Goldeneyes draft Wisconsin's Caroline Harvey first in PWHL entry draft - ESPN

Caroline Harvey — the standout NCAA defenseman and 2026 Olympic gold medalist — was selected first overall by the Vancouver Goldeneyes in the Professional Women's Hockey League entry draft Wednesday.

Harvey, 23, capped off a four-year collegiate career with the Wisconsin Badgers in March by being crowned the Patty Kazmaier Award winner as the NCAA's best woman hockey player. It was the latest in a long list of accolades for Harvey amid her incredible senior year captaining Wisconsin to another national championship — she paced all NCAA defenders with 18 goals and 64 points (setting a new record by a Badgers' blueliner) in 33 games and ranked second nationally in points per game (1.94) while collecting the most assists per game (1.39).

Harvey also guided the USA to a gold medal victory at February's Olympic Games in Milan, where she grabbed nine points (tied for the tournament high) and was named Best Defender and MVP of the women's hockey field. The International Ice Hockey Federation also selected Harvey on Wednesday as its Female Player of the Year.

Three more U.S. Olympians went with the next three picks, with Seattle selecting Minnesota forward Abbey Murphy and Las Vegas picking Penn State forward Tessa Janecke. Las Vegas landed the pick from fellow expansion team Detroit in a trade that sent Hilary Knight to Detroit. Expansion team San Jose selected Harvey's Badgers teammate Laila Edwards with the fourth pick.

Harvey's success has made her one of the game's increasingly established stars at both ends of the ice, with an elite puck-moving capability from the backend that translates into play-driving offensive ability. That rare combination will make Harvey a top-pairing anchor for the Goldeneyes as a