Ava Rinker
| Ava Rinker | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born |
November 25, 2002 Elverson, Pennsylvania, U.S. | ||
| Height | 5 ft 4 in (163 cm) | ||
| Position | Defense | ||
| Shoots | Right | ||
| PWHL team | Minnesota Frost | ||
Ava Rinker (born November 25, 2002) is an American ice hockey defenceman currently as a reserve player for the Minnesota Frost of the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL). She played college ice hockey for the UConn Huskies. She was selected 30th overall by the Minnesota Frost in the 2025 PWHL Draft.
Early life
[edit | edit source]Rinker is from Elverson, Pennsylvania. Her interest in hockey was piqued by watching a Hershey Bears game, after which she started playing street hockey with her brother. She soon was playing mites with boys.[1]
Rinker played in the Philadelphia Jr. Flyers girls' hockey program before enrolling at UConn.[2] She played for the Jr. Flyers for six years, served as a two-time captain, and was their first Division I recruit and first PWHL draftee.[1]
Playing career
[edit | edit source]College
[edit | edit source]Rinker appeared in all 144 games across four seasons at UConn. As a senior assistant captain in 2024–25, she posted career highs with 20 points (3 goals, 17 assists) in 36 games and was named to the Hockey East First All-Star Team. She also earned Hockey East Defender of the Month (February).[3][4][5]
Professional
[edit | edit source]On June 24, 2025, Rinker was drafted in the fourth round, 30th overall, by the Minnesota Frost.[6] Following pre-season training camp, she was announced as a reserve player for the Frost prior to the 2025–26 season.[7]
Personal life
[edit | edit source]Rinker's brother, AJ, uses a wheelchair and plays for the Flyers' PowerPlay team, a power wheelchair floor hockey team.[1]
Career statistics
[edit | edit source]| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2021–22 | UConn | Hockey East | 35 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2022–23 | UConn | Hockey East | 35 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2023–24 | UConn | Hockey East | 38 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 15 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2024–25 | UConn | Hockey East | 36 | 3 | 17 | 20 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NCAA totals | 144 | 8 | 37 | 45 | 53 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
Source: College Hockey Inc.; Hockey East.[8][9]
Awards and honours
[edit | edit source]| Honour | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| College | ||
| Hockey East First All-Star Team | 2025 | [10] |
References
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- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
External links
[edit | edit source]- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or ESPN.com, or Eurohockey.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database, or ThePWHL.com
- HockeyDB profile
- UConn Huskies bio