January 24, 2024

The Penalty Box Post - Wednesday, January 24, 2024

January 24, 2024

Coming soon – Gopher Women's Hockey Online Auction

The U. of M. Intercollegiate Athletics Department is hosting a Gopher Women's Hockey online auction starting soon at gophersports.com/auctions. Our thanks to the staff at the Golden Gopher Fund for their coordination of the event. Watch you email inbox for a message from the GGF and/or Power Play Club when the auction goes live; we'll also post the announcement to our accounts on Facebook and X/Twitter.

Remaining PPC Chalk Talk Schedule

We remind our fellow Power Play Club members and Gopher Women's Hockey fans that we still have two Chalk Talks, each featuring a member of the GWH coaching staff, scheduled for the remainder of the 2023-2024 regular season. Join us on Saturday, February 10, at 12:30 p.m. and Saturday, February 24, also at 12:30 p.m. in the Ridder Arena Weight Room (upstairs, across the hall from the suites), where we'll be reviewing the previous night's game video and discussing strategy & other topics.

The Chalk Talks are exclusive events for enrolled 2023-2024 club members. You can still register through our membership page on this website.

Goals for a Goal

Help us continue to support the Gopher Women's Hockey team financially by pledging to the Power Play Club's Goals for a Goal program, donating for each goal scored by the team throughout the season (including the playoffs) with the option to double your pledge for power play goals. Through 24 games, the team has lit the lamp 88 times, with 24 of those coming while having the advantage! Submit your pledge electronically at z.umn.edu/GoalsForAGoal. Thanks, and GO GOPHERS!!

#5/5 Minnesota Golden Gophers (18-5-1, 12-5-1-1 in WCHA)
vs.
Minnesota State University Mavericks (10-15-0, 4-14-0-0)

Friday, January 26 at 6:00 p.m. – Ridder Arena
Saturday, January 27 at 2:00 p.m. - Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center – Mankato

After earning a sweep in their first road series of 2024, the Gopher Women's Hockey team plays their first home-and-home series of the calendar year, taking on the Minnesota State University Mavericks. Action begins at Ridder Arena on Friday, January 26 at 6:00 p.m. before relocating to the Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center in Mankato for the second game on Saturday, January 27 at 2:00 p.m.

Game coverage – As with last weekend, Saturday's game will be televised on Fox 9+ (channel finder), and video from both games will be streamed on the B1G+ subscription service. Free audio play-by-play can be found on GopherSports.com (Friday and Saturday) starting 15 to 20 minutes before each contest.

Last time against Minnesota State – The Mavericks took 1-0 leads in both games of their November home-and-home series against the Gophers when Whitney Tuttle scored early on Friday at Ridder Arena and Lauren Zawoyski netted her first collegiate goal Saturday in Mankato. However, the Gophers battled back for a pair of come-from-behind victories and the weekend sweep, winning 3-1 and 2-1. At Ridder, Abbey Murphy ripped home a power-play goal in the second period to knot the score, Nelli Laitinen lit the lamp on a blue-line bomb in the third, Ava Lindsay added a power-play insurance tally, and Lucy Morgan finished with 33 saves. At the Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center, Emma Kreisz netted the second goal of her career to draw the Gophers even, Madison Kaiser put away her own rebound to take the lead with 6:14 to play, and Skylar Vetter stopped 20 shots in total for the victory. Hailey Hansen started in net for MSU in the opener and stopped 17 of 18 shots before having to leave late in the second stanza due to injury; Suzette Faucher played the rest of the weekend and made a combined 44 saves in just over four periods of action.

Analyzing the Mavericks – Though Minnesota State is 6-1-0 in non-conference play and 3-1-0 in league games against Bemidji State and St. Thomas, they are 1-13-0 against the rest of the WCHA, getting only a 2-1 win two weekends ago against St. Cloud State. In total, they've been slightly outscored, 76-69 and their penalty kill rate is notably below 80%, allowing 15 goals on 67 opportunities.

The Mavericks boast two players who have passed the 20-point mark for the season. Senior Sydney Langseth (#3) has a team-leading 26 points & 15 assists, and her own 11 goals are second on the squad. Sophomore Whitney Tuttle (#7) has 23 points on 9 goals & 14 assists. Senior Jamie Nelson (#10) has a team-high 13 goals plus 6 assists for 19 points, while sophomore Taylor Otremba (#24) has 17 points on 6 goals and 11 helpers.

Junior Suzette Faucher (#31) has seen the most playing time between the pipes for MSU, recording a 3-8-0 mark with a 3.10 goals-against average and an .896 save percentage. Freshman Hailey Hansen (#33) is 1-2-0 with one no decision (against the Gophers), posting a 3.84 GAA and .872 SV%. Sophomore Avery Stilwell (#1) remains on the Mavericks' roster as the emergency backup, but senior Lauren Barbro is no longer listed on their roster after going 6-5-0 in 11 starts earlier this season with one shutout, a 2.62 GAA, and a .904 SV%.

Last action for Minnesota State – The Mavericks took a 2-0 lead early in the second period of the opener against Wisconsin in Mankato, getting goals from Jamie Nelson (SH) and Taylor Otremba, but Cassie Hall & Kelly Gorbatenko knotted the score for the Badgers after 40 minutes and Kirsten Simms lit the lamp in the third stanza for a 3-2 UW victory. The rematch started with fireworks as Vivian Jungels & Casey O'Brien scored for Wisconsin and Sydney Langseth lit the lamp for Minnesota State, all within the first 2½ minutes, but the Badgers extended their lead to 4-2 in the second period and added three more goals in the third for a 7-2 victory and the road sweep. Langseth finished the series with 2 points, assisting on Otremba's goal to go with her own, while Whitney Tuttle dished out two assists. O'Brien led the Badgers with 5 points on her goal plus 4 assists, while Simms tallied a second goal plus two assists. Suzette Faucher stopped 34 of 37 shots for MSU on Friday and Hailey Hansen made 30 saves Saturday.

