2025 Top 25 Under 25: Julia Gosling (22), Joy Dunne (21)

22: Julia Gosling

by Emma Sullivan

After being an honorable mention in last year’s rankings, Julia Gosling has jumped up into the Top 25 to rank 22nd, following a solid year both professionally and on the international stage. 

Gosling, now 24, was one of two players who decided to forgo their final year of NCAA eligibility to enter the PWHL draft last spring. The decision paid off, as she was drafted sixth overall by the Toronto Sceptres, and went on to play all 30 games with the club in 2024-25. 

In said 30 games, the forward notched 10 points, good for seventh-best on the team. Four of those points were goals, and she scored an additional three times in Toronto's four game series against Minnesota. And while the numbers may not seem super strong compared to her time at St. Lawrence in the NCAA (where she finished with 128 points in 111 career games), the role Gosling was asked to play has changed drastically since her time in upstate New York. 

Throughout the season, Gosling bounced around Toronto’s lineup. Some nights she was a second line winger, sometimes she was on the third unit, and in other contests she was put in the lineup set as a fourth-line center. Wherever she was, Gosling contributed to the team in some fashion, and it speaks highly of her ability to adapt her game to best suit the role she’s needed to fill. 

Outside of the PWHL, the London, Ontario born player also returned to the World Championships with Team Canada, though she appeared in just four games. She produced a goal and two assists at the tournament, en route to a silver medal. 

Next season, as Gosling heads to PWHL Seattle following her selection in the expansion draft this past June, I’d expect her to take an even bigger leap than she did this past season. Her talent should shine in a larger and potentially more stable role, especially as now a second-year veteran compared to a rookie fresh out of college.

With her size and her skill — especially when getting closer to the net — there’s no doubt her play will both adapt and improve moving forward. Ranking 22nd is fair for Gosling, though if this list was coming out this time next year. I wouldn’t be surprised if she was in the teens. Potentially playing for Canada at the Olympics would help her stock, as would a dazzling first few months in Seattle. 

21: Joy Dunne

by Melissa Burgess

Another year, another Dunne sibling making their way up in the hockey ranks. Color absolutely no one surprised, as Joy Dunne flourished in her sophomore season with the Ohio State Buckeyes, setting a program record for points in a season, and is now poised for another strong season of NCAA Division I college hockey on one of the top teams in the country.

2024-25 Season

Last season with the Buckeyes, Dunne led the team in scoring across the board with 29 goals, 33 assists and 62 points. As a sophomore, she was third in the country in goalscoring (behind only Abbey Murphy & Laila Edwards). She was one of several players nationwide to record seven game-winning tallies, leading the country in that stat, and was fifth in the country in points. Ohio State narrowly lost the national championship to Wisconsin.

She also appeared in six games for Team USA at Women's Worlds, notching one assist and a gold medal.

Her success isn't a big surprise, considering the similar successes of her sisters Jessica and Jincy before her, but her stock continues to rise. Her size and overall maturity on the ice stand out, particularly at such a young age.

Past and Future

Dunne, a native of O'Fallon, MO, came up through the St. Louis AAA Blues and St. Louis Lady Blues organization. She captained Team USA at the U18s in 2023 and began her collegiate career the following season at Ohio State. Immediately, her offensive impact was significant: as a freshman, she finished third on the team in scoring with 42 points, behind only Hannah Bilka and Jennifer Gardiner, as the team won the national championship. That season, she also made her senior Women's Worlds debut, registering two points in seven games.

Entering her junior year at Ohio State, the 20-year-old was recently named an alternate captain for the team. The Buckeyes kick off their season on Sept. 21 against Durham. On the international stage, Dunne is expected to compete for a spot on the Olympic roster. She recently participated in USA Hockey's Women's National Festival in Lake Placid, and if she keeps producing offensively like she has at Ohio State, she'll make it difficult for the USA Hockey staff to turn her down.

Ranking

This is Dunne's first year appearing on the rankings, and it feels about right to me. Offensively, she is one of the top players in college hockey, but she's perhaps not quite as well-known as some of the others who will appear on this list later on. It seems like USA Hockey has really started paying more attention to her in recent years (and rightfully so!), and she's still only 20 - so I expect we'll be seeing her move up on this list for several years to come.

P.S. Check out my 2022 piece on the Dunne sisters forging a path in USA Hockey.