Jordan Smelker: A Career Established on Faith

Jordan is joined by her parents Jennie and Hogan Smelker following the Boston’s victory in the Isobel Cup Finals

(Photo: Jessica Ayala)

Home in Alaska

Jordan Smelker grew up playing multiple sports in her hometown of Anchorage, Alaska. At Service High School, Jordan competed in tennis, track & field, and cross country skiing, all in addition to ice hockey. In one season of track & field, Jordan ranked second in the state in the 200-meter dash, and 4th in the 100-meter dash. In two seasons of tennis, she notched a third place finish at the Alaska High School State Championship in singles. As for hockey, Smelker earned All-Conference honors twice, led her conference in points in the 2007-08 season, and won a Championship title in 2009.

When asked about developing young talent, Jordan felt the ability to compete in multiple sports can prevent burnout, “I think the most important things (for young players) is to keep it fresh and play a bunch of different sports. In the summer, actually take an offseason and do other things.”

While sports like soccer and tennis help to strengthen footwork and hand-eye coordination, Smelker also noted that exposure to different experiences can help identify one’s purpose, “you’re around a lot of different people and you find what you really love and what you’re really passionate about, and that’s when you become your best. I think you can only do that by experiencing different things.”

Leap of Faith

Photo Credit: RPI/Twitter

When it came time to select a college, a good education and Division I ice hockey program, were her main criteria. Jordan enrolled at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), located over 4,000 miles away in Upstate New York. However, that distance didn’t deter Smelker, “Honestly, anywhere that has Division I hockey is far from home,” said Jordan, “an opportunity presented itself and I jumped on it.” Rather early on in the conversation, we learned that seizing an opportunity is something Jordan is quite comfortable with.

Smelker finished her college career with 34 goals and 52 assists over 136 games and was preparing for her next opportunity. Before graduating in 2014, Jordan secured a job in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She was closing in on a time when hockey would become something she used to do at the highest level, or at least that was the plan, “When I graduated, I wasn’t 100 percent sure I wanted to (continue playing hockey), I thought really hard about it all summer,” said Smelker. She began speaking with her family and close friends about the opportunity to play in the Canadian Women’s Hockey League (CWHL).

Ultimately, Jordan decided there was more hockey in her, so she set her sights on the only American team in the CWHL, the Boston Blades. Smelker, with the help of her sister, drove roughly 1,400 miles to Boston. Without knowing if she would make the roster, and with no other work lined up, Smelker was ready to pursue more hockey. Several months later, Smelker was on her first professional team and found an engineering job in the Boston area. She went on to finish the regular season with 8 goals and 7 assists, and recorded one assist in the playoffs to secure another Clarkson Cup for Boston. Her 15 points accounted for the 6th highest on the Blades in 2014-15. It was a season that she describes as one of her best, “I was playing with the best players that I’ve ever played with,” recalls Smelker. After that, Jordan knew she wanted to keep playing hockey, and yet again, a new opportunity came her way.

Same City, New League

After winning the Clarkson Cup with the Boston Blades, Smelker found herself once again questioning her next moves as far as hockey was concerned. She and her Blades teammates caught wind of a new American hockey league that was promising to pay hockey players, the National Women’s Hockey League (NWHL). One of the four founding teams was set to play at the Bright-Landry Hockey Center in Boston, home of Harvard Ice Hockey. The NWHL was a domestic league, meaning Smelker would not have to travel to Canada for away games. In addition to getting paid, the potential to cut down travel and still play hockey was also a draw. “The schedule was more conducive to working a full time job with the NWHL,” noted Jordan. There was one more factor that sealed the deal.

Ultimately, it was Hayley Moore (General Manager of the Boston Pride and former player for the Blades), who convinced Smelker, “We heard an inkling of the NWHL following (the 2014-15 season) and Hayley Moore contacted us,” recalls Smelker, referring to her and 16 active Blades players who joined the NWHL. Continues Smelker, “I really like Hayley Moore and I was excited to be able to work with her,” as were ten other former Blades players on Moore’s Pride roster.

Rolling with “The Pack”

The Boston Pride ended the inaugural season with the best regular season record and the Isobel Cup Championship. Two years after her trek to Boston, Smelker has earned two professional hockey titles for Boston with two different leagues. “Being able to come together and win two championships in a row is [pauses] it’s just really surreal and there’s nothing like winning a championship with a team.”

However, before hoisting the latest hardware, Boston and the NWHL had overcome a tragic injury in the middle of the season. In December, the NWHL and the CWHL were invited to participate in the first ever Outdoor Women’s Classic, in conjunction with the NHL Winter Classic. With several Pride players, including Smelker, away for USA Hockey Winter Training Camp, Pride players were joined by other NWHL players to compete in the showcase. We asked Smelker to reflect on the conversation among players about the opportunity for the NWHL to participate in an NHL event, “Everyone was very excited about the opportunity and that the NHL was making an effort to incorporate the women’s game,” but the short game was cut even shorter when Denna Laing crashed into the boards. Laing suffered a spinal injury that she is still recovering from. What was perhaps meant to be a showcase of women’s hockey instead put the heart of the greater hockey community on display.

Photo Credit: Troy Parla/Twitter

Smelker and her team, with the support of the hockey community, turned their grief into a platform to support a member of their family; a member of “The Pack”. Hockey teams from all over North America rallied around Denna, “Honestly, everyday I’m blown away by the support,” said Smelker, “the hockey world is so small and everyone understands and is there for each other. It was just really amazing.” The NWHL, the NHL and other individuals have donated to support Denna’s recovery.

As for the Pride, they took on a clear mission and focus for the New Year: win the Isobel Cup for Denna. On March 12th, 2016 that is precisely what Smelker and the Pride did. They even facetimed their teammate during the on-ice celebration. In her latest championship season, Smelker recorded 19 points (8 goals and 10 assists) over 17 games. Smelker recorded another two assists during the playoffs.

What’s Next

“Jordan Smelker (left) and Jillian Dempsey (right) take a picture together after receiving their new jerseys...” From History Begins by Amanda Swinhart

Smelker was the first of five players from the Boston Pride to re-sign, to-date. I asked Jordan if she had any concerns about the viability of the league amid the offseason lawsuit and other reports of alleged mismanagement on the part of the league, “I think [Commissioner Dani Rylan] has the right intentions and I signed for that reason.” She admits that the news and allegations are worrisome, but she remains in contact with her GM Hayley Moore, as well as her teammates. Yet again, Smelker chooses to place her faith in hockey, “For now, I’m gonna stick with it and hope everything works out.”

One day, Jordan will walk away from hockey, but that’s not something she is giving a lot of thought just yet, “Honestly, right now I don’t really wanna think about that because I’m having too much fun playing (laughs).” When the time comes, Jordan will look to find something else to scratch her competitive itch. For now, she will play her second season with the Boston Pride, as the team looks to defend their title.

Follow Erica Ayala on Twitter @elindsay08