Gophers sweep Beavers on the road – First-period goals by Josefin Bouveng & Allie Franco just 45 seconds apart and a 24-save performance by Lucy Morgan earned Minnesota a 2-0 shutout victory over Bemidji State at the Sanford Center on Friday night. Franco's goal was her first of the season. Khloe Lund got BSU on the board in the first period of the rematch, scoring on a shot appearing to be deflected off a Gopher stick, but Emma Kreisz scored on a second-period power play, Ava Lindsay also converted a power play in the third period to put Minnesota in the lead, Bouveng jumped on a rebound to add an insurance goal, and Skylar Vetter also made 24 saves for a 3-1 win and a series sweep. Beavers goaltender Eva Filippova played both games, stopping a combined 67 shots. Kreisz finished the weekend with 3 points, adding two assists to her goal, and Bouveng has now found the back of the net in 5-straight games against BSU.

GWH alums Kessel, Räty named to WCHA 25th Anniversary Team

Minnesota Women's Hockey alumnae Amanda Kessel and Noora Räty have been named to the WCHA 25th Anniversary Team!! The duo join Krissy (Wendell) Pohl and Natalie Darwitz as Gopher representatives in the first 20 of 25 selections, with the remaining five players to be announced in mid-February.

Kessel won the 2013 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, leading the undefeated Gophers to their second-straight NCAA Championship. She was also named WCHA Player of the Year that season after being named WCHA Rookie of the Year in 2010-2011. Overall, she was honored as a two-time All-American, three-time All-WCHA selection, and three-time national champion (2012, 2013 & 2016). She finished her collegiate career with 108 goals (10th in the WCHA records), 140 assists (8th in the WCHA records) and 248 points (8th in the WCHA records). Her 2012-2013 single-season totals of 101 points, 46 goals, and 55 assists are 3rd, 3rd and 4th (respectively) in the WCHA record books.

Räty is Minnesota's all-time goaltending wins, shutouts, and saves leader with 114, 43, and 3,250 respectively. Most notably, she posted a 38-0-0 record in 2012-2013, claiming the 2013 NCAA Championship after also winning in 2012 and being named Frozen Four Outstanding Player both years. She was a two-time First Team All-American (2010 and 2013), Second Team All-American in 2011, two-time WCHA Goaltending Champion, WCHA All-Rookie team selection in 2010, and four-time All-WCHA honoree. Her other collegiate career stats include a 1.34 goals-against average and a .946 save percentage.

Congratulations Amanda and Noora!!

Around the WCHA

Buckeyes shut out Bulldogs in Columbus – Ohio State netminders Raygan Kirk & Amanda Thiele combined for 32 saves (14 for Kirk, 18 for Thiele) to shut out Minnesota Duluth, 3-0 and 1-0. Hailey MacLeod stopped 35 shots for UMD on Friday but Kelsey King, Joy Dunne, and Kenzie Hauswirth lit the lamp for OSU. Ève Gascon made another 32 saves for the Bulldogs on Saturday and held the Buckeyes off the board for 55 minutes, but Hannah Bilka scored on an Ohio State power play with 4:18 to play to earn the sweep.

Huskies, Tommies split home wins – Klára Hymlárová scored short-handed for St. Cloud State and assisted on Katie Kaufman's power-play goal to give SCSU a 2-0 lead over St. Thomas on Friday in St. Cloud; Keara Parker converted a UST power play in the third, but Alice Sauriol added an insurance goal for the Huskies and Jojo Chobak stopped 24 of 25 shots for a 3-1 victory. Taylor Lind put St. Cloud State up 1-0 after one in the rematch in Mendota Heights, but Abby Promersberger evened the score for St. Thomas in the second, Rylee Bartz gave the Tommies the lead with 11:30 to play, and they added three empty-netters – two by Lauren Stenslie – to win 5-1 and earn the split. Olivia King claimed the victory with 25 saves after stopping 31 shots the previous night.

Upcoming games – Two league series begin this week with Friday afternoon matinees: St. Cloud State hosts top-ranked Ohio State and Wisconsin heads to the North Shore to face Minnesota Duluth. Meanwhile, Bemidji State hosts St. Thomas Friday evening and Saturday afternoon.

Standings:
1. Ohio State – 49 points (.907 pts%), 17-1-0-0, 2-0 in OT (20-2-0 overall)
2. Wisconsin – 43 points (.796 pts%), 14-4-0-0, 0-1 in OT (20-4-0 overall)
3. Minnesota – 39 points (.722 pts%), 12-5-1-1, 0-1 in OT (18-5-1 overall)
4. St. Cloud State – 32 points (.593 pts%), 10-7-1-0, 0-1 in OT (15-8-1 overall)
5. Minn. Duluth – 29 points (.537 pts%), 10-8-0-0, 1-0 in OT (13-9-2 overall)
6. Minnesota State – 12 points (.222 pts%), 4-14-0-0, 1-1 in OT (10-15-0 overall)
7. Bemidji State – 6 points (.111 pts%), 2-16-0-0, 1-1 in OT (3-20-1 overall)
St. Thomas – 6 points (.111 pts%), 2-16-0-0, 0-0 in OT (8-17-0 overall)

Copyright © 2024 Power Play Club, All rights reserved.

