Taylor Wasylk returned to her Boston hockey roots as the standout Boston College alumna was selected to build and lead the women’s ice hockey team as Suffolk’s first-ever head coach of the program in November 2016. Wasylk begins her fourth term in 2021-22.

Wasylk's first season was one for the history book, literally, as she charted the course for the Rams during their transition into Division III play with their inaugural puck drop. She used an entire year to recruit prior to 2018-19. Over that time, she built a 22-player roster comprised primarily of freshmen (17). That group put together 15-9-2 overall record and a 10-4-2 league ledger, good for the second seed and Quarterfinals hosting rights in the NEHC postseason tournament. The team Wasylk assembled produced the second-best offense in the league (2.88 GPG) and held its opponents to just 2.00 goals per outing, for the third-best defense amongst conference competition.

For her efforts on and off the ice, the first-year head coach was recognized by her peers as NEHC Coach of the Year. Suffolk's skaters were also recognized for their efforts on the ice in its first season as five Rams combined for eight conference accolades highlighted by Shana Cote's Rookie of the Year nod. The freshman forward also brought home third-team and all-rookie team honors. Tess Adams (first-team), Kristen Caporusso (third team), Madison Duff (second team, rookie team) and Haley Poloskey (rookie team) were recognized by the league as well.  

Suffolk hit a sophomore slump early on in its second season. The Rams right the wrongs at just the right time to secure the sixth seed in the NEHC postseason with an 8-7-1 league ledger.  

Playing on the road in the playoffs upset three-seed Johnson & Wales, 2-0, in the quarterfinals and fourth-seeded Southern Maine in the semifinals, 2-1, to reach the championship contest for the first time in the young program’s history.  

In the title tilt, at conference powerhouse, No. 7 Norwich, Suffolk lit the lamp twice to get the crowd going. The Cadets took over later on though, potting eight unanswered pucks to claim the crown and end the Rams’ season year with double-digit wins (10-15-3).  

Grace Scholz became the first-ever Ram to garner a spot on the NEHC All-Tournament Team after producing two points in the playoff run. She joined a trio of student-athletes with all-league accolades in third-team selections Maddy Burton and Shana Cote and NEHC All-Rookie Team member Julia McLellan.  

Wasylk’s Rams were rewarded for their work off the ice as well in 2019-20. Suffolk put together a Special Olympics skate prior to their third-jersey game that benefited Special Olympics Massachusetts. For its work with the Special Olympians, Suffolk was voted the August 2020 NCAA Division III Spotlight Poll and received a $500 stipend from the national organization to work with the Special Olympics in the future. 

Wasylk’s third season was anything, but traditional. Once the global COVID-19 pandemic spread and cancelled NCAA competition in the middle of March 2020 question marks were left for Suffolk’s 2020-21 season, its inaugural in the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC).

After much deliberation, the CCC decided to not conduct conference play for the 2020-21 winter season, however, university’s had autonomy to compete in a non-conference campaign. The Rams took advantage of this and spread eight outings over four weeks, in which they finished 2-6 overall. A highlight of that shortened season was Suffolk’s first-ever season-opening win, which came over Nichols, 5-3, Feb. 26, 2021.

Under Wasylk’s leadership the Rams’ academic accolades mirror those of the athletic accomplishments. Seven individuals have been tabbed an AHCA All-America Scholar for achieving at least a 3.6 GPA, while competing in at least 40 percent of the team’s full contests. Conference wise, 13 student-athletes have earned a spot on the NEHC All-Academic Team with a 3.0 GPA in their second year at their current institution. 

In the fall of 2016 Suffolk announced the addition of six new varsity sports to its lineup including women’s ice hockey. The hiring of Wasylk, who was an Assistant Coach at SUNY Canton for two seasons, allowed her to have a full year of recruiting in order to properly prepare for Suffolk’s first season of competition.

Wasylk is no stranger to building a program as she joined the coaching ranks at SUNY Canton during just its fourth varsity season in 2015-16.  She has helped the Roos reach unparalleled heights during her short time with the program including its first playoff appearance during its inaugural season in the Colonial Hockey Conference and most recently helped them to their first-ever appearance in the D3Hockey.com Top 10 Poll as SUNY Canton has received votes in two polls this season.   

With a variety of tasks in Upstate New York, which included scouting, recruiting efforts and handling the team’s schedule, Wasylk also had responsibilities off the ice as the Coordinator of Intramurals, while also overseeing student-worker staff. 

Prior to SUNY Canton, Wasylk’s coaching career got underway as an assistant coach at Suffolk’s Bay State rival, UMass Boston in 2014-15. With the Beacons, she was actively involved in recruiting, practice planning and execution and managed the team’s travel arrangements. 

Wasylk’s true success on the ice comes from her decorated playing career at Boston College. The four-year letterwinner led the Eagles to national and regional prominence, making three consecutive trips to the NCAA Division I “Frozen Four” (2011, 2012, 2013), two Beanpot and Hockey East Titles and the Nutmeg Classic Championship. In 2014, she earned Hockey East Best Defensive Forward credits, as well as the coveted Most Valuable Player honor of the 2014 Beanpot. The four-time Hockey East Offensive Player Honoree and Pro Ambitions Rookie Honoree still ranks among the Eagles greats in game-winning goals (11 – sixth), short-handed goals (3 – ninth), shots on goal ( 497 – seventh) and games played (145 – 10th). 

Wasylk also excelled academically at BC as the recipient of the Athletic Director’s Award for Academic Achievement and an Athletic Coast Conference Honor Roll student.

When not training and competing for the maroon and gold, Wasylk donned the red, white and blue, traveling with Team USA’s Under-18, Under-22 and senior-level national teams. She skated with all three squads at multiple World Championships. 

Off the ice Wasylk is heavily involved in giving back to the community working with a variety of groups including the Newton Special Athletes, the Massachusetts Hospital School, Food for Families and Skating Strides Against Breast cancer. 

A 2014 graduate of Boston College, Wasylk earned a Bachelor of Arts in history with a minor in international students, concentrating in international cooperation and conflict. The Port Huron, Michigan, native broadened her education with a semester abroad in London in the summer of 2014.