The Two-Minute Minor
An edition of the Penalty Box Post
Friday, March 4th
Heise named 2021-2022 WCHA Player of the Year, Kazmaier Award Top 10 Finalist & National Player of the Month
Yesterday – Thursday, March 3rd – was quite a day for Minnesota Women's Hockey senior forward Taylor Heise as she picked up a trifecta of league and national honors, highlighted by being named the 2021-2022 WCHA Player of the Year!!
Heise recorded 26 goals & 34 assists for 60 points during the regular season, becoming the first Gopher in five years to reach the 60-point mark. Six of her goals were gamewinners while 4 came short-handed (she netted her fifth shorty in the conference quarterfinals last weekend). She also recorded a +38 plus-minus rating, claimed the league's Player of the Month award three times, and surpassed the career 150-point mark.
Heise becomes the seventh Gopher to be named WCHA Player of the Year, marking the ninth time a Minnesota player has won the award. Sydney Baldwin was the last previous winner from the Gophers, claiming the honor at the end of the 2017-2018 season.
Earlier in the day, Heise was named as a Top-10 finalist for the 2022 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award by the USA Hockey Foundation. The award is presented to the top player in NCAA Division I women's hockey, and was previously won by Minnesota's Krissy Wendell (2005) and Amanda Kessel (2013). Heise becomes the 35th Gopher to be named as a finalist for the award, dating back to its inception in 1998. The Top-3 finalists will be announced on March 17, with the award presented on March 26.
That was not the limit of the honors, as Heise was recognized as National Women’s Co-Player of the Month by the Hockey Commissioners Association following her 8-goal, 10-assist performance in February, averaging 2.25 points-per-game and recording a +16 plus-minus rating. Heise is now a two-time honoree this season as she also received the award for the month of November.
WCHA Individual Award Winners
Offensive Player of the Year & Scoring Champion: Taylor Heise, Minnesota
Defensive Player of the Year: Sophie Jaques, Ohio State
Goaltender of the Year: Emma Polusny, St. Cloud State
Goaltending Champion: Amanda Thiele, Ohio State
Rookie of the Year: Peyton Hemp, Minnesota
Coach of the Year: Nadine Muzerall, Ohio State
Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year: Sophie Jaques, Ohio State
Six Gopher alumnae to play in USA-Canada “Rivalry Rematch”
The six Minnesota Women's Hockey alumnae who were members of the 2022 U.S. Women's Olympic Team – Megan Bozek, Hannah Brandt, Dani Cameranesi, Amanda Kessel, Kelly Pannek, and Lee Stecklein – are listed on the preliminary roster for a special USA vs. Canada “Rivalry Rematch” game scheduled for next Saturday, March 12, at 4 p.m. ET / 3 p.m. CT at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, PA. The event, a partnership of the NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins and the Professional Women's Hockey Players Association (PWHPA), is an unofficial rematch between players from the two Olympic teams. Additionally, two girls hockey clinics are being held at PPG Paints Arena in conjunction with the game.
IIHF announces tentative Women's U18 reschedule, Russia & Belarus suspensions – In a press conference held on February 16 at the Main Media Centre of the 2022 Olympic Winter Games, International Ice Hockey Federation president Luc Tardif indicated that the 2022 IIHF Women's U18 World Championship, originally scheduled for January in Sweden but canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, would be rescheduled for June and played in the United States. Exact dates and locations are still to be announced.
Meanwhile, the organization announced this past Monday, February 28, actions to be taken by IIHF Council following an extra-ordinary meeting of that body held in response to the war in Ukraine. Specifically, all Russian and Belarusian National Teams and Clubs are suspended from participation in every age category for all IIHF competitions or events until further notice, and Russia has been stripped of hosting rights of the 2023 IIHF World Junior (Men's U20) Championship.
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