You can receive the Penalty Box Post newsletter via email by signing up here.

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/X at twitter.com/GopherWHockey.

Power Play Club

January 17, 2024

The Penalty Box Post - Wednesday, January 17, 2024

Power Play Club

January 17, 2024

#5/4 Minnesota Golden Gophers (16-5-1, 10-5-1-1 in WCHA)
vs.
Bemidji State University Beavers (3-18-1, 2-14-0-0)

Friday, January 19 at 6:00 p.m.
Saturday, January 20 at 3:00 p.m.
Sanford Center – Bemidji

The Gopher Women's Hockey team looks to get back in the win column and will do so with its first road trip of 2024, heading north to take on the Bemidji State University Beavers. Action at the Sanford Center begins Friday evening, January 19 at 6:00 p.m. and continues Saturday, January 20 at 3:00 p.m.

Game coverage – Saturday's game will be televised on Fox 9+ (channel finder). Once again, video from both games will be streamed on the B1G+ subscription service and audio play-by-play can be found on GopherSports.com (Friday and Saturday) starting 15 to 20 minutes before each contest.

Last time against Bemidji State – After spotting the Beavers a 1-0 lead in the opener of their early December series at Ridder Arena, Minnesota exploded for 18 goals in a 9-2, 9-1 weekend sweep. Abbey Murphy scored early and often, recording 8 points on 4 goals & 4 assists, Ella Huber dished out 5 assists while also lighting the lamp once for a 6-point weekend, and Ava Lindsay (3g, 2a) & Peyton Hemp (2g, 3a) each added 5 points. Josefin Bouveng also lit the lamp twice with two assists, Emma Kreisz tallied a goal and two assists, and Solveig Neunzert dished out 3 helpers. On top of that, freshman Lauren O'Hara netted her first two collegiate goals and junior Sadie Lindsay also tallied the first goal of her Gopher career. Skylar Vetter stopped 17 shots on Friday and Lucy Morgan posted 25 saves – including one in a brief appearance in the opener while Vetter made a skate change. BSU's line of Genevieve Hendrickson, Talya Hendrickson, and Kate Johnson accounted for all their scoring as each recorded a goal and assisted on the other two. Beaver netminders Abbie Thompson & Eva Filippova combined for 75 saves as Minnesota held a 93-45 SOG advantage.

Analyzing the Beavers – Bemidji State has yet to earn a standings point against the top five teams in the WCHA, having only gotten wins over Minnesota State (in OT) and St. Thomas. They've also posted only a 1-4-1 non-conference record and have been outscored 97-27 in all contests.

Two Beavers have reached the 10-point mark in total scoring: senior Taylor Nelson (#8) has 6 goals & 5 assists, while freshman Hailey Armstrong (#29) has a team-leading 9 goals plus one assist. Senior Gabbie Smith (#20) is third in scoring with one goal and 8 assists.

Junior goaltender Abbie Thompson (#35) is winless in her 13 starts, going 0-12-1 with a 4.73 goals-against average and .877 save percentage. Freshman Eva Filippova (#30) has all three BSU victories, posting a 3-5-0 record with one shutout, a 3.16 GAA, and a .913 SV%. Redshirt junior Emerald Kelley (#1), a transfer from Minnesota State, started one game against Wisconsin and stopped 26 of 33 shots in two periods of action. Sophomore Madison Faucher (#33) has not seen any action this season.

Last action for Bemidji State – The Beavers went on the road to Minnesota Duluth but were shut out for the weekend, falling 2-0 & 7-0. The opener was about goaltending as Eva Filippova stopped 42 of 43 shots for BSU, but Hailey MacLeod posted a 21-save shutout for the Bulldogs; Grace Sadura scored in the first period and Hanna Baskin tacked on an empty-netter late. Former Beaver Reece Hunt, now playing for UMD, did a number on her previous team in the rematch with a hat trick plus an assist, Mannon McMahon recorded a goal & 3 assists, Baskin dished out 4 helpers, and Ève Gascon stopped 18 shots for the shutout, while BSU's Abbie Thompson and Filippova combined for 28 saves.

Gophers swept by Ohio State – Minnesota suffered a tough weekend at home against the Ohio State Buckeyes, falling 7-0 & 6-1 and being outshot by a combined 72-38. Joy Dunne recorded a hat trick plus and assist in the opener, Hannah Bilka also recorded three goals & an assist in the series, Jenn Gardiner & Sloane Matthews each added a goal and two assists, and Raygan Kirk stopped 37 shots. The Gophers' lone highlight came on Madison Kaiser's third-period goal on Saturday. Skylar Vetter made 48 saves, while Lucy Morgan added another 11.

Gopher alumna Darwitz named 2024 IIHF Hall of Fame inductee

Minnesota Women's Hockey alumna Natalie Darwitz was one of eight former hockey players named to the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) Hall of Fame Class of 2024!! Darwitz, a two-time NCAA Champion with the Gophers, appeared in 11-consecutive major tournaments with Team USA, spanning a period from 1999 through 2010. Over that span, she won three gold medals & five silvers at the IIHF Women’s World Championships and two silvers & a bronze in three Olympics; she was named to the media's All-Star Team four times and honored as the IIHF Directorate Best Forward at the 2008 Women's Worlds. She was previously inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame in 2018.

