Former Lynn English/Winthrop goaltender Katie Burt is still stopping pucks and helping win games as the starting goaltender for the Buckingham Browne & Nichols girls varsity hockey team.
The only difference from her Lynn days is that the shots are coming off the sticks of seasoned players from Minnesota, Canada, New Hampshire, Maine, New York and all areas of Massachusetts.
Burt, who played for the Lynn English/Winthrop Lady Bulldogs team before taking her talents to the prestigious prep school in Cambridge this year, has backboned a young BB&N Knights team to an impressive 8-3-2 record.
From Day 1 Burt was the No. 1 goaltender for the Knights who wear sharp LSU purple and gold uniforms. Her impact on the team was immediate.
“Katie is doing great – she’s definitely been a huge addition to our team,” said BB&N head coach Laurie Baker. She’s kept us in a lot of games. She gets a lot of shots and she’s done a fantastic job for us.”
Baker had her eye on Burt for the past two years. “We had a senior goalie that graduated so I’ve sort of been recruiting Katie for the last two years to come here to BB&N and finally I landed her. I knew of her caliber a few years back. I know what she can do and how she can be a game-changer.”
Baker said that technically Burt’s game is right on the mark. “She knows the game so well. She’s always square to the puck and in front of it. She controls the rebounds really well. On top of that, she’s a great kid so that helps out a lot. She’s a good teammate. She’s the culmination of everything you’d want in a player.”
Burt may be a freshman but her long-range potential is off the charts, with everything from Division 1 college hockey to a spot on the U.S. Olympic hockey team within her capabilities. Katie’s that good and the evaluation comes from Baker, a Providence College graduate and former two-time Olympian who won gold and silver in the 1998 and 2002 Games.
“Katie definitely has the potential – she controls her future,” said Baker. “She’s at the caliber that she can play at the highest level. I project her as Division 1 and I can even see her going on to the Olympic level.”
Burt, who will turn 15 on Jan. 26, is happy with the state of her game. She has two shutouts among the team’s eight wins and participated in a strength and conditioning program in the fall.
“I think I’ve been playing pretty well,” said Burt. “We shut out two very good teams, so I’m starting to step it up a bit. The transition was a little different to prep school hockey. The game’s a lot faster. This level is a little harder. It’s crazy to read the rosters and see players from Canada and Minnesota, everywhere.”
Burt said she’s enjoying hockey with her new teammates, some of whom she met while playing for the Wizards select team. She’s learning a lot of skills and preparation techniques from Baker.
“I love coach Baker – I haven’t seen her gold medal, though,” said Burt. “Sometimes I’ve even been able to stop her shots in practice.”
Burt will play softball for the BB&N varsity team in the spring and participate in her final season of baseball in the Lynn Babe Ruth program this summer.
Jim Burt said the school has been a good fit for her daughter.
“I’m proud of Katie. I don’t think we could have made a better choice for school. It’s a great school academically and it has great athletics. Coach Baker is perfect for my daughter. She knows what it takes to get to the next level and that’s the reason why we picked the school.”