Penalty Box Post
Tuesday, November 17, 2020
Give to the Max Day – this Thursday, November 19!!
Help us reach $30,000 in total contributions!!
The Power Play Club is excited about the chance to support Gopher Women’s Hockey on Give to the Max Day. Four donors have already pledged a combined $10,000. If we raise an additional $10,000 by end of the day on Thursday (November 19), those donors will match their gifts… for a total of $30,000!
As with past years, Give to the Max Day donations to U. of M. Athletics in support of this initiative will receive DOUBLE (x2) GOPHER SCORE POINTS! Your Gopher Score Points provide you with a priority ranking which is utilized for:
Season Ticket Upgrades & Post-Season Ticket Allocation (NCAA Tournament)
Gopher Loyalty Program Selection Date/Number of Selections
Season Parking for Gopher Sports
Early Access to On-Sales for Single Game Tickets
We hope all GWH fans will participate at whatever level they can. All gifts are appreciated, and are now being accepted at the Gopher Women’s Hockey Give to the Max Day Campaign page.
_____________________________________________________________________________
Season opener!!
#4 Minnesota Golden Gophers vs. #5 Ohio State Buckeyes
Saturday, November 21 at 3:00 p.m.
Sunday, November 22 at 2:00 p.m.
Ridder Arena
The Gopher Women's Hockey team starts its 24th season in program history with a matchup against the team they were scheduled to face in the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Tournament last March: the Ohio State Buckeyes. Action begins Saturday, November 21, at 3:00 p.m., and continues Sunday, November 22, at 2:00 p.m., with both games at Ridder Arena.
Streaming on BTN+ – This weekend's two games against Ohio State and the home series against Wisconsin on December 4 & 5 will be streamed online via BTN+. The Big Ten Network offers a variety of BTN+ subscription packages by conference, school, or sport, available here.
Last year against Ohio State – The Gophers and Buckeyes split their four-game regular-season series in 2019-2020. OSU won the opener in Columbus in October, 4-3, but Minnesota responded with a 4-2 victory the next day. In January in Minneapolis, the Buckeyes took the first game 4-1 at Ridder Arena, but the Gophers won outside on Hockey Day Minnesota, 2-1. Meeting up again in the WCHA Final Faceoff semifinals, Minnesota took 2-0 and 3-2 leads, but Ohio State responded to force overtime and advanced to the championship game, winning 4-3 when Tatum Skaggs lit the lamp 4:56 into the extra session.
A quartet of Gophers each recorded four points in the five contests against the Buckeyes; Grace Zumwinkle and Amy Potomak lit the lamp 4 times apiece, Taylor Heise netted 3 goals with an assist, and Emily Brown dished out four assists. On the Ohio State side, four players each tallied 5+ points against Minnesota; Emma Maltais led the way with a goal and 5 assists, Liz Schepers lit the lamp 3 times with 2 assists, and Skaggs & Sophie Jaques each added two goals and three assists. Additonally, Jenn Gardiner and Gabby Rosenthal also lit the lamp 3 times apiece for OSU. In net, Sydney Scobee made 127 saves with a 3.17 goals-against average and an .894 save percentage, Makayla Pahl made 8 saves in 18 minutes of action in mop-up duty in Janaury's loss at Ridder, while Buckeyes goalkeeper Andrea Brändli stopped 149 shots (38 in the WCHA semifinal) with a 2.58 GAA and .920 SV%.
Analyzing the Buckeyes – Ohio State enters the 2020-2021 season as the defending WCHA Final Faceoff champion, having defeated Wisconsin 1-0 in overtime in the title contest. They were third in the league standings, posting a 13-6-5-2 conference record and a 20-8-6 overall mark in the regular season.
OSU also comes in with much experience, losing only one of its top 11 scorers from last season to graduation. The team's leading trio in 2019-2020 returns as seniors; Emma Maltais (#17) posted a whopping 59 points (19 goals, 40 assists), Liz Schepers (#21) led the squad with 22 goals while dishing out 21 assists for 43 points, and Tatum Skaggs (#11) added 42 points (17g, 25a). Junior defender Sophie Jaques (#18) also surpassed the 20-point mark last season, tallying 9 goals and 15 assists.
The Buckeyes also retained all three goaltenders from last year's squad. Junior Andrea Brändli (#20) started 31 of the team's 38 games in 2019-2020, posting a 20-5-5 record (with one no-decision), 4 shutouts, a 1.89 goals-against average, and a .928 save percentage. Senior Lynsey Wallace (#30) was the primary backup for Ohio State, posting a 4-3-1 record in 10 total appearances, with a 2.35 GAA, and a .906 save percentage. Sophomore Quinn Kuntz (#35) stopped 6 of the 8 shots she faced in 18 minutes of game action as a freshman. The Buckeyes also added 2020 U.S. Women's U-18 National Team goaltender Amanda Thiele (#32).
Analyzing the Gophers – Minnesota again looks to improve over last season's finish, claiming second in the WCHA regular-season standings before their conference playoff semifinal loss. Meanwhile, the team's roster of skaters (forwards & defense) has expanded back to 20 players as seven freshmen join the Maroon and Gold.
After placing fourth among Division I teams with a 3.89 goals-per-game average in 2019-2020, the Gophers lost two of their top-5 scorers to graduation. That said, the team returns 70% of its goal production and 73% of its total points from last season. Senior Grace Zumwinkle returns as last season's top goal scorer (25) and second on the squad in total points (45). Juniors Taylor Heise & Amy Potomak both improved on their freshman point totals in their sophomore seasons; Heise tallied 43 points (18g, 25a), while Potomak recorded 36 points (18g, 18a).