In 55 combined games at the Olympics & World Championships, Darwitz scored 43 goals and dished out 40 assists for 83 points. Over her three-year, 99-game Gopher career, she tallied 246 points on 102 goals and 144 assists, putting her still #1 on Minnesota's points-per-game & assists-per-game lists (with 2.48 & 1.45, respectively). Following her playing career, Darwitz went into coaching at the high school & collegiate level, including two stints as an assistant with the Gophers. Last summer she was named general manager of the Minnesota team in the new Professional Women's Hockey League.

Darwitz and the other seven new inductees will be honored during the 2024 Men’s World Championship in May in Prague & Ostrava, Czechia. Congratulations on this well-deserved honor, Natalie!!

Other Gopher news and notes

Heise, Pannek & Stecklein named to PWHL 3-on-3 Showcase – Gopher Women's Hockey alumnae Taylor Heise, Kelly Pannek and Lee Stecklein have been named among 24 players who will participate in the Canadian Tire PWHL 3-on-3 Showcase™ taking place during NHL All-Star Thursday™ on February 1 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto. The trio are joined by Kendall Coyne Schofield and Nicole Hensley as PWHL Minnesota's representatives. Pannek & Stecklein have been chosen for Team King while Heise is a member of Team Kloss; the teams are named in honor of PWHL Advisory Board members Billie Jean King and Ilana Kloss.

PWHL scoring "firsts" – We send shout-outs to GWH alumnae Hannah Brandt, Pannek and Stecklein following their respective first goals in Professional Women's Hockey League play! Brandt netted the game-tying goal for Boston in their 3-2 come-from-behind overtime victory on the road at Montreal this past Saturday. Stecklein and Pannek lit the lamp for Minnesota on Sunday at home against New York, though the team suffered a 3-2 overtime loss.

We also recognize Gigi Marvin on recording her first two PWHL points on a pair of assists for Boston in the game against Montreal, her second coming on the overtime game-winning goal by Amanda Pelkey.

Future Gophers Distad, Clark, Graham medal at U18 Worlds – We congratulate incoming Gopher freshman class of 2024-2025 members Kendra Distad, Hannah Clark & Gracie Graham on earning medals at the 2024 IIHF Under-18 Women's World Championship!

Distad and Team USA claimed the gold medal with a 5-1 victory over Czechia. Distad finished the tournament with a goal, two assists, and a +4 plus-minus rating.

Though the Canadians were upset by the Czechs, 4-2, in the semifinals, Clark and Graham earned bronze medals as Canada bounced back with an 8-1 victory against Finland. Over the duration of the tournament, Graham recorded a goal, 5 assists, and a +12 rating. Clark went 2-1-0 between the pipes with both wins coming by shutout while posting a 1.08 goals-against average and an 85.7% save percentage.

Around the WCHA

Mavericks, Huskies split in St. Cloud – Whitney Tuttle & Claire Vekich put Minnesota State up 2-0 in the first period of their weekend opener at St. Cloud State; Taylor Lind cut the Huskies' deficit to 2-1 before the intermission, but they could not get closer as MSU netminder Hailey Hansen stopped 25 of 26 shots in total to win by that margin. Jojo Chobak made 30 saves for SCSU. The Huskies took a 2-0 lead in the rematch but Mackenzie Bourgerie and Tuttle pulled the Mavericks even in the second stanza; however, Ella Anick netted her second goal of the game and Laura Zimmermann added an insurance tally for a 4-2 St. Cloud State victory and the weekend split. Sanni Ahola made 30 saves for the win, while Hansen stopped another 18 shots.

Badgers cruise in sweep of Tommies – Sarah Wozniewicz netted a hat trick on Saturday, Cassie Hall also lit the lamp 3 times over the weekend, Casey O'Brien (2g, 3a) & Laila Edwards (1g, 4a) each tallied 5 points, and Maddi Wheeler added a goal and 3 assists as Wisconsin rolled to 7-0 and 5-1 victories over St. Thomas. Jane Gervais needed only 10 saves to earn the shutout in the opener, and Ava McNaughton stopped 22 of 23 shots in the rematch. Brieja Parent scored for UST in the third period Sunday to break up the series shutout attempt, and Maggie Malecha & Calla Frank combined for 79 saves.

Upcoming games – All four weekend series will be played Friday & Saturday. St. Thomas and St. Cloud State meet in a home-and-home series starting with a Friday afternoon matinee in St. Cloud, Minnesota Duluth heads to Columbus to face Ohio State, and Minnesota State hosts Wisconsin.

Standings:
1. Ohio State – 43 points (.896 pts%), 15-1-0-0, 2-0 in OT (18-2-0 overall)
2. Wisconsin – 37 points (.771 pts%), 12-4-0-0, 0-1 in OT (18-4-0 overall)
3. Minnesota – 33 points (.688 pts%), 10-5-1-1, 0-1 in OT (16-5-1 overall)
4. Minn. Duluth – 29 points (.604 pts%), 10-6-0-0, 1-0 in OT (13-7-2 overall)
St. Cloud State – 29 points (.604 pts%), 9-6-1-0, 0-1 in OT (14-7-1 overall)
6. Minnesota State – 12 points (.250 pts%), 4-12-0-0, 1-1 in OT (10-13-0 overall)
7. Bemidji State – 6 points (.125 pts%), 2-14-0-0, 1-1 in OT (3-18-1 overall)
8. St. Thomas – 3 points (.063 pts%), 1-15-0-0, 0-0 in OT (7-16-0 overall)

Copyright © 2024 Power Play Club, All rights reserved.

You can receive the Penalty Box Post newsletter via email by signing up here.

