Courtney Birchard-Kessel (; born July 14, 1989) is a Canadian

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

coach and former player, currently serving as the head coach of the

Princeton Tigers women's ice hockey The Princeton Tigers women's ice hockey team represents Princeton University in the ECAC Hockey conference in the NCAA Division I women's ice hockey. They play at the Hobey Baker Memorial Rink. In the 2019–2020 season, they won their first ECA ...

team. During her playing career, she was a member of the Canadian national ice hockey team and was a three-time

IIHF Women's World Championship The IIHF Women's World Championship is the premier international women's tournament in ice hockey. It is governed by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). The official world competition was first held in 1990, with four more champions ...

medallist. Her debut with Team Canada was made at the

2010 Four Nations Cup The 2010 4 Nations Cup was an international women's ice hockey competition held in Clarenville, Newfoundland and Labrador and St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador from November 9 to November 13, 2010. Games were played at the Clarenville Event ...

. Birchard-Kessel was drafted 6th overall by the

Brampton Thunder The Markham Thunder was a professional women's ice hockey team in the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL). From 1998 through 2017, the franchise was known as the Brampton Thunder and Brampton Canadettes-Thunder before relocating from Brampton, O ...

in the

2011 CWHL Draft The 2011 CWHL Draft was held on July 21, 2011 in Mississauga. The Montreal Stars had the first pick overall and selected Meghan Agosta from Mercyhurst College. Top 50 picks Draft picks by team Alberta Boston Brampton Burlington Mo ...

Playing career

Birchard-Kessel is a 2007 graduate of Lincoln M. Alexander Secondary School in

Malton, Ontario Malton is a neighbourhood in the northeastern part of the city of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, located to the northwest of Toronto. Malton is bounded by Highway 427 to the east, the Brampton city limits (a Canadian National Railway (CN) rail ...

. While at the school, Birchard-Kessel lettered in ice hockey, soccer, basketball, and badminton. In addition, she competed with the Toronto Jr. Aeros. While with the club, she won provincial titles in 2005 and 2006. The club was also playoff champions in 2004, 2006, and 2007. She served as the Jr. Aeros'

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

during the 2006–07 season.

NCAA

Birchard-Kessel attended the

University of New Hampshire The University of New Hampshire (UNH) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Durham, New Hampshire, United States. It was founded and incorporated in 1866 as a land grant coll ...

and played with the

New Hampshire Wildcats women's ice hockey The New Hampshire Wildcats represent the University of New Hampshire. They have won five ECAC championships between 1986 and 1996. When the Wildcats joined Hockey East, they won four Hockey East titles from 2006 to 2009. The Wildcats have more wi ...

program in the Hockey East conference of the NCAA Division I. She tallied her first career point on an assist in her

college ice hockey College ice hockey is played principally in the United States and Canada, though leagues exist outside North America. In the United States, competitive "college hockey" refers to ice hockey played between colleges and universities within the go ...

debut on October 5, 2007, against the St. Lawrence Saints. Her first collegiate

goal A goal or objective is an idea of the future or desired result that a person or a group of people envision, plan, and commit to achieve. People endeavour to reach goals within a finite time by setting deadlines. A goal is roughly similar to ...

was scored on October 28, 2007 against the

Maine Black Bears The Maine Black Bears are the athletic teams that represent the University of Maine. A member of the America East Conference, the University of Maine sponsors teams in eight men's and nine women's NCAA sanctioned sports. The men's and women's Col ...

. On October 17, 2009, she reached her fiftieth career point in a game against the

Niagara Purple Eagles The Niagara Purple Eagles are athletics teams that represent Niagara University in College athletics, college sports. Part of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA's NCAA Division I, Division I, the Purple Eagles field 19 varsity leve ...