Minnesota allowed 1.69 goals per game to opponents last season, a slight improvement over the previous season, placing them fifth-best in Division I but at the top among WCHA squads. Graduate transfer Lauren Bench joins the Gophers for her redshirt senior season after three years as the primary goaltender for Bemidji State, posting a career 2.45 goals-against average and .912 save percentage. Sophomore Makayla Paul saw only limited playing time last year but stopped 23 of the 24 shots she faced in 47 minutes of game action over three relief appearances. Sophomore Olivia King returns as the team's third netminder.
As previously mentioned, 7 other new players join Bench on the Gopher roster this year. Three members of the 2020 U.S. Women's U-18 National Team – Abbey Murphy (Evergreen Park, IL; Chicago Mission), Maggie Nicholson (Minnetonka; Minnetonka H.S.), and Audrey Wethington (Edina; Blake School) – join the Gophers, as does Canada Women's U-18 National Team member Anne Cherkowski (Coldstream, BC; Pursuit of Excellence). The team also added 2020 Minnesota Class AA All-Tournament Team member Tella Jungels (Edina; Edina H.S.), Minnesota Ms. Hockey award semifinalist Addie Burton (Orono; Blake School), and Chicago Mission defensive standout Josey Dunne (O’Fallon, MO).
_____________________________________________________________________________
Murphy, Brown earn preseason conference honors;
Gophers take second spot in WCHA Preseason Coaches Poll
The WCHA announced its preseason honors yesterday, with Minnesota Women's Hockey freshman Abbey Murphy selected as Preseason Rookie of the Year, earning four of the seven votes from the conference coaches. Fellow Gopher newcomer Anne Cherkowski also received a vote, as did St. Cloud State's Emma Gentry and Wisconsin's Casey O'Brien.
Senior Gopher captain Emily Brown was named to the Preseason All-WCHA Team, and was joined by Wisconsin's Daryl Watts & Sophie Shirley, Ohio State's Emma Maltais & Andrea Brändli, and Minnesota-Duluth's Ashton Bell. Fellow Gopher seniors Olivia Knowles and Grace Zumwinkle were among other players receiving votes.
Watts was named WCHA Preseason Player of the Year, with 3 votes. Maltais was second with 2 votes, while Zumwinkle and UMD's Gabbie Hughes earned one vote apiece.
In the Preseason Coaches Poll, Minnesota slotted into the #2 spot, earning 31 voting points and 3 first-place votes. Wisconsin took the top spot with 34 points and 4 first-place votes. Ohio State was picked third with 28 points, followed by Minnesota Duluth (21 points), Bemidji State (14), Minnesota State (13), and St. Cloud State (6).
_____________________________________________________________________________
Gophers selected 4th in national polls – After earning the 4th seed for the 2020 NCAA Tournament (which was subsequently cancelled), Minnesota retained that ranking in both this year's Preseason USCHO.com Division I Poll (receiving 109 voting points) and Preseason USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine College Hockey Poll (140 points; 1 first-place vote). Both polls were also in agreement with the other positions in the top five, as Wisconsin, Cornell, and Northeastern earned the top three spots (in that order) and Ohio State was picked 5th. Clarkson was 6th in the USCHO poll and 7th in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll, while Princeton had just the opposite rankings. Minnesota-Duluth followed as the last nationally-ranked WCHA team, in 8th in both polls.
_____________________________________________________________________________
Other news around NCAA Division I...
COVID-19 impacts St. Cloud State, Vermont, Rensselaer, Beanpot tourneys – Per a press release this past Sunday from the WCHA, St. Cloud State University has put a pause on all women's ice hockey activities following multiple positive COVID-19 tests within the program, causing the postponement of their season-opening home series against Bemidji State this coming weekend; no make-up dates have been set at this time. The men's and women's hockey & basketball teams at the University of Vermont have all seen their start of competition pushed back to December 18 after consultation with their state's Department of Health; the delayed start causes the postponement of at least three series for the Catamounts women's hockey team. Meanwhile, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute announced the full cancellation of their men's & women's hockey seasons due to the pandemic, and the annual men's and women's Beanpot tournaments were also cancelled.
Upcoming WCHA games – With the SCSU-BSU contests postponed, only one other WCHA series remains on the calendar this weekend. Minnesota Duluth starts on the road against Minnesota State, playing on Friday and Saturday. Top-ranked Wisconsin is idle and scheduled to open its season next weekend.
Hockey East gets underway – Hockey East is also opening its action with six of its ten teams scheduled for Friday & Saturday games this week. Holy Cross hosts Maine, while Boston College faces New Hampshire and Providence plays Merrimack in a pair of home-and-home series. UConn will start next weekend after the postponement of their home series against Vermont; Northeastern also opens its season next weekend, while Boston University starts play on December 4.
_____________________________________________________________________________
Copyright © 2020 Power Play Club, All rights reserved.
Follow the Power Play Club at www.powerplayclub.org, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/PowerPlayClubMN, or on Twitter at twitter.com/powerplayclub.
Follow the Gopher women's hockey team and all Univ. of Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletics at www.gophersports.com. You can also find the Gopher women's hockey team on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GopherWomensHockey and on Twitter at twitter.com/GopherWHockey.