Four years ago, Wisconsin women’s hockey forward Blayre Turnbull arrived in Madison wide-eyed with her sights set on the future.

Having received offers to play collegiate hockey from multiple schools, she ultimately chose Wisconsin as her temporary home for the next four years, growing not only as a player but as a person.

Turnbull, a native of Stellarton, Nova Scotia, made the almost 1,800 mile-journey to Wisconsin after seeing the campus, facilities, talent pool around her and hearing head coach Mark Johnson’s sales pitch.

“Everything about this place is amazing,” Turnbull said. “After being here for four years, I look back and think about other options I had and realize I wouldn’t have been as happy as I am here or successful as I’ve been. It’s provided me with every opportunity possible, and I wouldn’t change a thing.”

The success Turnbull has had as a player wasn’t always proven, though. The now-captain began her NCAA career with some mild promise — a player whose talents flourished in isolated moments but couldn’t gain a consistent rhythm.

Through 34 games her freshman year, Turnbull tallied 14 points through seven assists and seven goals, recorded a plus-minus rating of +11, and even scored the winning goal against the then-No. 4 ranked Boston University Terriers.

Her productivity helped propel the Badgers to an NCAA Championship Game against bitter rival Minnesota.

“It was nerve-wracking,” Turnbull said of taking on the Gophers. “I think playing on a stage that big as a freshman, you don’t really know what you’re getting yourself into. Once the game started, you get through a few of your first shifts and things calm down, but there’s definitely a lot of nerves.”

Once the 60 minutes were over, Wisconsin’s players collapsed to the ice in disappointment. The final score read 4-2 in favor of Minnesota, ending the Badgers’ otherwise promising season in disappointment. Fellow senior Karley Sylvester also participated in the contest.

“It’s pretty hard to get someone who hasn’t been there to relate to it,” Sylvester said. “It’s a devastating feeling when you lose, regardless of whether it’s a semifinal or championship game.”

The following year, Turnbull arrived again in Madison as a sophomore only to have her worst season, production-wise, in her entire career. Her promising start from her freshman season did not flourish into an even better year as many had hoped. Instead, Turnbull fell into the dreaded sophomore slump.

Turnbull accrued only eight points the entire season, playing in 35 games and recording only three goals and five assists. The Badgers’ play followed her trend as they finished in third place in the WCHA and lost in the first round of the conference tournament, missing out on the NCAA’s.

Knowing that she needed a big year, Turnbull prepared a considerable amount for her junior season in the summer. Her work that year paid huge dividends.

As a junior, Turnbull tallied 40 points on the season, scoring 18 goals and assisting 22 others in the process. She finally delivered on the big year her skills always hinted she was capable of.

“[Turnbull] grew a lot as a player and person,” Sylvester said. “Her on-ice game had always been very good. Just over the years I watched her become more comfortable taking the puck to the net and holding on to it. She always works 110 percent and you always know what you’ll get out of her.”

Turnbull’s growth as a person came in realizing that she had the talent but needed to put work in to refine it and make it more effective in games. She began to stay on the ice longer, spending extra time skating and shooting once most of her teammates had already gone back to the showers.

Turnbull is still consistently the last player off the ice, day-in and day-out.

It’s something she contributes to buying into Johnson’s philosophy of hard work, repetition as a learning tool and focusing on the fundamentals.

“The most important thing I’ve learned is to not give up,” Turnbull said. “Even when times get tough and things don’t go your way, you can always work hard off the ice and on it to improve your game to become a better player. That’s what I did, or at least what I tried to do.”

Despite losing in the semifinal of the NCAA’s that season, the Badgers had an extremely positive year, which many players look forward to improving upon this postseason.

After four long years, Turnbull, through all of her ups and downs, all of her experiences, has the chance to finally win that elusive title.

“We want to win,” Turnbull said. “Everyone in that locker room wants to win. I think that we’re doing everything we need to do to prepare ourselves to win that game and that starts with working hard in the weight room, on the ice, and buying into the team’s systems. I think everyone is prepared mentally and physically to get back there.”

Now, the Badgers find themselves ranked No. 3 in the nation and come into the WCHA tournament holding the second seed. They will face St. Cloud State — whom they faced this past weekend — and earned the right to host them here in Madison again.

“The big thing this time of year is being able to execute under the pressure,” Johnson said. “With the playoffs, you have to know that if you’re not successful, your season will end … It’s going to come down to everyone doing their part and executing and playing at a high level.”