. During her

freshman A freshman, fresher, first year, or colloquially frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational in ...

year of 2007–08 with the New Hampshire Wildcats, she accumulated 28 points (13 in Hockey East play). Birchard-Kessel ranked second in Hockey East

rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience, a rookie is typically considered needing more tra ...

scoring at 0.85 points per game (ppg). The Wildcats qualified for the NCAA tournament and Birchard-Kessel scored a goal in the NCAA quarterfinal win versus St. Lawrence. On February 16, she established career highs in goals (two) and points (four) versus the

Vermont Catamounts The Vermont Catamounts are the varsity intercollegiate athletic programs of the University of Vermont, based in Burlington, Vermont, United States. The school sponsors 18 athletic programs (8 men's, 10 women's), most of which compete in the Natio ...

. The 2008–09 season was her

sophomore In the United States, a sophomore ( or ) is a person in the second year at an educational institution; usually at a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of Post-secondary school, post-secondary educatio ...

season and Birchard-Kessel skated in all 32 regular-season games, while participating in three postseason games. For the season, she had accumulated 23 points (10 in conference play). She notched a goal in the NCAA quarterfinal game against the

Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs The Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs are the athletic teams that represent the University of Minnesota Duluth. They were first named Bulldogs in 1933. Their colors are maroon and gold. The school competes in the National Collegiate Athletic Association ...

. Against Niagara (October 12), she matched her personal best of two goals scored in one game. In nineteen games, she registered at least one point. In her

junior Junior or Juniors may refer to: Aircraft * Ekolot JK-05L Junior, a Polish ultralight aircraft * PZL-112 Junior, a Polish training aircraft * SZD-51 Junior, a Polish-made training and club glider Arts and entertainment Characters * Bowser Jr., ...

season (2009–10), Birchard-Kessel missed the last six games of the season due to injury. Statistically, Birchard-Kessel ranked fifth in the NCAA in defensemen scoring (0.81 ppg). Birchard-Kessel led the Wildcats in shots (136) and tied for the lead in game-winning goals. She accumulated 13 points in conference play. One of the highlights of the season was notching a career-high three assists in the Sun Life Frozen Fenway game on January 8 vs. the Northeastern Huskies. Game winning goals were scored against Colgate (October 9),

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

(October 31 and February 7), and Northeastern (November 29).

Hockey Canada

Birchard-Kessel was part of the 2007–08 Hockey Canada women's national under-22 team that competed in the MLP Cup. She attended the Canadian Development Camps in numerous years. In 2007, she participated in the U-19 National Development Camp. The following year, she was invited to the U-22 National Development Camp. She was part of the Canadian national under-22 team that competed in the 2011 MLP Cup. She travelled to Bratislava, Slovakia to participate in the 2011 IIHF High Performance Women's Camp from July 4–12. On April 17, 2012, Birchard-Kessel along with

Meghan Agosta Meghan Christina Agosta (born February 12, 1987) is a Canadian women's ice hockey forward, who last played for the Montreal Stars of the Canadian Women's Hockey League. Agosta played for the Canada women's national ice hockey team and is a thr ...

Gillian Apps Gillian Mary Apps (born November 2, 1983) is a women's ice hockey player. Apps was a member of the Canadian National Hockey Team that won back to back gold medals in three consecutive Olympic Games. As a psychology major at Dartmouth College in ...

Caroline Ouellette Caroline Ouellette (born May 25, 1979) is a Canadian former ice hockey player and current associate head coach of the Concordia Stingers women's ice hockey program. She was a member of the Canadian national women's ice hockey team and a member ...

, and head coach Dan Church took part in the opening face off of the playoff game between the

Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. The Senators compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Di ...

and the

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in New York City. The Rangers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team plays ...

at ScotiaBank Place.

CWHL

Birchard-Kessel scored a goal for the

in the championship game of the 2012 Clarkson Cup.

