 Media Credit: Lantern File Photo
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 Media Credit: Nancy Battaglia/Hockey Canada
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Growing up in Sudbury, Ontario, it was easy to see that Tessa Bonhomme was athletic.
Bonhomme grew up playing baseball, soccer and basketball, and even took her athleticism to the football field. In fact, in her one season as a flag football wide receiver, Bonhomme set the LaSalle Secondary High School single-season receiving record. However, that talent came through most on the hockey rink, where she spent her youth honing her game.
"I used to play street hockey every day at my baby sitter's house after school," Bonhomme said. "Sometimes the games got a little serious, so supper just had to wait."
Those days of street hockey helped make her one of the best defensemen in Canada and helped foster big dreams. Now, after coming to Columbus two seasons ago to be a Buckeye, Bonhomme is putting her OSU career on hold for a year for the chance to realize one of those dreams.
She is one of 26 players in Calgary, Alberta, competing to be on the 22-person roster for the Canadian National Team for the 2006 Olympic Winter Games in Torino, Italy. Bonhomme is hoping her skills and hard work will help her realize her Olympic dreams.
"Right now, it would mean the world to me," Bonhomme said. "It'd be a dream come true. It's what I've been working for since I was a kid."
Getting a spot on the team is easier said then done, however. The team plays a grueling 46-game exhibition schedule in preparation for the Winter Games.
"The coaches don't make these six months easy," Bonhomme said. "It's very tough mentally and physically."
One of the things that makes it so tough on the players mentally is not knowing if and when they could be cut. Bonhomme's roommate, Ashley Riggs, was the first of the 27 players to leave the team when she was cut last week, but there are still four more cuts to be made before the roster is finalized.
"It's always difficult to release players," Team Canada coach Melody Davidson said. "It's especially hard in this setting because they are all great quality kids. They are the cream of the crop, both as hockey players and as people."
Davidson has served as the head coach for the Cornell University women's hockey team the past three seasons and has been involved with Team Canada as an assistant since the early 1990s. Bonhomme said Davidson expects the most out of her players.
"Everything seems to be a test. The coaches like to see how you react under different situations," Bonhomme said. "For example, the day after my best friend got cut I was told I would be starting the next game. But I understand this team needs to be a tightly knit family who are ready to play together under any circumstances."
Regardless of whether Bonhomme does make the Olympic team, it is clear she has the physical skills to put her on the roster. The real challenge will be how she handles the mental grind of the 46-game schedule on a day-to-day basis.
"She's got a good future ahead of her with the national program," Davidson said. "She's learning that you have to give a little extra to be here, and how much extra she can give will probably determine whether that future is this year or in 2010."
If Bonhomme has to wait until 2010, she will certainly not come away from this year's experience empty-handed. She will undoubtedly return to Columbus with a whole new perspective on Olympic-style training and with an advanced level of hockey experience.
"I'm here trying to gain as much experience as possible," Bonhomme said. "While I'm here I'm going to be growing as a player and a person. I know I've learned a lot from training with these girls every day and definitely have a few more tools in my belt to take back to Ohio with me no matter what happens."
Bonhomme has the skills to come away with more than just a tool belt of good experience, however. With just four cuts remaining, she is in a good position to grab a seat on the plane ride to Italy.
"Tessa is a great young defenseman," Davidson said. "She is a great character kid and she has good offensive skills. Any time you have a solid defenseman who can bring offensive touch it's a nice bonus."
That combination of offense and defense made Bonhomme a highly recruited prospect for the elite college hockey programs around the United States. But she said she knew from day one that she wanted to go to OSU.
"I visited other schools just to be sure," Bonhomme said. "But I knew right away Ohio State was the place for me. The campus is beautiful, the team chemistry is awesome and the energy during football Saturdays is amazing. I just fell in love with it, and I'm very happy with my choice. I wouldn't take it back for anything."
As a freshman at OSU, Bonhomme tied for 16th in the nation among defenseman and tied for 24th among all freshmen in scoring average. She was the first Buckeye ever to be named to the Western Collegiate Hockey Association All-Rookie Team.
"We knew Tessa had extraordinary skills when we recruited her," OSU coach Jackie Barto said. "We found out that she is also very passionate and incredibly creative on the ice."
Those skills landed Bonhomme a spot on Canada's National Women's Under-22 team in Lake Placid, N.Y., last August. In November, she played for Canada's Four Nations team and was an alternate at the World Championships in Sweden before returning to Columbus for her sophomore season at OSU.
As a sophomore, Bonhomme was third on the team and first among Buckeye defensemen in scoring with 7 goals and 27 points in 30 games. That success forced her to make a choice between Ohio and Alberta, but the chance to realize a dream made it an easy choice.
"I left school, family and friends behind to move here to Calgary to try and snag a spot on this team," Bonhomme said.
Back in Columbus, OSU is having success so far in the young season despite having to play without Bonhomme, one of their most talented players. Fortunately for Barto and her team, several of the younger players have stepped up to fill Bonhomme's shoes in her absence, leading them to a 4-0 record thus far.
"We are excited about our young players this season," Barto said. "Getting Tessa back along with a new recruiting class next fall will put us in a good position to win a league championship and potentially a national championship."
If everything breaks right for Bonhomme, that championship would no doubt go well with a gold medal.
Spring Break
