Tessa Janecke

Tessa Janecke (born May 12, 2004) is an American college ice hockey player for Penn State and a member of the United States women's national ice hockey team.

Early life
Janecke attended Orangeville High School remotely while she attended North American Hockey Academy. During her senior season, she captained the Winter Hawks and recorded 46 goals and 76 assists in 78 games. She lettered in ice hockey and softball for four years. In December 2018, she verbally committed to Penn State University. She was named a three-time First Team-All State honoree as a softball player in high school. She was named the 2021 Softball Player of the Year by the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) after she helped lead Orangeville to a third-place finish in the Class 1A state softball tournament.

Playing career
Janecke began her collegiate career for Penn State during the 2022–23 season. She made her debut on September 22, 2022, in a game against Wisconsin, where she scored two goals and one assist. During September and October, she recorded nine goals and five assists for 14 points. She also recorded four multi-point games, including two multi-goal games. She was subsequently named the College Hockey America (CHA) Rookie of the Month for October, her first monthly honor. She was named the Hockey Commissioners Association Women's National Rookie of the Month in December 2022, after she recorded three goals and six assists for nine points during the month. She became the third Nittany Lion player ever to win a national Player of the Month award. She led the team in points for February, scoring five goals and seven assists for 12 points. She also recorded four multi-point games in the six games played in the month. She was subsequently named the CHA Forward of the Month and Rookie of the Month.

On February 25, 2023, during the CHA semifinals, Janecke recorded her first career hat-trick in a game against Lindenwood. This was the second hat-trick in program history scored during the postseason. With the win, Penn State advanced to their first CHA Championship game in program history. During the championship game against Mercyhurst, Janekce assisted on the game-winning overtime goal, to help Penn State win their first CHA tournament championship and advance to the NCAA women's ice hockey tournament for the first time in program history. During her freshman year she recorded 22 goals and 25 assists in 38 games. She set the single-season program records for freshman points, assists and goals. Her 47 points tied for first among freshmen, while her 22 goals ranked second in the nation. Following an outstanding season she was named to the USCHO All-Rookie Team, USCHO Co-Rookie of the Year, CHA Rookie of the Year and HCA National Rookie of the Year.

During the 2023–24 season, in her sophomore year, she recorded 17 goals and 36 assists in 37 games. She led the nation in faceoff wins with 607. After scoring a goal on February 23, 2024, during the second game of the CHA tournament semifinals, she reached the 100 points milestone. In just 74 games played, she became the fastest player in program history to reach the milestone. She was named CHA Forward of the Week four times and CHA Forward of the Month three times. Following the season she was named first-team All-CHA, CHA Player of the Year and CHA Forward of the Year. She was also named a top-ten finalist for the Patty Kazmaier Award.

International play
Janecke represented the United States at the 2022 IIHF World Women's U18 Championship where she recorded three goals and three assists in five games and won a silver medal.

On April 1, 2023, she was named to the roster for the United States at the 2023 IIHF Women's World Championship. During the tournament she recorded three goals and three assists in seven games and won a gold medal. On March 31, 2024, she was again named to the United States roster for the 2024 IIHF Women's World Championship. During the tournament she recorded one goal and three assists in seven games and won a silver medal.