Why did the dog sit on the bench the whole hockey game? Because he’s a retriever, not a scorer!

If you have been following Penn State’s women’s hockey, you may have noticed a new friendly furry face on the team.

Meet Oliver, an adorable golden retriever, the team’s unofficial mascot. He’s being raised by Kendall Butze, and while he’s still learning how to play hockey, Oliver’s winning the fans over with his eyes.

Oliver’s not the only dog on the team. There’s also Lauren Barbro’s German shepherd, and the assistant coach, Makenna Newkirk, has a golden labradoodle on the squad. Oliver may be the youngest at 3 months old, but that doesn’t hold him back from showing up to practice, sliding around, and giving hockey his best shot.

“The dogs come to practice, and usually get the chance to skate around on the ice with the players,” said Aaron Gaberman, who serves as the team’s communications director and media liaison. “They just love being around the players, and love the attention. They just like to run around the ice and slide. They’re really funny, and they enjoy it.”

Getting a dog is a big commitment, but with the support of her parents, Butze went ahead and brought Oliver home from a breeder in central Pennsylvania.

“Getting a dog has always been something that I have always wanted to do. My parents supported me, making it a lot easier to feel the okay to get a puppy in college,” Butze said.

Not just Butze’s parents support her, but also her whole team.

“Ollie is very important to me. He is an amazing companion and means the world to me. To the team, I think they love to see me doing something that makes me really happy. Everyone on the team loves him and loves when they get to see and spend time with him,” Butze said.

The women’s hockey team loves Oliver and having a puppy around helps with their stress levels, according to Gaberman.

“The players love it. They love having the dog,” Gaberman said. “It makes them smile every day and makes them feel very happy to be around. It just adds another positive energy around the team that really helps them, especially if they’re going through tough times at practice or just calming them down. It helps their mental status on the ice, too. Having the dogs definitely helps the team a lot.”

Although we won’t see Oliver start in the next hockey game, you might be lucky enough to see him on the bench.

“It’s fun — the little pup gets to sit on the bench sometimes and watch them. It’s really cute,” Gaberman said.