Breaking Down Why Taylor Heise is Elite
A new league, the PWHL, has recently formed and it has brought in many new fans to the sport. However, most of these fans are not yet familiar with the players, teams, or the sport itself. To help them understand more about the league, we will be featuring the top players in the PWHL. We will analyze what makes each player great so that the fans can appreciate their skills better. We'll also continue to cover the PWHL throughout the season and provide insights into its inner workings.
We'll be starting with Taylor Heise, the first player to ever be drafted as the number one overall pick in the PWHL draft, making history in the process. Taylor proved herself to be a star during her four years at the University of Minnesota, where she amassed an impressive 225 points in just 172 games, giving her a 1.3-points per-game rate.
Her exceptional performances at the University of Minnesota paved the way for her to join the US Women's National team, where she made an immediate impact, scoring 18 points in 7 games in her first Women's World Championship while still in college. Her consistent excellent performances over the past four years earned her the distinction of becoming the first-ever first-overall pick for the PWHL, where she is already producing at a point-per-game rate against the best players in the world.
Physical Tools
In hockey size matters because the bigger you are the easier it is to close and take up space on the ice as you can leverage your body in a multitude of ways because body contact is allowed. Taylor is no different as she has really good size as she is listed at 5'10" 168lbs and it shows on film.
She uses her frame exceptionally well to win puck battles down low as she is often bigger and stronger than her opponents on top of having good length which allows her to have a long reach to take away the puck from her opponents. Her length also comes in handy to give and receive passes as it allows her to have a large radius to receive and pass the puck.
Skating
Taylor is also a dynamic skater as she can transition from forward crossovers to her outside edges in an instant which allows her to go by a defenseman with ease. Her edgework is elite as she can often manipulate her skating to go by defenders to cut in all directions while in the offensive zone as opposed to using her straight-line speed to beat defenders.
Hands
The trait though that makes Taylor Heise stand out the most is her elite hands. Taylor keeps her hands out in front of her body which allows her to draw in opponents as they try to go for the puck instead of playing her body. As opponents go for the puck, Taylor sees the game at such an elite level she can quickly move her hands with the puck on her stick to another location before the opponent can get the puck - because her hands are lightning quick.
All the while, her feet continue to move (a rare combo) allowing her to get behind her opponent in an instant. Taylor has the full package of dekes whether it be to go by a defender or to score a goal thanks to her elite hands and vision as she displayed this past week in the PWHL.
Taylor Heise is a part of the next generation of superstars in women's hockey. Still, she has already arrived as a star in the women's game thanks to her exceptional college career and her great performances at the Women's World Championship. However, her immense skills and talent on the ice whether it's her skating, hands, or, vision lead me to believe that she has a chance in a few years to be the best player in the world.
EXCLUSIVE DISCOUNTS: Use code STADIUMRANT20 for a 20% discount at Bulletproof Coffee, SwingJuice, and Performix. If you love to shotgun beers, use code STADIUMRANT10 at Wild Man Drinking Company.
If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to our newsletter here.
Check out Stadium Rant Original shows on our Youtube channel and subscribe!