Coaching career

Birchard-Kessel served as the head coach at

Havergal College Havergal College is a private day and boarding school for girls from Junior Kindergarten to Grade 12 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The school was established in 1894 and named for Frances Ridley Havergal, a composer, author and humanitarian. The ...

in Toronto and also as an assistant in the Oakville Hornets organization. On July 31, 2018, the

Toronto Furies The Toronto Furies were a professional women's ice hockey team that played in Toronto, Ontario, as members of the Canadian Women's Hockey League. The Toronto Furies played their home games at the Mastercard Centre in Toronto. The team was establish ...

signed Birchard-Kessel as their new head coach for the 2018–19 CWHL season. During the same season, she made her coaching debut with

Hockey Canada Hockey Canada (which merged with the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association in 1994) is the national governing body of ice hockey and ice sledge hockey in Canada. It is a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation and controls the majority ...

as an assistant coach to the Canadian women's national under-18 ice hockey team, which won gold at the 2019 IIHF U18 Women's World Championship. Following the dissolution of the Toronto Furies as part of the

collapse of the Canadian Women's Hockey League The collapse of the Canadian Women's Hockey League occurred in the spring of 2019. Previously one of the top women's ice hockey leagues in the world, the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL; ) announced on 31 March 2019, that it would be foldin ...

in the spring of 2019, Birchard-Kessel joined the

program in the

ECAC Hockey ECAC Hockey is one of the six conferences that compete in NCAA Division I college ice hockey, ice hockey. The conference used to be affiliated with the Eastern College Athletic Conference, a consortium of over 300 colleges in the eastern United ...

conference as an assistant coach. She held the role for four seasons, through the 2022–23 season. She was head coach of the Canadian women's national U18 team for the 2022–23 and, with Birchard-Kessel at the helm, Canada claimed gold at the 2023 IIHF U18 Women's World Championship. In May 2023, she assumed the associate head coach position with the Boston University Terriers women's ice hockey program of

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...

in the Hockey East conference. In September 2023, she was named the inaugural head coach of

PWHL Boston The Boston Fleet are a professional ice hockey team based in the Greater Boston area that competes in the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL). They are one of the six charter franchises of the league. The team plays its home games at Tso ...

of the PWHL. Kessel led the team to a 17-10-8-19 record across two seasons, including the

Walter Cup The Walter Cup () is the championship trophy awarded annually to the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) playoff champion. History Origins On April 4, 2024, the Professional Women's Hockey League announced in a press release the name of th ...

Finals in the inaugural season. On June 23, 2025, she was named head coach for Princeton. She previously served as an assistant coach for the Tigers under Cara Morey, who relinquished her role to become the inaugural general manager of

PWHL Vancouver PWHL Vancouver is an upcoming professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver, British Columbia, that will compete in the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL). They are the league's first announced expansion franchise, part of the league's ...

Personal life

Birchard-Kessel was born in

Etobicoke Etobicoke (, ) is an administrative district and former city within Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Comprising the city's west end, Etobicoke is bordered on the south by Lake Ontario, on the east by the Humber River (Ontario), Humber River, on the ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Canada on July 14, 1989. Birchard-Kessel is married to American former professional ice hockey player Blake Kessel, whose siblings include hockey players

Phil Kessel Philip Joseph Kessel Jr. (born October 2, 1987) is an American professional ice hockey winger (ice hockey), winger who is an unrestricted free agent. Nicknamed "Phil the Thrill", he has previously played for the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Lea ...

and

Amanda Kessel Amanda Kessel (born August 28, 1991) is an American ice hockey executive and professional player, currently serving as manager of minor league operations for the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League and assistant general manager for ...

Awards and honours

*AWCHA All-America Second Team (2010) *Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award candidate (2010) *Hockey East First Team All-Star (2010) *Hockey East All-Academic Team (2009) *Hockey East All-Tournament Team (2009) *Hockey East Player of the Week (Week of November 9, 2009) *Hockey East Mission Rookie of the Week (Week of March 17, 2008) *2010–11 New England Women's Division I All-Stars *2011 Karyn Bye Award (New Hampshire MVP)

Career stats

NCAA

References

18. "Princeton women’s ice hockey announces new head coach – goprincetontigers.com – Princeton University Official Athletic Site". Published June 23, 2025.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Birchard-Kessel, Courtney 1989 births Living people Brampton Thunder players Canadian expatriate ice hockey people in the United States Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in Slovakia Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in Sweden Canadian ice hockey coaches Canadian women's ice hockey forwards Ice hockey people from Etobicoke Linköping HC (women) players New Hampshire Wildcats women's ice hockey players Toronto Jr. Aeros players Boston Fleet coaches 21st-century Canadian sportswomen