Power Play Club

January 10, 2024

The Penalty Box Post - Wednesday, January 10, 2024

Power Play Club

January 10, 2024

Locker Sponsor Gathering Reminder

Here's one final reminder that the Locker Sponsor pregame meal with the GWH team will be held this Saturday, January 13th. Locker sponsors should meet in the ticket lobby of Ridder Arena NO LATER than 8:45 a.m. Photos with the coaches and players will begin at 9:00 a.m., with the meal to follow at 10:00 a.m. Note that, due to the team's pregame video review, there will be a gap between photos and breakfast. If you have any questions, please contact Susan Rennie McPherson at susanmcp58@gmail.com.

Goals for a Goal: Gophers increase total to 82 (w/ 22 on PP)

Entering this weekend's #1-vs.-#2 matchup, the Gopher Women's Hockey team has lit the lamp 82 times, with 22 of those coming while on the power play! We encourage you to pledge to convert each of those goals into charitable contributions back to the team through our Goals for a Goal program, with the option to double your pledge for power play goals. Submit your pledge electronically at z.umn.edu/GoalsForAGoal. Thanks, and GO GOPHERS!!

#2 Minnesota Golden Gophers (16-3-1, 10-3-1-1 in WCHA)
vs. #1 Ohio State Buckeyes (16-2-0, 13-1-0-0)
Friday, January 12 at 6:00 p.m.
Saturday, January 13 at 2:00 p.m.
Ridder Arena

The #2-ranked Gopher Women's Hockey team looks to defend home ice when the top-ranked Ohio State University Buckeyes come to Ridder Arena this weekend. Puck drop is scheduled for Friday night, January 12, at 6:00 p.m., and the series continues Saturday, January 13, at 2:00 p.m.

Traffic alerts – Please note that the Gopher Men's Hockey team is also playing at home this weekend, with games Friday at 7 p.m. and Saturday at 5 p.m. Vehicular and pedestrian traffic will be increased in the area, so please allow extra time as appropriate.

Tickets for both games are still available and can be purchased here.

Game coverage – If you cannot get to Ridder Arena, Saturday's game will be televised on Fox 9+ (channel finder). Video from both games will be streamed on the B1G+ subscription service and audio play-by-play can be found on GopherSports.com for Friday and Saturday starting 15 to 20 minutes before each game.

Last time against Ohio State – A trip to Columbus at the end of October resulted in the Gophers returning home with only one point in the WCHA standings, falling to the Buckeyes 4-3 in overtime and 6-5. Offensively, Josefin Bouveng posted a 5-point series on a goal & 4 assists, and the trio of Ella Huber, Nelli Laitinen, and Abbey Murphy each added 2 goals & 2 assists; Laitinen was honored as WCHA Defender of the Week. Unfortunately, OSU's Jenn Gardiner took WCHA Forward of the Week honors for her 3-goal, 3-assist weekend, Hannah Bilka added a goal and 3 helpers, and Jocelyn Amos was named Rookie of the Week with 2 goals and an assist. Skylar Vetter was between the pipes for the Gophers in both games, stopping a career-high 52 shots on Friday and making another 46 saves on Saturday but yielding 10 goals. Raygan Kirk made 25 saves for Ohio State in the weekend opener and Amanda Thiele stopped 23 shots in the rematch.

Analyzing the Buckeyes – After winning their first WCHA Regular Season Championship in 2022-2023, Ohio State is atop the league standings again at the midway point of the 2023-2024 conference schedule. They have only one loss is WCHA play (coming in early December, a 2-1 upset by St. Cloud State) and they lead the league in both goals scored and allowed per game (4.71 and 1.50, respectively) in conference action. All that said, this weekend's games are the first for OSU since going on their holiday break.

A trio of Buckeyes have each recorded 20 or more points: fifth-year forward Jenn Gardiner (#12) has a team-high 11 goals plus 12 assists, fellow grad student Hanna Bilka (#9) has an OSU-leading 16 assists plus six goals of her own, and senior Kiera Zanon (#21) has 10 goals and 10 helpers. Another grad student, Hadley Hartmetz (#6), is fourth in team scoring with 18 points on 4 goals and 14 assists.

The senior goaltending duo of Raygan Kirk (#1) and Amanda Thiele (#30) have matching 8-1-0 records. Kirk has 3 shutouts, a 1.26 goals-against average, and a .941 save percentage. Thiele has recorded one shutout, a 1.77 GAA, and an .899 SV%. Graduate student Quinn Kuntz (#35) has been OSU's long-time backup; she stopped the 3 shots she faced in a one-period relief appearance at Bemidji State in early November. Sophomore Lexington Secreto (#34) has yet to any official action.

Last action for Ohio State – Cayla Barnes, Jenna Buglioni, and Hadley Hartmetz each tallied a goal & two assists, and Raygan Kirk & Amanda Thiele combined to stop 42 of 44 shots for the Buckeyes, defeating Minnesota State 6-1 and 4-1 in Columbus the second weekend of December.

Gophers sweep UConn to go perfect in non-conference play

Madeline Wethington's shot early in Saturday's game trickled through Connecticut goaltender Tia Chan and into the net at Ridder Arena. (Photo credit: Brad Rempel)

Abbey Murphy recorded 3 points Friday on a goal & two assists and Madeline Wethington lit the lamp in each game as Minnesota swept the visiting Huskies, 5-3 & 3-1. UConn took leads of 1-0 and 2-1 on Friday on goals by Kathryn Stockdale and Ainsley Svetek (PP), but Murphy and Maggie Nicholson evened the score before the second intermission. Madeline Wethington put the Gophers ahead 8:19 into the third period and Audrey Wethington doubled the lead less than three minutes later; the Huskies scored 68 seconds after that to pull back within one, but Peyton Hemp converted a late power play and Lucy Morgan made 29 saves for the win. In the rematch, Madeline Wethington put Minnesota up just 2:48 into the contest, and Josefin Bouveng (PP) & Lauren O'Hara scored in the second period. UConn's Megan Woodworth netted her second goal of the weekend early in the third stanza, but Skylar Vetter shut the door on the Huskies the rest of the way to get the win. UConn netminder Tia Chan played both games, stopping 67 combined shots.

