Caroline Harvey was bound to her stroller the first time she was parked in front of an ice rink. She’d watch from behind the glass,  fascinated by hockey and the players on the ice. As soon as she could, Harvey was in skates — hand-me-down hockey skates from her brother, Nolan, that soon became the source of much debate.

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“From Day 1, I said to her, you’re going to learn to skate and you’re going to learn to skate well, and you’re going to learn all the basic mechanics of skating,” her father, David Harvey, said. “You’re not just going to go play youth hockey games, you’re going to learn to play the game from a skating point first.”

So, Caroline took her hockey skates — and a helmet — to figure skating practice. The other parents looked on, confused and displeased. David heard the rumblings and told the truth: Yes, his daughter wanted to play hockey – not figure skate – but she was there for a reason.

“Your daughters and your sons are the best skaters around,” he told them. “They’re unbelievable with their skating and she’s just trying to learn to skate so she can be a good hockey player.”

That lightened the crowd up, and David went back to watching – and laughing – while his daughter practiced her swizzles and spins on the ice in her hockey gear.

Caroline stopped figure skating after about a year and a half before moving on to play boys hockey in New Hampshire, where she grew up, around 45 minutes outside Boston. But those lessons are the foundation for a skillset that has her looking like the next great player in women’s hockey.

Harvey is only 20 years old, but she boasts an impressive resume and toolkit. She’s already been to three world championships and was an Olympian at 19. Now, she’s leading the 2023 world championships in scoring among defenders and is tied for the lead on Team USA.

At Wisconsin this season, Harvey finished fourth in the nation in freshman scoring en route to the Badgers’ seventh national championship. She scored the game-winning goal in the national semifinal, was named the WCHA’s rookie of the year and became the first Badger freshman to earn All-American honors in two decades.

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When Team USA takes on Czechia in the semifinals on Saturday afternoon, there’s little doubt that Harvey will play a key role in the American attack. She’s a smooth-skating offensive defender who is a threat with the puck on her stick and could soon be one of the very best defenders – and players – in the women’s game.

“Honestly, it’s incredible,” said U.S. defender Megan Keller. “The way she can move, the way she’s able to skate, her offensive ability to join plays and see the ice, she has so much skill and still has so much more potential, it’s crazy. The sky’s the limit for her.”

Before Matty Beniers was a Calder front-runner with the Seattle Kraken, he was a thorn in Harvey’s side.

Harvey played boys hockey in the Eastern Hockey Federation with Top Gun, a youth team based in Salem, N.H., where she grew up with her parents,David and Martha, and two siblings, Nolan and Grace. Both born in 2002, she and Beniers – a member of the South Shore Kings – played against each other before they each went the prep school route.

“That Kings team used to beat them like 10-0,” Harvey’s dad said with a laugh. “And he used to just go right around her.”

The adjustment to boys hockey took some time. There were good players, like Beniers, in that league who were bigger and faster than Harvey. But she continued to work at her skating – with a skate coach, not a figure skating team – and it got to a point where she didn’t just keep up, but could make it challenging to get around her and into the zone.

“She played way over her head until she caught up,” said David. “I think playing at that level and playing against so many good players at that age group really helped her just because it was physical and it was fast.”

Harvey played one year of body checking in boys hockey – her 14U season when she played on a boys and girls team – and stopped before heading to prep school at Selects Hockey Academy in Rochester, New York.

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It didn’t take long for colleges to notice Harvey, and before she could finish her first year of high school, she had options. Dan Koch, the long-time associate coach at University of Wisconsin, had spotted Harvey at some all-star tournaments and said she’d made an immediate impression.

“If you were just a person new to women’s hockey and came to a game, you’d be like, ‘Wow, that player has the puck a lot, she’s making things happen.’ She’s just someone you notice right away,” Koch told The Athletic. “Even at that age it was like, ‘Wow, who is that?’”

Harvey went on her unofficial visit to Madison between her freshman and sophomore year of high school and committed to the Badgers that summer. Things continued to move quickly.

She went to two straight U18 world championships – winning gold in 2020 – made the roster for 2021 worlds at 18 and was invited to try out for the 2022 Olympic team. So, she decided to defer her freshman year at Wisconsin, go to training camp and soak it all in. Maybe, she thought, if she got in that training environment, it could help ease the transition to college hockey. She didn’t think she’d actually make the Olympic team.

But then, just before Christmas in 2021, she was called into a meeting and told she’d be going to Beijing.

“There’s no words,” Harvey said about the moment. “It was remarkable.”

“It was the best gift ever,” said David.

Harvey was 19 in Beijing – the youngest player on the roster – and didn’t quite have a meaningful role. Former coach Joel Johnson never played Harvey more than 8:42 in a game during the preliminary rounds. After taking a penalty against Canada in the prelims, Harvey was essentially stapled to the bench. She played nervous, and admits now that she shied away from the offensive tendencies that make her successful.

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It was a bit of adversity for Harvey, but it would be foolish to characterize the Olympics as any real bump in the road for a 19-year-old defender. Even if she didn’t get to play much, it was a learning experience at the start of what should be a long career with Team USA.

“Not everyone can just hop into whatever position (on the national team) and to do it at an Olympic Games is really stressful,” said U.S. captain Hilary Knight. “The more familiarity, the more comfort she can get in that role (the better). And you’re seeing that now. She’s just been outstanding.”

John Wroblewski pulled Harvey aside.

He had just taken over as the new coach of the U.S. women’s national team that would head to Denmark for the 2022 women’s world championship and he had a message for his young defender.

