The Two-Minute Minor
An edition of the Penalty Box Post
Sunday, August 28th
Gophers' non-conference game schedule announced!
The University of Minnesota announced the Gopher Women's Hockey team's 2022-2023 non-conference schedule on Friday, featuring four games across two weekends.
The Gophers will again be participating in a neutral-site tournament over Thanksgiving weekend, heading to Henderson, Nevada, for the 2022 Vegas Showcase. Minnesota will face Penn State on Friday, November 25, at 3 p.m. PT / 5 p.m. CT. They will then play either Boston University and Yale on Saturday, November 26, with game time dependent on Friday's results.
Ridder Arena will host the East-West Showcase on January 6 & 7, as the Gophers and St. Cloud State Huskies each face New Hampshire and Merrimack from Hockey East. Minnesota will take on the UNH Wildcats on Jan. 6 at 6:00 p.m., and the Warriors from Merrimack on Jan. 7 at 4:30 p.m. The Huskies will play the Warriors on the 6th and the Wildcats on the 7th, with both of those contests expected to be played before the Gopher games.
The full Gopher regular-season calendar, including the 28-game WCHA conference schedule and the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Museum Game, can be found here.
2022 IIHF Women's World Championship update...
Kessel, Heise lead all players with 6 points apiece after 2 games
The last two Gophers to win the Patty Kazmaier Award, Amanda Kessel (2013) and Taylor Heise (2022), are making waves at the 2022 IIHF Women's World Championship, each recording 6 points apiece through two contests to lead all players.
Heise tied an all-time WWC single-game record in her major tournament debut with the senior U.S. National Team, dishing out 5 assists in the Americans' 10-0 victory over Japan on Thursday, earning her the honor as Team USA's Best Player in that game. She added a 6th assist in yesterday's 6-1 win over Finland.
Kessel tallied a goal and two assists against the Japanese, then followed it up with 2 goals, an assist, and the U.S. Best Player award against the Finns.
Among other Gophers playing at the World Championship, Hannah Brandt (USA) recorded two points on a goal and an assist against Finland; Kelly Pannek (USA) lit the lamp and Lee Stecklein (USA) tallied an assist against Japan; Josefin Bouveng dished out an assist in Sweden's 5-2 win Thursday over Denmark; Nelli Laitinen was named Team Finland's Best Player in their 4-1 loss to Canada despite not scoring; and Sarah Potomak (CAN) & Grace Zumwinkle (USA) have yet to record a point.
Like Team USA, Canada is 2-0-0-0 (W-OTW-OTL-L) in Group A after their win over Finland Thursday and a 4-1 victory over Switzerland. The Finns are 0-0-0-2, but look to rebound in their remaining preliminary round games. Over in Group B, Sweden is 1-1-0-0 with their win over Denmark and a 4-3 shootout victory over Germany. Here's the schedule of remaining preliminary round games for those four teams...
Sunday, August 28
Japan vs. Canada – 3 p.m. local time, 8 a.m. Central Time
Monday, August 29
Japan vs. Finland – 3 p.m. local time, 8 a.m. Central Time
USA vs. Switzerland – 7 p.m. local time, Noon Central Time
Hungary vs. Sweden – 7:30 p.m. local time, 12:30 p.m. Central Time
Tuesday, August 30
Czechia vs. Sweden – 3:30 p.m. local time, 8:30 a.m. Central Time
Switzerland vs. Finland – 4 p.m. local time, 9 a.m. Central Time
USA vs. Canada – 8 p.m. local time, 1 p.m. Central Time
Quarterfinals on Thursday, September 1; semifinals and consolation bracket games on Saturday, September 3; and 5th-6th place game & medal games on Sunday, September 4.
The full schedule of games, including results from completed contests, can be found on the tournament's website at www.iihf.com/en/events/2022/ww/schedule. All Team USA and Canada preliminary round games will be televised live on NHL Network in the United States.
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