The Penalty Box Post
Tuesday, November 22nd
Goals for a Goal 2022-2023: Make Your Pledge Today!
Through its first 13 games, the Gopher Women's Hockey team has recorded 57 goals, including converting 10 power-play opportunities. Help us support the squad through our Goals for a Goal program, pledging to convert each goal scored throughout the regular season and postseason into a donation for the program, with the option to double your pledge for power play goals. Your donation will help fund updates and improvements to Ridder Arena.
To make a pledge, fill out this online form (preferred) or download the PDF version, print it, and mail it in to the listed address. After the postseason, you will receive an email with your pledge total and giving instructions. All contributions are tax-deductible donations to the Golden Gopher Fund.
Save the Date – Brunch with the Coaches on January 14
Our Brunch with the Coaches event returns for 2022-2023 when we welcome former Gopher associate head coach and current University of St. Thomas head coach Joel Johnson and our own Brad Frost on Saturday, January 14, at 9:45 a.m. We hope you can join us as we hear from Coach Johnson on his experiences leading the 2022 U.S. Olympic Women's Hockey Team and the transition of the Tommies to a Division I program, along with balancing both at the same time. Registration will open next week.
Henderson Collegiate Hockey Showcase – Henderson, NV
Friday, November 25 – Semifinals at Lifeguard Arena
Boston Univ. (6-8-0) vs. #5 Yale (6-0-0) – 1 pm PT / 3 pm CT
#3 Minnesota (9-2-2) vs. #12 Penn St. (10-7-1) – 4 pm PT / 6 pm CT
Saturday, November 26 at The Dollar Loan Center
Third Place Game – 1 p.m. PT / 3 p.m. CT
Championship – 4 p.m. PT / 6 p.m. CT
Following a tough series in Madison, the #3 Gophers head west for Thanksgiving weekend, participating in the Henderson Collegiate Hockey Showcase in Henderson, Nevada. Action begins at Lifeguard Arena on Friday, November 25, with the Boston University Terriers and the Yale Bulldogs opening the tournament at 1:00 p.m. PT / 3:00 p.m. CT, followed by Minnesota facing the Penn State Nittany Lions at 4:00 p.m. PT / 6:00 p.m. CT. Action moves across town to The Dollar Loan Center on Saturday, November 26, with the 3rd Place Game at 1:00 p.m. PT / 3:00 p.m. CT and the Championship at 4:00 p.m. PT / 6:00 p.m. CT.
Last time against Penn State, Boston University, and Yale – Visiting Hockey Valley to open the 2015-2016 regular season, Minnesota shut out Penn State 2-0 & 5-0; Amanda Leveille and Sidney Peters stopped the combined 27 shots they faced, Kelly Pannek & Hannah Brandt each lit the lamp twice, and Megan Wolfe added a goal and an assist, while the Nittany Lions goaltenders combined for 74 saves. Minnesota visited Boston University in December 2016, splitting the series with a 5-1 Gopher victory followed by a 6-5 OT win for the Terriers; Kelly Pannek led Minnesota with 6 points (1g, 5a), Megan Wolfe tallied 5 points (1g, 4a), Sarah Potomak recorded two goals & two assists, and Kate Schipper added two goals & an assist, while BU's Natalie Flynn lit the lamp twice. Minnesota swept Yale at Ridder Arena the first weekend of January 2020, 6-3 & 4-1; Grace Zumwinkle netted 3 goals, Amy Potomak added two goals & an assist, Sarah Potomak tallied a goal & 3 assists, and Sydney Scobee made a combined 31 saves, while Claire Dalton led the Bulldogs with two goals & an assist.
Analyzing the Terriers & recent action – Boston University is 6-8-0 overall with a 5-7-0 mark in Hockey East, though they enter this weekend on a three-game winning streak after defeating #13 Vermont (4-3, OT) and sweeping #12 UConn (2-1 OT, 5-2). Against the Huskies, Brooke Disher (#27) tallied the overtime gamewinner Friday, Haylee Blinkhorn (#18) scored twice Saturday, and Catherine Foulem (#28) recorded a goal & two assists in the series. Senior Julia Nearis (#16) leads the Terriers in all three scoring categories, with 14 points on 6 goals & 8 assists, while junior Lacey Martin (#17) has 3 goals and also 8 assists. Foulem, a junior, and senior Nadia Mattivi (#6) each have 3 goals & 5 assists. Former Ohio State goaltender Andrea Brändli (#40) joined BU as a graduate transfer; she is 4-4-0 with 2 shutout in 8 starts, posting a 1.87 goals-against average and .944 save percentage; sophomore Callie Shanahan (#37) has started the other 6 games, posting a 2-4-0 record with a 3.33 GAA and .901 SV%.
Analyzing the Nittany Lions – Penn State (10-7-1, 3-1-0 in the CHA) has had its ups and downs, upsetting Wisconsin in the season opener but then falling 9-1 to the Badgers the next night, getting a win & a tie against Boston College, but being swept in series against Colgate & Yale (more on that shortly). Freshman Tessa Janecke (#15) and junior Kiara Zanon (#11) are averaging 1.00 points per game; Janecke has 11 goals & 7 assists, while Zanon has 7 goals & 11 assists. Senior Courtney Correia is third in scoring with 7 goals and 7 assists. Between the pipes, junior Josie Bothun (#30) has started 17 of Penn State's 18 games, going 9-7-1 with 2 shutouts, a 2.05 GAA and .921 SV%. Freshman Katie DeSa (#35) earned a win in her lone start against Franklin Pierce, stopping 10 of 11 shots, but she also yielded 3 goals on 5 shots in a very brief relief appearance against Wisconsin. Junior Annie Spring (#31) has also seen action, stopping 10 of 11 shots in 30 minutes of relief.
