Hannah Bilka
Hannah Bilka is an American professional ice hockey player for the Seattle Torrent of the Professional Women's Hockey League and member of the United States women's national ice hockey team. A native of Coppell, Texas, Bilka overcame the challenges of growing up in a non-traditional hockey market to become one of the top players in women's hockey.
Bilka played college ice hockey at Boston College for four seasons, where she was named the Women's Hockey Commissioners Association National Rookie of the Year in 2020. She transferred to Ohio State for her graduate season in 2023–24, where she led the team in scoring and helped the Buckeyes win the 2024 NCAA National Championship.
Internationally, Bilka has represented the United States at multiple levels. She won gold and silver medals at the IIHF World Women's U18 Championship in 2018 and 2019, respectively. At the senior level, she has competed in three IIHF Women's World Championships, winning gold in 2023 and silver medals in 2022 and 2024.
Bilka was drafted fourth overall by PWHL Boston in the 2024 PWHL draft and signed a three-year contract with the team. After one season with Boston, she was selected third overall by the Seattle Torrent in the 2025 PWHL Expansion Draft, reuniting her with former Boston teammate and U.S. national team captain Hilary Knight.
Early life and education
Bilka was born and raised in Coppell, Texas, to parents Dan and Patricia Bilka. She has three siblings: Christina, Stephanie, and Anthony. Bilka was inspired to play hockey by watching her older brother Anthony, who played Division III college hockey. She became passionate about hockey after watching the 2010 Winter Olympics.Growing up in Texas, a non-traditional hockey market, Bilka faced significant challenges in pursuing the sport. Due to limited opportunities for girls' hockey in the area, she played on boys' teams alongside fellow Texas native Ally Simpson. Bilka had to be proactive in her college recruitment, emailing coaches directly since scouts were unfamiliar with players competing in boys' tournaments in smaller hockey markets. At age 14, she left home to attend Shattuck-St. Mary's, a boarding school in Faribault, Minnesota, known for its elite hockey program. While at Shattuck-St. Mary's, she also played lacrosse and ultimate frisbee. She helped lead the Sabres to a Tier 1 U19 national championship in 2018 and a runner-up finish in 2019.
Bilka majored in communications at Boston College, where she was named to the National Honor Society and received The Hennessy Family Scholarship Fund and The Lombardi Family Scholarship Fund in Memory of Joseph J. Lombardi. During her time at Boston College, she worked as a statistician for the Boston College athletic communications office. She later pursued a master's degree in sport management at Ohio State University.
Playing career
College
Bilka began her collegiate career for Boston College during the 2019–20 season. During her freshman year, she recorded 14 goals and 23 assists in 34 games. She led the team in points with 37, and led all rookies in the country in total points per game, assists per game and shots on goal per game during the regular season and tied for first in shots on goal. her 30 points in Hockey East play marked the ninth-highest total by a first-year player in league history. Following an outstanding season, she was named to the Hockey East Second Team, a unanimous selection to the Hockey East All-Rookie Team, and the USCHO All-Rookie Team. She was also awarded the Hockey East Rookie of the Year and the Women's Hockey Commissioners Association National Rookie of the Year.During the 2020–21 season in her sophomore year, she recorded seven goals and nine assists in 19 games, in a season that was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. She ranked third on the team in scoring with 16 points and was subsequently named to the Hockey East Third Team. During the 2021–22 season in her junior year, she recorded 16 goals and 17 assists in 34 games. She ranked second on the team in points with 33 and led the team with a career-best plus-18 rating. Following the season, she was named to the Hockey East First Team, and New England Hockey Writers Association All-Star.
On August 19, 2022, Bilka was named a captain of the Eagles for the 2022–23 season. During her senior year, she recorded 12 goals and 29 assists in 34 games. She finished tied for fourth overall in conference scoring with 32 points, and 1.28 points per game. Her 24 assists in conference games tied for second most in the league. Following the season she was named a Hockey East Second-Team All-Star.
