We officially wrapped up the cohort for Fall 2023 this week, so we decided to highlight their work because they worked hard and wrote great pieces that deserve to be shared.
As some may know, we’re in the second year of the PHWA x THWL Mentorship Program. The first year went very well, with exciting stories from our participants, as seen in our recaps of issues for the fall 2022 and winter 2023 cohorts, so we were excited to bring it back for a second year, with the addition of The Score as a new publishing partner.
The Winter 2024 cohort is underway, so please consider donating to our fund to help support this work: https://donate.stripe.com/3cs189caS74N25i288
Our 2023 Fall Mentees
Giselle Velazquez (They/She) - Mentor: Joe Smith (The Athletic)
Giselle Velazquez is a sportswriter and video editor. They reside in Los Angeles, California and previously worked for ESPN and KTLA 5. They received their Bachelor of Arts in TV, Media, and Film from California State University, Los Angeles. When not working, they enjoy attending hockey games and travelling.
For their first piece, “Lasting Impact: How Jon Merrill’s LGBTQ+ allyship prevails,” Giselle talked to Jon Merill of the Minnesota Wild about his long-standing allyship with the LGTBQ+ Community. For their second article, they did a profile on the LA Kings defenseman Jordan Spence titled “Across the Pacific: Jordan Spence’s journey to the NHL.”
Michael Pagani (He/Him) - Mentor: John Matisz (The Score)
Michael is a second-year student in the Sport Media program at Toronto Metropolitan University. He is the Host of Pagcast, interviewing junior hockey players and sports journalists. He also covers the TMU Bold Men's and Women's hockey teams.
For his story, "Promising Stars prospect Logan Stankoven may be small, but all he does is score," Michael did a profile of Dallas Stars prospect Logan Stankoven and his fantastic season in the AHL. In his second story titled "'Only the first step': Pride Tape's impact felt in and outside of hockey," he discussed the impact of pride tape on community organizations and its future.
Kelsey Surmacz (She/Her) - Mentor: Rob Rossi (The Athletic)
Kelsey hails from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and is a lifelong hockey fan. Her love for sports writing, particularly hockey writing, began at a young age and has continued to influence her professional life. Kelsey enjoys creative writing, hanging out with her dog, and being active on hockey Twitter in her free time.
In her piece, "A 'Swede' Connection: Why Pittsburgh has become a premier destination for Swedish players," Kelsey interviewed some Swedish players from the Penguins locker room to discuss what makes Pittsburgh a great destination. For her second story, "'It opened a lot of doors for me that I didn't see': How Sidney Crosby's Little Penguins sparked hockey aspirations for women in Western Pennsylvania," Kelsey interviewed Mackenzie King, a former player from the Sidney Crosby's Little Penguins program, to understand how the program has impacted girls' and women's hockey in Western Pennsylvania.
Andrew Willis (He/Him) - Mentor: Salim Nadim Valji (TSN)
Andrew is a writer and lover of philosophy from Jacksonville, Florida. He found the sport of hockey at age 8 and has since been head over heels for the game, making an ambitious career decision to follow his dream of working in sports media in 2023. He is one of the hosts of the Over The Glass podcast, a weekly hockey podcast show with a focus on diversity, inclusion, and all things hockey. He has previously covered the Jacksonville Icemen of the ECHL for Inside The Rink and provides Vancouver Canucks content to The Canuck Way.
In his piece “Adam Johnson’s death influences shift in attitude around neck protection,” Andrew discusses the recent shifts in attitude around neck protection. For his second story, “‘Mindblowing’ virtual reality proving to be an effective hockey training aid for pros,” he wrote about the impact of VR on hockey training and its future in the sport. He interviewed Taylor Heise from the Minnesota team in the PWHL and Roger Grillo, the Director of Player Development at USA Hockey, to get their input on the topic.
Penelope Jennings (She/Her) - Mentor: Scott Wheeler (The Athletic)
Penelope Jennings is a sophomore studying journalism and history at American University. At AU, she's a sports editor of the student newspaper, The Eagle. In her free time, she enjoys crocheting and sharing her love for her home state of New Jersey.
Penelope wrote a profile on the Los Angeles Kings' rookie Alex Laferriere in her first piece titled "'No one thought he'd make it: How Alex Laferriere fought his way to the Los Angeles Kings." For her second piece, she spoke with Mavrik Bourque, Adam Gaudette, and Linus Karlsson about the AHL waiting game and the different stages of trying to make it to the big leagues. You can read it in "'This is my dream, so I want to fight for it': On the battle to reach the NHL – and then stay there."
That’s a wrap for fall 2023, and we are excited to see what’s next for them as we continue to follow their future endeavours.
With love,
Perrye & Gaby