Full Circle in Italy

Twenty years after a heartbreaking cut, MSU’s Shari Dickerman went to the Olympics in Italy—and returned with the gold.

By Joe Tougas ‘86

In 2006, former Maverick goalie Shari Dickerman was cut from the U.S. women’s Olympic hockey team just one month before it headed to the games in Turin, Italy.

Despite going on to have a long career in the sport she loves, including serving as an assistant and now head coach of the Maverick women’s hockey team, she carried that disappointment for 20 years. This year, however, as an assistant coach of the U.S. women’s Olympic team, it all came full circle for Dickerman when she and Team USA brought home, from Milan, Italy, the gold medal after defeating Canada 2-1 in overtime.

Tied 1-1 at the buzzer, the championship game against Canada was decided in sudden-death overtime. Team USA trailed 1-0 until nearly 18 minutes into the third period, when Hilary Knight scored the tying goal. At that point, Dickerman recalled, she knew her team would win.

“You could feel that players were nervous in the first period,” she said, adding that part of her job was to maintain calm on the bench. “As soon as she [Knight] scored, I thought, ‘Alright. We’re winning the game.’ I never doubted the players would get it done.”

Even weeks after the win, Dickerman said she has not had much time to process it. In Italy, there were celebrations with staff and media events to attend. Back home, the Mavericks were preparing to play St. Thomas in a two-day series – the last two games of the regular season. It was a challenge for Dickerman to enjoy Italy without focusing on that. The Mavericks swept the series.

After winning the gold medal game on Thursday, Feb. 19, the team reconvened the following Saturday for a dinner, and the following day, Dickerman attended the U.S. men’s hockey team’s gold-medal game with her husband and sister.

Being an integral part of the U.S. Olympic hockey victory will take time to sink in, she said.

“I think it’ll be more down the road—10 years from now, 20 years from now—that ‘Wow, we were there when both teams won gold in Milan in overtime against Canada.’ They were both highlight-reel finishes and exciting games.”

Growing up in Richmond, Minnesota, Dickerman was an all-sports kid. Hockey took hold during her junior high years. In 1994 and 1995, she attended hockey camps at Minnesota State Mankato.

She made a strong impression. A few years later, when the Maverick women’s hockey program needed a goalie, former Mavericks coach Troy Jutting recalled Dickerman from those camp and mentioned her to Todd Carroll, head coach of the women’s team.

Carroll recruited Dickerman, and she played from 2000 to 2004, demonstrating an extraordinary connection to the game. She set both program and Western Collegiate Hockey Association records for career saves and was named Minnesota State’s Female Athlete of the Year for the 2003-04 season. She graduated in 2004 with a bachelor’s degree in physical education and earned a master’s degree in exercise science in 2008.

Dickerman returned to her alma mater as an assistant coach in 2009 and has been head coach for the past two years. It has yet to feel like going to work, she said.

“I enjoy being around hockey every day. I don’t really consider it a real job yet. I don’t know what that’s like,” she said. “I enjoy being around our team every day. The people I coach with are great. I can truly say I enjoy going to work every day. I don’t know how many people can say that.”

Ultimately, Dickerman’s victorious return to Italy for the 2026 Winter Games will likely overshadow the disappointment of missing the 2006 Olympics.

“I didn’t do it the way I thought I would, but we did it,” she said. “It was unique. Not a lot of people have experienced it from both sides—as an athlete and as a coach.”