High hockey IQ and hard work: How Brianne Jenner became a leader in Canadian women's hockey

It was a perfect pass from Brianne Jenner destined for the stick of her long-time teammate, Canadian captain Marie-Philip Poulin, that ended a nearly 10-year golden drought for the national women's team at the world championship in 2021.

A few months later, at her third Olympic games, Jenner brought home a gold medal and was named tournament MVP after scoring nine goals, tying the Olympic record in the process.

And a few months after that, Jenner scored the only two goals needed for Canada to win a second consecutive world title, the first time the Canadian team had accomplished the feat since the early 2000s.

"I think Jenner's hockey IQ and the way she thinks the game is incredible," said long-time teammate Emily Clark. "She makes passes that I don't think anyone else in the building sees but her."

After more than a decade on the senior national team, the 32-year-old Jenner has a hockey resume that few can match. 

Beyond the gold medals and big goals, those who have played with and against her describe a career built on hard work and quiet leadership, on top of a sixth sense on the ice that's hard to teach. 

It's a type of playing style that's more method than flash, a game that might not always pop to viewers at home, according to Liz Knox, a goaltender tasked with trying to stop Jenner's shots for years in the now-shuttered Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL). 

"She's just out there to try and do her job and make the players around her better, which is I think a great compliment when you look at the calibre of athletes that she's had in her circle," Knox said.

Now, Jenner has a new mountain to climb as one of the leaders with Ottawa of the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL), a league she helped build from scratch as a board member with the players' association.

Ottawa general manager Michael Hirshfeld used one of his three pre-draft free agent slots to sign Jenner, along with Clark and goaltender Emerance Maschmeyer, earlier this month. 

"We believe they have an incredible work ethic, compete level," Hirshfeld said after the three signings were announced. 

The GM has said he'd like his team's identity to be rooted in gritty and dynamic play. 

It's that first word — grit — that comes to mind when Maschmeyer thinks of Jenner.

"She's reliable," she said. "I feel like she's always doing the right thing at the right time."