Vetter earns league honor, Goettl recognized for classroom effort

We send our congratulations to a pair of Gopher Women's Hockey players who earned recognition in the past week.

Junior Skylar Vetter was named WCHA Goaltender of the Week following her 23-save performance to complete the series sweep of Connecticut with a 3-1 victory on Saturday!

The weekly award is the eighth of Vetter's career with the Gophers and her first this year. The win improved her season record to 8-3-1 with a 1.91 goals-against average, a .934 save percentage, and two shutouts.

Freshman Isa Goettl was named as one of two Lindahl Academic Center Student-Athletes of the Month for December by the U. of M. Intercollegiate Atletics Department! We give a shout-out to all the Gophers continuing to excel in the classroom!

Congratulations, Skylar and Isa!!

Zumwinkle named inaugural PWHL #1 Star of the Week
Heise scores Minnesota's first goal; Pannek, Stecklein tally assists

Gopher Women's Hockey alumna Grace Zumwinkle was named the PWHL's inaugural #1 Star of the Week, as announced by the league on Monday. The honor comes after a 4-goal outburst in Minnesota's first two games, including the PWHL's first-ever hat trick in Minnesota's home opener at Xcel Energy Center against Montreal this past Saturday.

Zumwinkle's four goals came after linemate and fellow Gopher Taylor Heise, the first overall selection in the PWHL Draft in September, also made history by being the first player to light the lamp for Minnesota. Heise scored unassisted in the first period of the franchise's opening game, on the road at Boston last Wednesday night.

We also send kudos to two other Minnesota players, Gopher alums Kelly Pannek & Lee Stecklein. Both recorded their first PWHL points on Saturday; Pannek dished out a pair of assists, and Stecklein recorded a helper on Zumwinkle's third goal of the contest.

IIHF U18 Women's Worlds update

Gopher Women's Hockey freshman class of 2024-2025 members Hannah Clark, Kendra Distad, and Gracie Graham are playing at the 2024 IIHF U18 Women's World Championship in Zug, Switzerland. Team Canada was 3-0 in preliminary round play to earn win Group A; Clark earned two of those wins between the pipes with shutouts of Germany and Finland, needing only a combined 11 saves. Graham has one assist and is a +5 on the Canadian blueline. Meanwhile, Distad has 3 points on a goal and two assists as a Team USA forward; the Americans were 2-0 after their first two preliminary round games and were playing Sweden this morning to determine the top team in Group B.

Around the WCHA

Minnesota Duluth takes loss, tie at Quinnipiac – UMD ran into the hot goaltending from the Bobcats' Logan Angers as she stopped 65 of 68 shots. Clara Van Weiran gave the Bulldogs a 1-0 lead in the opener, but Nina Steigauf assisted on Kendall Cooper's game-tying goal and later lit the lamp herself to give Quinnipiac the 2-1 win. In the rematch, Hanna Baskin assisted on Mary Kate O'Brien's opening goal and doubled the lead herself, putting UMD up 2-0 after 40 minutes; however, Maddy Samoskevich scored for the Bobcats with 5:44 to play in regulation and assisted on Sadie Peart's extra-attacker goal with 2:56 remaining, and the game finished in a 2-2 tie after overtime. Ève Gascon made 25 saves for UMD on Saturday.

Wisconsin rolls in sweep of Merrimack – The Warriors' Ally Qualley tallied the first goal of their series against the Badgers and Hayley Chang netted the last goal, but Wisconsin lit the lamp 12 times in between to get a pair of 6-1 victories. Britta Curl & Kirsten Simms each tallied 2 goals and 3 assists, and Cassie Hall added 2 goals & 2 assists. Merrimack's Calli Hogarth made a combined 79 saves in the series; Jane Gervais & Ava McNaughton combined for 33 saves.

Minnesota State earns sweep of Lindenwood – JuliAnna Gazdik & Whitney Tuttle each recorded a goal and two assists as the Mavericks built a 5-0 lead and defeated the Lions 6-1 on Friday, but they found themselves trailing 2-0 after 20 minutes on Saturday. Sydney Langseth recorded a goal and an assist in the second period for Minnesota State to even the score, and Kennedy Bobyck put the Mavs ahead on a power play 3:26 into the third stanza. Lindenwood was awarded a penalty shot with 7:30 to play when MSU's Jamie Nelson was whistled for covering the puck in the crease, and Morgan Neitzke converted to pull the Lions even; however, Nelson and Bobyck assisted on Alexis Paddington's first goal of the season just 57 seconds later to give the Mavericks a 4-3 win and weekend sweep. Tuttle added another assist for a 4-point weekend, Taylor Otrema dished out 4 helpers in the series, and Langseth & Akervik each finished with two goals and an assist.

Upcoming games – The drive to the postseason begins now as all eight WCHA teams are in league play for the next seven weekends. This week, Minnesota Duluth will host a Friday-Saturday matinee series against Bemidji State, Minnesota State travels north to St. Cloud State for games on Friday & Saturday, and St. Thomas heads to Madison to face Wisconsin in a Saturday-Sunday series.

