Former Oiler prepares for the Olympics

TULSA, Okla. — With the 2010 Winter Olympics about to kick off, hockey fans in Tulsa will be keeping a close eye on a former Oiler who will be taking the ice for the U.S. women’s hockey team. Defenseman Angela Ruggiero will be taking part in her fourth Olympic games when the puck drops against China on Sunday, February 14. That’s right, she is a former member of the Tulsa Oilers.

It started with a joke made by Angela’s brother, former Oiler goaltender Bill Ruggiero. It came during the 2004-05 season when Bill made a light-hearted joke about the team being low on defensemen and how Angela could fill the void. Head Coach Butch Kaebel and General Manager Corey MacIntyre contacted her agent, and on January 28, 2005 Angela was donning a maroon sweater and skating for the home team in the Tulsa Convention Center. The arrangement was for Ruggiero to play in the first period, but after an agreement between Kaebel and Rio Grande Valley’s Tracey Egeland during the game’s second intermission, she was able to see action in the third period. Ruggiero would go on to assist on Doug Pirnak’s goal at 19:52 of the third period and forever have her name etched in the hockey history books. To this date she is the only female to ever play in a men’s professional game at a position other than goalie. Fast forward five years. Ruggiero is now a seasoned veteran on the women’s national team, having won gold in 1998 at Nagano, Japan; silver at the 2002 games in Salt Lake City, and bronze in 2006 at Torino, Italy. Now at age 30, Angela underwent a rigorous training program in preparation for the Vancouver games. Her training partners at Southern California’s Athletes Performance included NHL stars Chris Drury (New York Rangers), George Parros (Anaheim Ducks) and Richard Park (New York Islanders). 
“There wasn’t a day that went by where one of the guys wasn’t saying, ‘Wow, look at that’ and ‘She’s strong’ and ‘How’d she do that?’ Seeing how hard she works and how committed she was, it was pretty obvious why she’s as good as she is,” Drury told The Boston Globe in a recent interview. The workout routine speaks not only to Ruggiero’s dedication to hockey, but also to her determination. The Harvard graduate is also a published author. Her memoir, Breaking the Ice: My Journey to Olympic Hockey, the Ivy League & Beyond, in which she describes being a female athlete in a sport dominated by males, was published in 2005. She also starred on NBC’s “The Apprentice” in 2007 and was even offered a job by Donald Trump after being fired before the final round. Even with all she has accomplished on and off of the ice, Ruggiero seems even more determined to claim the gold medal. She and her teammates will begin the 12-game preliminary round this Sunday. The United States are the favorite in Group B, with China, Finland and Russia rounding out the group. Group A will be home to Canada, Switzerland, Slovakia and Sweden. The top two teams from each group will advance to the medal round. The gold medal game will be played on February 25. One thing is for sure. Many televisions in the Tulsa area will be tuned in when Team USA takes the ice. The lasting impression that Ruggiero made on the community is Tulsa’s connection to the Vancouver Olympics. Make no doubt about it, Tulsa will be pulling for number four to bring home the gold. You can find the Women’s Ice Hockey Schedule at: www.vancouver2010.com
Contact the author at john.hall@prohockeynews.com