Natalie Rampton ready to stop pucks in Nebraska

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This article was published 25/01/2024 (603 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

From a farm in Kenton to Fremont, Neb., Yellowhead Chiefs goalie Natalie Rampton will feel at home where she plans to stop pucks this fall.

“I loved the small town feel of Midland University that I am very familiar with,” she said of her visits to Nebraska. “The campus was beautiful and I knew it’d be a new and exciting experience.”

Midland Warriors coach Jason White is also looking forward to adding Rampton to his team for the 2024-25 season in the American Collegiate Hockey Association’s West Division 1.

“Natalie is one of the top goalies in Manitoba and will have an immediate impact at Midland,” said White.

“She is a tremendous student-athlete with a competitive drive on the ice and in the classroom. She is technically sound and possesses the talent and skill to help our program win hockey games.”

And win hockey games is something the Warriors have been doing this season, ranked first in ACHA’s West Region thanks to an impressive 21-0-2-0 record.

White also likes to add Manitoba hockey talent from the U18 AAA Manitoba Female Hockey League, with his current roster featuring nine Manitobans who have skated in the MFHL, plus three players each from Ontario and Saskatchewan and two from Alberta.

Born in Brandon but raised on her Kenton farm — population 180 and a 45-minute drive to Shoal Lake where the Chiefs play home games — Rampton said it was an easy sell choosing the Warriors for her post-secondary hockey career.

“I know I will be able to thrive in the ACHA league and develop my game even more,” she offered. “I loved the coach and the atmosphere the team created, which gave me a sense of comfort necessary when you are moving so far from home.”

Before she decided to commit to the Warriors, Rampton talked with several coaches from different leagues on both sides of the border. Midland University also offered the mathematics program she is interested in. She’s not sure where her degree will take her but has plenty of time ahead to choose a career pathway.

Rampton acknowledged the Warriors have scouted other players on the Chiefs in the past and knew the scouts have been watching her since her rookie season.

“I believe the coaches liked my speed, puck control and ability to give my team a chance to win every game,” she offered.

Currently, the Warriors will have an opening next season with two fifth-year transfers Hannah Stone and Andrea Schreiber gone, and just two freshmen on the roster, including another Mantioban. Kaylee Frantz is from Greta and played for the Pembina Valley Hawks last season,

Sophomore Warrior Callie Maguire from Minnedosa played for the Chiefs two seasons ago. Some of the players on the Warriors roster Rampton faced the past two seasons in the MFHL.

There are three former Westman Wildcats on the roster: freshman Jaicee Huberdeau from Grande Pointe and juniors Keagan Shearer from Wawanesa and Rylee Martin from Nesbitt. Two of her future teammates played with the Central Plains Capitals: sophomores Taylor Bell from Brandon and Brynn Tosh from Souris.

Starting her minor hockey at age four in Oak Lake, she played U9 with the Ice Bandits. There’s a big difference from the opponents she faced then to who has fired pucks at her in the MFHL during the past three seasons.

“I have improved in many ways throughout my years with the Chiefs. The level of competition has made me faster and stronger,” she said.

“It has pushed me out of my comfort zone, raising my hockey IQ and making me more confident with skills such as playing the puck.

“I also feel the team has made me a better person overall, giving me important life lessons and skills for the future.”

In her third season with the second-place Chiefs, after 17 games, Rampton has a 9-5-2-0 record, two shutouts, a 2.28 goals-against-average (GAA) and .924 save percentage.

During her rookie season, Rampton finished with an 11-5-2-0 record, two shutouts, .915 save percentage and 2.38 GAA. Her sophomore season saw the Grade 12 student finish with an 11-8-4-1 record, one shutout, .910 save percentage and 3.14 GAA.

With the Chiefs (16-7-0-1) tied with the Westman Wildcats (16-7-0-1) for second, both teams trail the first-place Winnipeg Ice (17-3-0-3) by four points going into a U18 AAA tournament in Winnipeg this weekend

Sharing goaltending duties with teammate Clair Merckx, five-foot-six Rampton has been happy with her play to date, and looks forward to the remainder of the season.

“This season, I have faced a lot of shots and many very competitive hockey teams,” she said. “Thus far, I think I have had my best season yet, putting up some good stats and being a difficult goaltender to play against.”

