Power Play Club

The Penalty Box Post
Monday, August 28th

PPC Locker Sponsor registration continuing!!

The Power Play Club's Locker Sponsor program is a significant fundraising campaign to support the University of Minnesota Women's Hockey Team through donations to the Gopher Women's Hockey Enhancement Fund. With a minimum tax-deductible donation of $600 (per locker), donors get a photo with their player or coach and a meal with the team on a game day (tentatively set for January 13, 2024), plus Power Play Club membership and its base benefits. Registration is continuing for the 2023-2024 season, and we need your support to sponsor the lockers of all 26 Gopher players!

If you are interested in sponsoring a player's or coach's locker, please contact Rennie McPherson at susanmcp58@gmail.com. If you are signing up as a first-time Locker Sponsor or need a new player or coach this coming season, please provide FIVE names of players and/or coaches you are interested in sponsoring; the current team roster – including the incoming players – can be found at gophersports.com/sports/womens-ice-hockey/roster. Please do not send in any money or make a contribution at this time; you will receive an email in September with instructions on how to pay.

PPC Board meeting – Tuesday, September 5 at 7:00 p.m.

The next meeting of the Power Play Club Board of Directors is scheduled for Tuesday, September 5 at 7:00 p.m. It will be held online over Zoom, and is the final off-season board meeting before the puck drops on the 2023-2024 season. Meetings are open to all enrolled club members; 2022-2023 membership applies during the off-season, and you can attend by contacting club vice president Dave Malerich at dmalerich@yahoo.com.

August USA-Canadian series in Lake Placid ... Americans sweep Collegiate Series; Canadians take U18 games

The 2023 U.S. Women's Collegiate Select Team defeated the Canadian counterparts in all three games between the two squads earlier this month in Lake Placid, New York, winning 4-1, 4-3 & 4-3. Kirsten Simms led the Americans with 4 goals and 2 assists, while Kiara Zanon added 3 goals and an assist and Casey O'Brien added a goal and 3 helpers. Canada's scoring was spread out, with Jocelyn Amos lighting the lamp twice. Gopher Women's Hockey defender Madeline Wethington played in all three games for Team USA but did not record a point. Between the pipes, Gwyneth Philips earned the first two wins for the Americans, stopping 40 of 44 shots (.909 SV%, 2.00 GAA), while Amanda Thiele and Jojo Chobak split time in the finale, combining for 14 saves. Canadian netminder Hannah Murphy made 61 saves over two starts (.884 SV%, 4.00 GAA), and Eve Gascon stopped 27 of 31 shots (.871 SV%) in her one game. Across all three contests, Team USA held a shots-on-goal advantage of 100-61.

Canada's 2023 Women's Under-18 Select Team was dominant in their three-game series against Team USA, winning 4-0, 6-1 & 5-2, holding a 108-46 shots-on-goal edge. Caitlin Kraemer led the Canadians with 5 points on a goal and 4 assists, while Sienna Dalessandro added two goals and an assist; Mary Derrenbacher, Kassidy Carmichael, and Josie St. Martin lit the lamp for the Americans. Both programs will now begin preparations for the 2024 IIHF Women's Under-18 World Championship, scheduled for January 6-14 in Zug, Switzerland.

2023 IIHF Women's World Championship Division I Group A ... Host China, Denmark earn promotion to Top Division for 2024

China's Women's National Team, playing on home ice in Shenzhen, won all five of their round-robin games at the 2023 IIHF Women's World Championship Division I Group A tournament this past week, earning promotion to the top division 2024 Women's World Championship next April in Utica, New York. It will be the first appearance at the top level for the Chinese since 2009.

Denmark, Austria, and the Netherlands finished with 9 points apiece on matching 3-0-0-2 (W-OTW-OTL-L) records. With the three tied squads also each going 1-1 in the contests played between them, the Danes earned promotion to the top division thanks to a +4 goal differential in those three games.

China and Denmark will join Sweden, Japan, and Germany in Group B of the top division in Utica. Group A will include the United States, Canada, Czechia, Switzerland, and Finland.

Slovakia went winless in the 2023 Division I Group A tournament and is relegated to Division I Group B for 2024. The nations competing at the 2024 Division I Group A tournament will include France & Hungary after their relegation from the top division, plus Austria, Netherlands, Norway, and newly-promoted South Korea.

Other international action in Europe...

Czechia tops host Finland, Sweden in 3 Nations tournament

Playing in the double-round-robin 3 Nations Tournament in Vierumäki and Lahti, Finland, the Czech National Women's Hockey Team rebounded from an opening-day 5-4 loss to the host Finns, winning the rematch 6-2 and sweeping Sweden 4-3 & 3-2 to finish atop the standings with a 3-1 record. Finland posted a 2-2 record after also splitting their games against the Swedes, winning 2-0 but then falling 4-1.

A pair of Gopher Women's Hockey players each found their name on the scoresheet as Finland's Nelli Laitinen netted a power-play goal and Sweden's Josefin Bouveng lit the lamp in the tournament. Czech veterans Denisa Křížová (5g, 1a) and Michaela Pejzlová (1g, 5a) led the competition with 6 points apiece.

Our thanks to the Finland Ice Hockey Federation for the tournament reporting.

Switzerland goes 2-0 in Four Nations competition

Hosting France, Hungary, and Germany in the city of Kloten, the Swiss National Women's Hockey Team won the two games it played this past week, defeating the Hungarians 4-1 and the French 4-1.

The Germans had a tough showing. Competing without a number of their 2023 Women's World Championship players, they fell to both France (1-0) and Hungary (4-0). Things then took a worse turn as their squad was hit by illness, forcing the cancellation of their scheduled game against the Swiss.

The Hungarian National Team finished the round-robin tournament with a 2-1 record after defeating France 3-2 on Saturday.

North American women's professional league update ... Trademarks filed for “Professional Women's Hockey League”

As reported by Ian Kennedy on X (formerly Twitter), “Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL)” was trademarked as the name of the new North American league on July 19, and was additionally trademarked for memorabilia and other branding purposes on August 19.

Writing for The Hockey News, Kennedy additionally noted that promotional period contracts for players in the PWHPA this past season end this Thursday, August 31, allowing the new league to begin signing, drafting, and placing them.

We will continue to monitor the new league's developments.

Follow the Power Play Club online 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 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.