“You’re 19 years old and you’re already an Olympian,” Wroblewski recalls telling her. “You’re so gifted and skilled and you’re learning on the fly at the (highest) level. Stop putting pressure on yourself and go have fun.”

Turns out, playing free of pressure and the fear of making mistakes works out pretty well for Harvey.

“For her it’s go out and play and play with as much confidence and don’t worry about the mistakes,” said Wroblewski. “Because at the end of the day, she’s so physically gifted she can make up for so many things that might go sideways. She’s able to go out and make the other teams put up errors. That’s her game. She thrives on the turnover and is predictably unpredictable.”

A more confident Harvey thrived in Denmark in a top-four role and her ability to walk the blue line and chip into the offense – three goals and eight points in seven games – gave Team USA a much needed spark.

“Just having that (conversation) in the back of my head and having his support, I just feel so comfortable because of him,” said Harvey. “And honestly, really lucky.”

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By the time Harvey got to Wisconsin, she’d already won three silver medals at the Olympics and world championships. Those experiences and the confidence from Wroblewski helped her adjust to the grind that is a college hockey season.

Koch said that Harvey was comfortable right away with their team and quickly became a player that they could rely on in all situations. She scored 13 goals and 39 points in 41 games as a freshman, which led all Wisconsin blue liners in scoring.

Harvey is a complete, modern day defender: She’s a dynamic skater, with excellent hands and the instincts to know when to jump up and be her team’s fourth attacker. But she also has the gap control and stick details that make her hard to beat in the defensive zone.

“We haven’t had anyone like that in a long time,” said Koch. “The amazing thing is how she can get from point A to point B to point C. She’s able to take those extra risks and maybe get caught a little too far down low in the offensive zone because of her ability to back track and to recover very quickly.”

Harvey is excellent in transition and a legitimate threat – at the college and international level – when she walks the offensive blue line. If opponents sit back and give her too much space, Harvey can score with a quick release and accurate shot. If you pressure her too much, she will walk around you, make a pass, or put the puck on net through the tiniest of shot lanes.

🇺🇸 Caroline Harvey scores her 2nd power play goal of the game! @usahockey leads over @swissicehockey 7-0 #BuiltDifferent @badgerwhockey #WomensWorlds #SUIUSA

— IIHF (@IIHFHockey) April 7, 2023

“It’s not an accident that she’s this good,” said Koch. “She’s the first one on the ice for practice, and a lot of times the last one to leave. She works on simple things, walking across the blue line, getting the puck to the net, her edge work, her change in direction. She has really dedicated herself to her trade.”

Harvey has worked this season to add a deceptive element to her game and spent time over the summer watching Cale Makar. She has tried to add some of his signature moves – like the toe drag and release while walking the line – to her toolkit.

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“I’m not close to (NHL) players,” Harvard said sheepishly. “But definitely that toe drag is very effective.”

“She’s great at change of speed and fake passes,” said Wisonconsin and Team USA teammate Lacey Eden. “A lot of the time I’m on the bench and I’m like geez I thought she was going to pass it and she shoots it. She’s always working on that drag and release shot and she uses it all the time in games and it’s just so deceptive.”

Funny enough, Wroblewski has likened Harvey’s skillset to the Hughes brothers – Jack, Luke and Quinn – whom he coached while at the U.S. National Team Development program.

“They always were just playing a different game out there and it was always up to everyone to try to figure out how to play around them,” he said. “Caroline plays the same way. It’s a very high event game and a lot of the events go her way. We’re really lucky to have her.”

When the Badgers needed a goal at important moments, they tapped Harvey – and she delivered with three game winners, including the overtime winner to make it to the national championship game. She imposed her will on that game with 14 shots on goal and didn’t think for a moment that they were going to lose. Not if she had anything to do with it.

“When we were down versus Minnesota, I had a feeling we were going to win the game,” she said. “I think I’m just more level minded thanks to the experiences I’ve had.”

BADGERS WIN! BADGERS ARE GOING TO THE NATTY!!!

💻 ESPN+ #WFrozenFour x @BadgerWHockey

— NCAA Ice Hockey (@NCAAIceHockey) March 18, 2023

Now, at women’s worlds, Wroblewski is using Harvey in a similar way as Team USA tries to win its first world championship since 2019. No skater has played more minutes for Team USA than Harvey (19:57 average) and nobody on the team has more points (8).  Against Canada, when the team needed a goal, Harvey was put over the boards. And it was Harvey’s shot on goal that led to Hilary Knight’s goal to make the game 3-2 with less than two minutes left.

After a lengthy review, Hilary Knight scores to keep Team USA alive in this one!

It's 3-2 Canada with 39 seconds to go in the 3rd period.#WomensWorlds

— TSN (@TSN_Sports) April 11, 2023

When the game was tied, Harvey was tapped again to defend against Canada’s top line featuring Marie-Philip Poulin. She even got her turn in the nine-round shootout.

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“That was a breakout game for her,” said Koch.

That Harvey was even put in that spot is one thing – when Canada and the U.S. met in the final in Beijing she played two shifts – but her calm demeanor throughout the game and the confidence to jump into the play and help kickstart the comeback is another.

“As all the vets say, the more experience you have, the more comfortable and the more relaxed you will be in those moments and I am definitely feeling that,” she said. “The Canada game is a prime example. I just felt calm and that my confidence was growing throughout the game.”

Team USA will play Czechia on Saturday in the semifinals, and they’re on another collision course to meet Team Canada in the gold medal game on Sunday night. And when they do, Harvey won’t be parked on the bench, or in front of the glass watching. She will be one of the most important players on the ice.

(Photo: Dennis Pajot / Getty Images)