She also played for the U15 AAA Yellowhead Chiefs, but lost a season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I believe my game since then has become much more skilled and structured,” she said. “I am able to track the puck and hold my position better.”

Looking back on her early years playing minor hockey, Rampton has fond memories of why she made the transition from playing out to moving back to the crease and switching to goalie skates.

“In my earliest years of playing hockey, I was a forward and did a lot of puck watching and falling as most young hockey players do. My minor hockey years as a goalie were filled with a lot of learning,” she recalled.

“I was on many teams that were not necessarily the most talented. We were able to find success as a team and facing an extraordinary amount of shots developed me into the goaltender I am today.

“My year in Brandon on the female U13 AA Wheat Kings team was filled with success. It was there I discovered I craved higher-level hockey and it fuelled me to be the best.

“I have struggled through adversity, faced people who doubted me, and failed to find success, but now I feel I am achieving the goals I set for myself.”

The switch to goaltender occurred during Rampton’s U9 season.

“One of my Timbits coaches, a family friend, once told me he knew I was destined to be a goalie because I would always fall to my knees in a perfect butterfly position,” she recalled. “My dad (Cameron) was a goaltender when he was young, which drew me to the position and he was able to pass on his knowledge to me.”

Like a lot of her teammates, Rampton started playing with the boys in Oak Lake, but then switched full-time to playing girls’ hockey at age 12 with the Brandon house league team Pizza Express Oilers plus was double rostered with the U13 AA Wheat Kings.

“I made the switch because Brandon had a great program where I would get to meet a great group of girls and learn the game of female hockey,” she said.

How has Rampton developed her goaltending skills since that first time strapping on goalie pads and switching to blocker and catcher from regular hockey gloves?

“When I was young my dad told me if all else fails, play like the famous Dominik Hasek and it has stuck with me ever since,” she recalled. “He had an unorthodox style, but he always had his eye glued to the puck.

“My dad always said when the play breaks down … do whatever you can to get in front of (the puck). I will fight tooth and nail to stop the puck, sacrificing any part of my body to get in its way.”

She added, “A big part of my game is staying calm in high-pressure situations and keeping my head in the game.”

Attending summer goalie camps the past two years has also helped with honing her puck-stopping skills and is thankful for Brandon’s WCHA based out of J&G Homes Arena. She also takes private goalie lessons during the hockey season.

“(Attending camps) have improved my speed and skating a great amount, as well as teaching me new and better ways of playing my position,” she said.

Once done with her Yellowhead season, Rampton knows her summer coming up will be busy with training so she’s ready for fall camp in Nebraska. She will continue to attend the WCHA summer goalie camp, and when available will be out on the ice with other high-level hockey players also heading off to fall camps.

“I also plan to improve my endurance and overall athletic ability in the gym to prepare me for the big jump,” she said.

Can a goalie be in a leadership role on a hockey teams? Rampton concedes it’s a different role because of her position, but she’s there for the younger players just as senior players were there for her.

“I like to lead by example. I try to be a role model to the young players and give my teammates the support they need, as well as staying focused when game time comes,” she offered. “On the ice, I know if I give the game my all, my team will follow and back me up.”

And like some goalies with quirks or superstitions, Rampton is no different around her teammates, including always having a pre-game meal of chicken and rice.

“My team, as well as many others, know never to speak the word ‘shutout’ until the final buzzer has blown, as everyone knows if you say it, it won’t come true,” she said.

“I also have many pre-game rituals I do before every game — like listen to my pre-game playlist and do some hand-eye drills to get me ‘game ready.’”

Besides her commitment to a post-secondary school as a goal for the 2023-24 season, Rampton had one other goal going into her final season with the Chiefs.

“I wanted to prove to myself and everyone else what I am capable of and make them afraid of facing me in net,” she said.

While she’s played volleyball, basketball and softball away from the arena in the past, there’s no time now to play anything but hockey for Rampton.

“I knew hockey was always my one true love (so) in the summer I am on the ice all the time trying to improve my game,” she said.

While Montreal Canadiens goalie Carey Price is her favourite puck-stopper, she cheers for the Winnipeg Jets. Her favourite goalie is Brandon’s Kristian Campbell of the PWHL’s Toronto team.

“Seeing her play for Team Canada and now in the PWHL was inspiring as she was able to make a name for herself being a female goaltender from Manitoba as I am,” she said.

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