Cammi Granato inspired an entire generation of American hockey players. Now, as a scout with the Seattle Kraken, she’s breaking new barriers in the game she’s helped grow.ammi Granato is watching the Seattle Kraken’s morning skate ahead of the first home game in franchise history and her biceps are hurting. The Hall of Famer has been in the city less than 24 hours, but it’s been go, go, go, since she arrived.
All four brothers named for uncles wanted their younger sister to be a goalie, so they’d have someone to shoot on. But the boys couldn’t convince Cammi. Instead, she played forward, often alongside them and always on boys’ teams until she was 16. The trouble was the Granatos’ home phone wasn’t exactly ringing off the hook with recruitment calls. So, Granato called a few colleges herself. “Nobody wanted me,” she says. Just when she thought she was out of options, the assistant coach at Providence College invited her to play for the Friars.
Eight years later, Granato was selected as captain of the American team that went on to win the first Olympic gold in women’s hockey history. It was a comeback for the ages in Nagano, too: Granato scored first for the U.S., and after the Americans found themselves down 4–1 in the third, they answered with six straight goals, including a second from their captain.
As a player, Granato was a clutch goal-scorer who played with “a level of grace,” as Hefford puts it. “She was the best in the game at scoring goals. She’d always score on the backdoor of the power play,” Hefford says. “You knew exactly where she was going to be, and you still couldn’t stop it. That killed us in a lot of circumstances.”
Smith, who retired earlier this year, is not doing interviews, according to USA Hockey. The organization also declined an invitation to revisit the decision to cut Granato ahead of the 2006 Olympics. After she went home, Granato had a hard time even watching her stepson, Landon Ferraro, play hockey. “It was hard to go into the rink and feel anything but disappointment. I didn’t have the best feelings about the game,” she says. “I didn’t want to be bitter, I just wasn’t over it. I needed time.”ilary Knight isn’t sure how old she was, but she was young and starstruck when she attended the Cammi Granato Gold Medal Camp. Knight, who wears No.
Leiweke has known Granato a long time. He hired her back in 1998, while she was still playing, to work as a radio analyst for the L.A. Kings. It was one of a few broadcasting gigs Granato has had over the years. She was one of the first reporters to be positioned between NHL benches during games.
KrRutherford Special player!
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Source: Sportsnet - 🏆 57. / 59 Read more »
Source: Sportsnet - 🏆 57. / 59 Read more »
Source: Sportsnet - 🏆 57. / 59 Read more »
Source: Sportsnet - 🏆 57. / 59 Read more »
Source: Sportsnet - 🏆 57. / 59 Read more »
Source: Sportsnet - 🏆 57. / 59 Read more »