On March 25, 2023, Bilka announced she was transferring to Ohio State for the 2023–24 season. During her graduate transfer year she led the team in points with 22 goals and 26 assists in 39 games. During the 2024 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey tournament she assisted on the game-winning goal to help lead the Buckeyes to the national championship.
Professional
PWHL Boston (2024–25)
On June 10, 2024, Bilka was drafted fourth overall by PWHL Boston in the 2024 PWHL draft. On July 9, 2024, she signed a three-year contract with Boston. During the 2024–25 season, she recorded five goals and six assists in 16 games before suffering an injury during the rivalry series. Despite the shortened season due to injury, she demonstrated her offensive capabilities and was recognized as one of the team's key rookies. On January 5, 2025, during the PWHL's Takeover Tour game at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, she recorded a goal and an assist in a game against the Montréal Victoire, which proved significant as it foreshadowed her eventual move to the city.On February 12, 2025, Bilka was placed on long-term injured reserve, ending her rookie season with Boston. Her injury kept her off the U.S. roster for the World Championships that year.
Seattle Torrent (2025–present)
On June 9, 2025, Bilka was drafted third overall by the Seattle Torrent in the 2025 PWHL Expansion Draft. The selection reunited her with former Boston Fleet captain Hilary Knight and marked a significant moment for the expansion franchise. Seattle general manager Meghan Turner, who had served as assistant general manager in Boston during Bilka's rookie season, was familiar with her playing style and potential. Bilka was among seven players selected by Seattle in the expansion draft, joining a roster that included established stars such as Knight, Alex Carpenter, and Cayla Barnes. The team's construction emphasized both veteran leadership and young talent, with Bilka positioned as a key piece of the franchise's future.Bilka made her Seattle Torrent debut on November 21, 2025, in the team's historic first game against the Vancouver Goldeneyes at Pacific Coliseum. In the game, which Vancouver won 4–3 in overtime, she scored a goal late in the third period with just over six minutes remaining. The goal extended her scoring streak, giving her five points in her last six games dating back to the previous season. On November 28, 2025, the Torrent played their inaugural home opener at Climate Pledge Arena against the Minnesota Frost. The game drew a record-breaking crowd of 16,014 fans, setting a new attendance record for a professional women's hockey game in the United States.
File:Bilka knight eng 12 17.jpg|240px|thumb|right|alt=Bilka celebrates with Hilary Knight during the Torrent's 4-1 win aginast Ottawa Charge|Bilka celebrates with Hilary Knight during the Torrent's 4-1 win against Ottawa Charge, December 17, 2025
Bilka recorded her first multi-point game as a Torrent player on December 3, 2025, when she assisted on both power-play goals in a 2–1 comeback victory over the New York Sirens in the last 90 seconds of the game. The assists, which came on goals by Alex Carpenter and Hilary Knight in the final 22 seconds of the third period, marked the first multi-assist performance of her professional career. The victory was Seattle's first-ever home win and marked the first Torrent goal scored at Climate Pledge Arena in franchise history. As of early December 2025, Bilka is tied for the team lead in points. Throughout the early portion of Seattle's inaugural season, Bilka has been deployed on the top line alongside Knight and Carpenter, forming what analysts have described as a potential Olympic-caliber trio. Her lightning-quick skating ability and creative offensive instincts complement the veteran stars' playmaking abilities. On December 17, 2025, Bilka recorded a new career-high three points with a goal and two assists in Seattle's 4-1 victory over the Ottawa Charge. Bilka assisted on Julia Gosling's power-play goal late in the first period and on Alex Carpenter's first goal in the second period, before scoring the first empty-net goal in Torrent franchise history with 1:30 remaining. The performance gave Bilka back-to-back multi-point games for the first time since recording assists in consecutive games for Ohio State in March 2024. Bilka was named third star of the game, with teammates Alex Carpenter and Hannah Murphy earning first and second star honors respectively. On January 20, 2026, Bilka recorded her third multi-point game of the season with a goal and an assist in Seattle's 6–4 victory over Toronto, in the highest-scoring game of the PWHL season at the time. The Torrent's six goals set a franchise record and matched the season high for any PWHL team. Bilka was named the second star of the game.