realized her Olympic dreams.

Weiland, who was named to the U.S. Olympic women’s ice hockey team in December, made her Winter Olympics debut during a 12-1 win over China in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

Weiland, 29, picked up an assist and posted a +4 rating during the contest. The blueliner’s debut in the Vancouver Games is the high point of a hockey career that took Weiland from the rinks of Southcentral Alaska to the highest stage women’s hockey has to offer.

“She was always determined to go somewhere with hockey,” said Chris Brunnhoelzl, who coached Weiland at Palmer High. “She’s worked real hard, ever since way back then. It’s always been a dream of hers. She’s worked hard. I’m glad she finally made it.”

Weiland is the second Alaskan to hit the Olympic ice as a member of the Team USA women’s hockey team. Goaltender Pam Dreyer, of Eagle River, became the first during the 2006 Torino Games and won a bronze medal.

Although she is the second Alaska women’s hockey Olympian, Weiland also has a few firsts to her credit. At Palmer High, Weiland became the first girl to be named first-team all-conference in boys’ ice hockey. Later, while skating for the University of Wisconsin, she became the first player in the history of the Badgers’ women’s hockey program to be named All-American.

Weiland has enjoyed three stints in the Team USA program, skating for her country in 2002, 2005-08 and her present run which started with a 2009 invitation to rejoin the team. During that time, Weiland helped Team USA capture a gold medal at the 2008 World Championships and silver medals at the 2007 Women’s Championships and 2004 Four Nations Cup.

She has five years of professional hockey under her belt, playing four seasons in Canada’s National Women’s Hockey League and another in a professional league in Switzerland.

At Wisconsin, Weiland was a two-time All-American on the Badger blue line, a two-year All-Western Collegiate Hockey Association selection and three-year captain.

But before all of that, she was a girl playing hockey in the Mat-Su Valley.

Teri Weiland remembers the first time Kerry wanted to play hockey. All of Kerry’s older sisters participated in sports such as gymnastics, track and field, cross country running and cheerleading. But when Teri Weiland took Kerry’s older brother, Andy, to sign up for hockey, Kerry also wanted to play.

“He had all of this horrible excess energy,” Teri Weiland said of Andy, who was 7 at the time. “Kerry went with me to sign him up. She thought it looked like fun.”

Weiland was two weeks shy of her 5th birthday.

As a young player in the Matanuska Amateur Hockey Association, Weiland quickly progressed.

“It wasn’t too long before it became obvious to most people that she had talent for the game,” Teri Weiland said. “She was not only a good skater, she understood the game.”

The local coaches played a big role in Kerry’s development, Teri Weiland said.

“She was fortunate as a young player to have some coaches who were very supportive of her and helped teach her,” Teri Weiland said.

Weiland’s entrance into the sport came before the emergence of girls’ and women’s hockey. She did play for all-girls teams later in her youth career, but spent much of her time skating with the boys. And it was more than her gender that allowed Weiland to stand out.

“I remember standing at the Brett, looking through the glass, standing at the boards watching the kids practice,” Teri Weiland said. “One of the dads said, ‘your daughter’s smarter than the boys are.’”

Intelligence is always something coaches have seen in Weiland.

“She was so smart,” said Jamie Smith, who coached Weiland in youth hockey. “She never did things that got her in trouble. She was so technical, even back then. I haven’t seen a lot of players as smart as she is.”

She was obviously smaller, but Smith said Weiland was never hampered by the difference in size.

“We had some beef. We had some big boys,” Smith said. “She wasn’t out of place. She stepped in and she played.”

Weiland’s speed certainly helped.

“She was small in stature, but fast,” Smith said. “She was the same speed as a lot of the boys players. That’s rare.”

Weiland continued to hold her own in boys hockey through the prep level.

Teri Weiland said Andy always watched out for his younger sister, and it wasn’t uncommon to see Andy throw a check against an opponent who may have been a bit too physical with Kerry.

Teri Weiland remembers the hits Kerry took in high school.

“One guy cleaned her clock and the puck wasn’t even in the neighborhood,” Weiland said.

Teri Weiland didn’t want Andy going rogue on the ice, but did allow her son the opportunity to check an opponent who messed with Kerry.

“It had to be clean,” Teri Weiland said, with a bit of exclamation. “It can be the hardest check possible, but it’s got to be clean.”

But she didn’t always need the help.

“The boys gunning for her made her that much more aware of what was going on,” Brunnhoelzl said. “The physical play didn’t bother her. She’d out-smart them a little bit.”

Intelligence, speed and work ethic pushed Weiland toward the chance to play Division I hockey, and later at the professional and Olympic levels.

“She’s one of the hardest working players I’ve had,” Smith said. “She worked her tail off.”

Smith admitted he hasn’t watched much women’s hockey. But he’s been paying extra attention since his former player was added to Team USA once again. And he’ll be watching closely as Weiland and her teammates battle for a medal at the Vancouver games. Brunnhoelzl will also be watching, just as many of the other Mat-Su hockey faithful who have watched as Weiland graduated from her days skating at the Brett and moved to the highest level of women’s hockey.

Teri Weiland said 18 members of the Weiland family made the trip to Vancouver to see Kerry play in the Winter Games. Siblings, nieces, nephews and Kerry’s parents Teri and Terry.

During the days before the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games, there was excitement and stress. Kerry was excited, but a bit edgy, Teri Weiland said, trying to do her best to stay focused on the biggest tournament of 24 years on the ice.

But it’ll all be worth it when 18 members of the Weiland family are in Vancouver to watch Kerry, their Olympian, play.

“For us, the main thing is Kerry does well. And we’ll be there for her,” Teri Weiland said.

Contact Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.

The Weiland File

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:

Team USA women’s ice hockey team; 2002, 2005-08, 2009-10

• 2010 — Member of U.S. women’s hockey team in Vancouver Winter Olympics

• 2008 — Gold medal in World Championships

• 2007 — Silver medal in World Championships

• 2004 — Silver medal in Four Nations Cup

Professional hockey

• 2007-2008 — Vaughan Flames, National Women’s Hockey League

• 2006-2007 — Etobicoke Dolphins, NWHL

• 2005-2006 — Switzerland, LYSS

• 2004-2005 — Brampton Thunder, NWHL

• 2003-2004 — Edmonton Chimos, NWHL

Coaching

• 2005-2006 — Assistant coach for Switzerland’s Women’s Under-18 National Team

Inline hockey

• 2003-2007 — Team USA Women’s Inline Hockey Team

• 2006, 2007 — Gold Medal, World Inline Championships

University of Wisconsin

• Graduate of the University of Wisconsin on full hockey scholarship

• 2001-2003 — Assistant captain

• 2003 — NCAA second-team All-American, second-team All-WCHA

• 2002 — NCAA first-team All-American, first-team All-WCHA

• 2001 — First-team All-WCHA

• 2000 — Second-team All-WCHA

Palmer High School

• 1999 Graduate of Palmer High

• 1995-1999 — Member of Palmer High School boys hockey team

• Became first girl in Alaska to be named all-conference on a boys high school team