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Did You Did You Know? Know? Josie is an avid drawer. "My great grandma, who passed away a cou- ple of years ago, she and I always drew together. It was kind of our way of spend- ing time together, so drawing is just kind of special to me and for remembering her. I would spend a lot of time doing that when I wasn't play - ing hockey. It just kind of brings a little calm to my life when I draw." Beloved by teammates and the community, Josie gives back whenever she can. "I've long been hearing about Josie," Cashman recalls. "She had a very impres- sive youth career, and she's always been the up-and-coming kid, and now, here we are. She's a senior and I think everyone can't really believe it, because she seems to have been everyone's kid in Stillwater for a long time. They've been rooting for her and cheering for whatever team she's on. "Getting to be her coach has been remarkable." JOSIE'S SHOOTING SCHOOL St. Martin's bread and butter has long been her shot. "I love shooting," she said. "I've always loved shooting. And it's always been my strength. I've just been known as a shoot- er. As I've grown up and kind of grown into the game of hockey, I would say that I love playmaking and I like giving to the puck to my teammates, setting up my teammates for success. "Honestly, I might even like that as much as scoring goals, too. So that's been really fun for me, growing into the player I am and becoming a playmaker." She's a Ms. Hockey Award contender and has dazzled in several appearances for Team USA. but St. Martin isn't just playing at a high level. She's teaching the next generation. "Last year she came to me and was like, 'hey, I think I want to teach kids to shoot off-ice. That's what I'm really good at,'" Cashman recalled. "I told her I thought that was a really good idea. So we started talking about what that would look like." ENTER THE PONY CHALLENGE With the help of Cashman, the duo began advertising a sign-up to get free lessons with St. Martin to the youth association. One girl turned into two. Two turned into four and you get the idea. "Now she has her own little program," Cashman said with pride. "She's got prob - ably 20 or 25 kids that she's giving private lessons to. And every kid I see—some of my daughter's friends—I'll ask them where they learned to shoot and they will say 'Josie's Shooting School' and I am just beyond proud of the cognitive and giving player that she is. "She deeply cares about the kids that are coming behind her, and being a posi - tive role model. I think what makes Josie special is she has this burning desire to be one of the faces of girls' hockey not only in Stillwater, but in the state or country. And she's actually doing something about it." St. Martin accepts the compliments with grace, but she's just continuing the Pony tradition. "I made the varsity team in eighth grade, and I remember how great the seniors were to me, and how welcome they made me feel and just how much I looked up to them," St. Martin said. "And giving back is something that's really important to Coach Cashman, so that's been really inspiring to see. "I am so grateful to be in this position that I am in, and that's a lot of thanks to my coaches and my family who have helped me get to this point. I am lucky to have all these opportunities, so I want to share that with as many people as I can for a long, long time." Jessi Pierce is a freelance writer covering the NHL and hockey in Minnesota. She hosts Bardown Beauties podcast and can be followed on Twitter @jessi_pierce. J A N / F E B 2 0 2 4 | M H J ON L I N E . C O M 19