Standings:
1. Ohio State – 37 points (.881 pts%), 13-1-0-0, 2-0 in OT (16-2-0 overall)
2. Minnesota – 33 points (.786 pts%), 10-3-1-1, 0-1 in OT (16-3-1 overall)
3. Wisconsin – 31 points (.738 pts%), 10-4-0-0, 0-1 in OT (16-4-0 overall)
4. St. Cloud State – 26 points (.619 pts%), 8-5-1-0, 0-1 in OT (13-6-1 overall)
5. Minn. Duluth – 23 points (.548 pts%), 8-6-0-0, 1-0 in OT (11-7-2 overall)
6. Minnesota State – 9 points (.214 pts%), 3-11-0-0, 1-1 in OT (9-12-0 overall)
7. Bemidji State – 6 points (.143 pts%), 2-12-0-0, 1-1 in OT (3-16-1 overall)
8. St. Thomas – 3 points (.071 pts%), 1-13-0-0, 0-0 in OT (7-14-0 overall)

Copyright © 2024 Power Play Club, All rights reserved.

You can receive the Penalty Box Post newsletter via email by signing up here.

Power Play Club

January 3, 2024

The Penalty Box Post - Wednesday, January 3, 2024

Power Play Club

January 3, 2024

PPC events reminders this week and next:

Brunch with the Coaches – Our first reminder is that our annual Brunch with the Coaches, featuring University of Connecticut women's hockey head coach Chris MacKenzie and our own Brad Frost, will begin this Saturday, January 6, at 9:45 a.m. in the 3M Arena at Mariucci Club Room. We look forward to seeing everyone who registered for this event. Enter the arena through the Sundet Lobby in the southwest corner, then take the elevator or stairs up to the third floor.

Locker Sponsor gathering – The Locker Sponsor pregame meal with the GWH team will be held on Saturday, January 13th. Locker sponsors should meet in the ticket lobby of Ridder Arena NO LATER than 8:45 a.m. Photos with the coaches and players will begin at 9:00 a.m., with the meal to follow at 10:00 a.m. Note that, due to the team's pregame video review, there will be a gap between photos and breakfast. If you have any questions, please contact Susan Rennie McPherson at susanmcp58@gmail.com.

Goals for a Goal: Gophers at 74 goals (20 on PP) & counting

As the Gopher Women's Hockey team returns to action, we continue counting the goals they've scored in 2023-2024. Through December, they've lit the lamp 74 times, with 20 of those coming while on the power play! Another way to support the program financially is through the Power Play Club's Goals for a Goal program, which converts each of those goals into charitable contributions back to the team by pledging to donate a dollar amount per goal scored during the regular season and postseason. We also encourage you to exercise the option to double your pledge for power play goals. Pledges can be submitted electronically through this online form. Thanks, and GO GOPHERS!!

#2 Minnesota Golden Gophers (14-3-1, 10-3-1-1 in WCHA)
vs.
#11 Connecticut Huskies (11-4-2, 9-3-1-0 in Hockey East)

Friday, January 5 at 6:00 p.m. and Saturday, January 6 at 2:00 p.m.
Ridder Arena

Happy New Year!! The Gopher Women's Hockey team opens the 2024 portion of its schedule in non-conference action, hosting their second & third games ever against the University of Connecticut Huskies. Puck drop at Ridder Arena is scheduled for Friday night, January 5, at 6:00 p.m., and the series continues Saturday, January 6, at 2:00 p.m.

Game coverage – If you cannot get to Ridder Arena, video will be streamed on the B1G+ subscription service for both contests, and audio play-by-play can be found on GopherSports.com for Friday and Saturday starting 15 to 20 minutes before each game.

Last time against Connecticut – The one previous meeting between the Gophers and Huskies occurred way back in the opener of the 2005-2006 season at Ridder Arena. Freshman Gigi Marvin opened the scoring with a first-period power-play goal, Andrea Nichols doubled the Gopher lead midway through the third period, Erica McKenzie lit the lamp short-handed with 2:32 remaining, Allie Sanchez dished out a pair of assists, and Brittony Chartier posted an 18-save shutout for a 3-0 victory. Kaitlyn Shain stopped 40 shots between the pipes for UConn.

Analyzing the Huskies – Connecticut is looking to make a breakthrough in Hockey East, battling for their first league regular-season and playoff championships plus their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament. With a 9-3-1-0 conference record, they are currently tied atop the league standings with Boston College while having a game in hand. They are also 2-1-1 in non-conference play, including a win and a tie on the road at Penn State to open the season.

Senior Jada Habisch (#25), a Buffalo, MN native, leads the Huskies with 11 goals, 16 points, and a +13 plus-minus rating. Graduate student Coryn Tormala (#12) has dished out a team-high 12 assists while lighting the lamp twice herself for 14 points. Sophomore Brooke Campbell (#14) is also in double-digit scoring with 11 points on 6 goals & 5 assists.

Though UConn has netted only 40 goals in 17 games, they've only allowed 20. Junior Tia Chen (#88) is 5-4-1 in her 10 starts, recording 3 shutouts and posting a .948 save percentage and 1.48 goals-against average. Junior Megan Warrener (#1) has not lost this season, sporting a 6-0-1 record with 3 shutouts of her own, a .961 SV% and a miniscule 0.72 GAA. Freshman Shannon Moran (#35) stopped the 3 shots she faced in a 9-minute relief appearance against Providence.