Analyzing the Bulldogs – As is standard for Ivy League teams, Yale didn't start the season until late October, but they're undefeated so far (6‑0‑0, 4-0-0 in the ECAC) including wins over Quinnipiac, Princeton, and a pair against Penn State, earning them the #5 ranking in the latest DCU/USCHO poll. Sophomore Anna Bargman (#22) and freshman Jordan Ray (#20) each have 4 goals & 4 assists to lead the Bulldogs. Sophomore Vita Poniatovskaia (#21) has tallied two goals & 4 assists, junior Elle Hartje (#4) has a goal & 5 helpers, and freshman Carina DiAntonio (#25) has lit the lamp 3 times and dished out an assist. Sophomore Pia Dukaric (#30) has been the only Bulldogs netminder to see action; she has two shutouts, a 0.82 GAA and .969 SV%.
Yale sweeps home series against Penn State – The Bulldogs hosted the Nittany Lions this past weekend, with Yale sweeping the series 3-0 & 2-1 (OT). Elle Hartje netted the overtime gamewinner Saturday after two assists on Friday, while Vita Poniatovskaia also recorded a goal and two helpers for the Bulldogs. Eleri MacKay netted the lone goal for PSU. Pia Dukaric stopped 50 of 51 shots for Yale, while Penn State's Josie Bothun made 54 saves.
Gophers held to only two points in Madison
The Gopher Women's Hockey team earned only two points in the WCHA standings on their Border Battle road trip, getting a 3-3 tie with a shootout win over Wisconsin on Saturday before falling 4-1 on Sunday.
Vivian Jungels and Laila Edwards gave the Badgers 1-0 and 2-1 leads in the opener but Peyton Hemp responded both times to knot the score, with her first goal coming shorthanded. Grace Zumwinkle tucked the puck into the Badger net for a 3-2 Gopher lead in the second period, but Britta Curl scored with an extra attacker and only 10.5 seconds remaining in regulation. Following a scoreless overtime period, Abbey Murphy netted the only goal of the subsequent shootout to earn the bonus point.
Wisconsin's Nicole LaMantia and Minnesota's Taylor Heise traded first-period power-play goals in the rematch, but Sarah Wozniewicz put the Badgers ahead late in the second stanza and Kirsten Simms & Jesse Compher scored in the third.
Between the pipes, Minnesota's Skylar Vetter made a combined 76 saves in the series; Wisconsin's Cami Kronish stopped 64 shots, though she entered Sunday's game in relief after starter Jane Gervais left with an injury only 3½ minutes into the contest.
Team USA defeats Canada in 2022-2023 Rivalry Series Game 3;
three Gopher alumnae record assists for American squad
The U.S. Women's National Hockey Team completed a sweep of the first three games of the 2022-2023 Rivalry Series against Canada, winning Game 3 by a 4-2 score in Seattle this past Sunday night. Hilary Knight led the Americans with 2 goals & an assist, while Gopher Women's Hockey alumnae Amanda Kessel, Lee Stecklein, and Kelly Pannek each dished out an assist. The victory marked the first three-game winning streak for Team USA over Canada since 2019, and came in front of an American-record crowd of 14,551 fans at Climate Pledge Arena.
Action in the Rivalry Series will resume next month when the teams meet at The Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, NV, on Thursday, December 15.
Future Gophers Lindsay & Klepinger named to USA U-18 Team
Our congratulations and wishes of good luck to future GWH players Ava Lindsay and Elly Klepinger as they were named to the U.S. Under-18 Women's National Hockey Team headed to the 2023 IIHF U-18 Women's Championship, being played Janaury 8-15 in Östersund, Sweden.
Around the WCHA...
Ohio State rolls in home sweep of Bemidji State – Ten different Buckeyes lit the lamp as they swept the Beavers in Columbus, 5-0 & 7-1. Jenna Buglioni and Jenn Gardiner each recorded a goal & 3 assists, while Hadley Hartmetz tallied two goals and an assist. Calli Forsberg netted an unassisted power-play goal for BSU.
Mavericks sweep Tommies despite short bench – Minnesota State swept their home-and-home series against St. Thomas, 3-1 & 2-0, overcoming a short bench with only 17 skaters on Saturday and 14 on Sunday. Taylor Otremba scored in each game, Jamie Nelson tallied a goal and two assists, and Alexa Berg stopped all 27 shots she faced in Sunday's contest. Maija Almich netted the lone goal for UST.
Minnesota Duluth shuts out Harvard – Gabbie Hughes posted a 6-point series on a goal & 5 assists, Anneke Linser lit the lamp 3 times and dished out 2 assists, and Emma Soderberg & Hailey MacLeod combined for 29 saves in the series to shut out Harvard, 4-0 & 9-0. Alex Pellicci stopped a combined 93 shots for the Crimson.
Upcoming games – As we noted last week, OSU is in action before the holiday, hosting Colgate in non-conference competition tonight & tomorrow (Tuesday and Wednesday). St. Cloud State goes on the road to face Lindenwood on Friday & Saturday. Bemidji State is also traveling, playing in the Nutmeg Classic in Hamden, Connecticut; the Beavers face host Quinnipiac on Friday and either UConn or Sacred Heart on Saturday. Minnesota Duluth, Minnesota State, St. Thomas and Wisconsin are idle.
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