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AS MARK JOHNSON PREPARES to cue up video from a recent game, the longtime University of Wisconsin women's hockey coach scans the room. Johnson's players offer their undivided attention, i n c l u d i n g A n n i e Pa n kow s k i — a t h r e e - t i m e Pa tt y Kazmaier Award finalist, which is given to the top female player in college hockey—who sits eager to learn. Next to her is an obedient Labrador retriever. The dog is Pankowski's sidekick. "Normally you don't have animals come in and watch video sessions, but I love dogs," Johnson says. "I had no problem with her bringing them in. It's amazing that over the time that she brought them in, not one thing ever happened as far as a peep. They just sit there and watch video. I'm not sure what their hockey knowledge is, but they're very polite and have great manners." It became a common sight on the Madison campus that wherever Pankowski went, a dog wasn't far behind. It was a little odd if man's best friend — or in this case a woman's best friend — wasn't accompanying the hockey star. During the tail end of her freshman year, Pankowski started volunteering for the Madison-based OccuPaws Guide Dog Association. The nonprofit organization places fully-trained guide dogs with visually-impaired residents in Wisconsin. It has been Pankowski's role to help raise and train the dogs for four to five months before the canine moves onto the next stage of its development and is eventually placed in a home. Pankowski, who figures she's worked with about a dozen dogs over the past four years of volunteering with OccuPaws, has the dogs live with her and engage in her everyday activities. Exposure to campus life, being downtown and living in an apartment are important for the dogs to get prepared for their clients. "I didn't truly know this is something I wanted to do until my sophomore year in college," Pankowski admits. "That's when I said, 'This is what I really want to do. I can make a big difference.'" The Laguna Hills, Calif., native grew up around animals. Her parents, Richard and Diane, are both veterinarians. It was only natu- ral for Pankowski to follow in their footsteps. "She's good at looking at a dog and understanding what it needs," says Barb Schultze, president of the OccuPaws Guide Dog Association. Schultze knows the dogs that Pankowski trains bene- fit from her active life and getting them into the locker room is good for stimulation. "If there's a dog that's afraid of noise, [it's the] perfect place for her because it's noisy and people wear funny hats and things," Schultze says. PUCKS & PUPS With The Dog Days Of College Behind Her, Annie Pankowski Embarks On New Career While Staying Focused On Unfinished Business On The Ice Photos By Darren Hauck By Greg Bates AUGUST 2019 USAHOCKEYMAGAZINE.COM // 17 "She's good at looking at a dog and understanding what it needs."