DURHAM, N.H. — As she savored the moment — an unexpected joy, if one was to believe the N.C.A.A. seeding committee — Amanda Kessel had one overriding thought: This was why she had come back.
When she had last played a full season for the University of Minnesota, in 2012-13, Kessel was universally recognized as the best player in women’s college hockey, winning the sport’s equivalent of the Heisman Trophy and leading her team to a 41-0-0 season and a national title. Then came a scheduled break for the Sochi Olympics and an unscheduled break to deal with lingering postconcussion syndrome.