Last action for UConn – Playing Merrimack on December 1, Brianna Ware scored for the Huskies just 43 seconds after the Warriors had taken a second-period lead, and Camryn Wong lit the lamp for Connecticut 2:51 into overtime for a 2-1 victory; Tia Chan stopped 25 of 26 shots. Taking on Boston College the next day, the Huskies trailed 2-0 after 40 minutes, but Jada Habisch assisted on Riley Grimley's goal 4:53 into the third period and knotted the score herself with an extra attacker & just 35.9 seconds remaining; after overtime, the contest finished tied 2-2, though BC took a five-round shootout, 2-1. Megan Warrener made 22 saves for UConn through OT.

Abbey Murphy, Ava Lindsay earn league honors for December

We send our congratulations to Gopher Women's Hockey players Abbey Murphy and Ava Lindsay on earning WCHA Hockey Player of the Month honors for December!!

Lindsay was named Rookie of the Month, her first monthly honor from the league, netting 3 goals & dishing out 3 assists for 6 points with one blocked shot and a +2 plus-minus rating.

Murphy picked up her second-straight Forward of the Month award after tallying 10 points over five games on 6 goals (two on the power play) and 4 assists. She also had a +5 plus-minus rating and four shot blocks.

Gigi Marvin named to Star Tribune Minnesota Sports Hall of Fame

Gopher Women's Hockey alumna Gigi Marvin has been named as a Class of 2023 inductee into the Start Tribune's Minnesota Sports Hall of Fame, as announced by the publication last Thursday, December 28.

The 2005 Ms. Hockey Minnesota award winner at Warroad High School, Marvin recorded 195 career points in her four-year Gopher career on 87 goals and 108 assists. During her time in the Maroon & Gold, she earned All-WCHA First Team recognition in 2007 & 2008, Second Team All-WCHA in 2009, a Second Team All-American honor in 2008, and was a two-time Patti Kazmaier Top-Ten finalist (2007 & 2008). Following college, Marvin was named to three U.S. Olympic Teams, earning silver in 2010 & 2014 and gold in 2018; she also won multiple World Championship gold medals with the U.S. National Team. Professionally, she has played with the Minnesota Whitecaps (WWHL), Boston Blades (CWHL), Boston Pride (NWHL), and is continuing her career now with PWHL Boston. Congratulations, Gigi!!

Around the WCHA

Bemidji State splits games in Battle of the Burgh tournament – After falling behind Robert Morris by a goal after one period, Taylor Nelson knotted the score for the Beavers in the second period and assisted on Hailey Armstrong's go-ahead goal a mere 9 seconds later. Armstrong added an empty-netter with 34.9 seconds to play and Eva Filippova stopped 22 of 23 shots for a 3-1 victory. Filippova made another 48 saves in the championship game against Colgate, earning her the all-tournament team goaltender selection, but the Beavers failed to score and fell to the Raiders, 6-0.

Upcoming games – Three other WCHA teams are also in non-conference action this first weekend of 2024, playing Friday & Saturday. Minnesota Duluth is on the road at Quinnipiac, Minnesota State hosts Lindenwood, and Wisconsin hosts Merrimack. Bemidji State, Ohio State, St. Cloud State, and St. Thomas are idle.

Standings:
1. Ohio State – 37 points (.881 pts%), 13-1-0-0, 2-0 in OT (16-2-0 overall)
2. Minnesota – 33 points (.786 pts%), 10-3-1-1, 0-1 in OT (14-3-1 overall)
3. Wisconsin – 31 points (.738 pts%), 10-4-0-0, 0-1 in OT (14-4-0 overall)
4. St. Cloud State – 26 points (.619 pts%), 8-5-1-0, 0-1 in OT (13-6-1 overall)
5. Minn. Duluth – 23 points (.548 pts%), 8-6-0-0, 1-0 in OT (11-6-1 overall)
6. Minnesota State – 9 points (.214 pts%), 3-11-0-0, 1-1 in OT (7-12-0 overall)
7. Bemidji State – 6 points (.143 pts%), 2-12-0-0, 1-1 in OT (3-16-1 overall)
8. St. Thomas – 3 points (.071 pts%), 1-13-0-0, 0-0 in OT (7-14-0 overall)

Copyright © 2024 Power Play Club, All rights reserved.

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Power Play Club

December 23, 2023

The Two-Minute Minor - An edition of the Penalty Box Post - Saturday, December 23, 2023

Power Play Club

December 23, 2023

Brunch with the Coaches & Skate with the Gophers Reminders

We provide a final reminder for a pair of events scheduled for Saturday, January 6 (two weeks from today) as the Gopher Women's Hockey team hosts the UConn Huskies. Registration deadlines are approaching for both activities.

Brunch with the Coaches at 9:45 a.m. – Join us in the 3M Arena at Mariucci Club Room as we welcome University of Connecticut women's hockey head coach Chris MacKenzie (pictured) and our own Brad Frost. We look forward to hearing from Coach MacKenzie about playing in Hockey East and battling for a league title & an NCAA Tournament berth. At the holiday break, the Huskies are tied atop the Hockey East standings. Register by mail by next Saturday, December 30 using the downloadable form (PDF) available here and sending it in to the listed address. Tickets are $30 per person and Power Play Club membership is not required.

Skate with the Gophers after the game – Skate with the Gophers returns following the 2 p.m. contest against the Huskies. Stick around to skate on the Ridder ice, play games on the concourse and get autographs from Gopher players. All participants must register here by Friday, December 29. Attendance at the game is required.

Canada wins Rivalry Series Game 4, still trails U.S. 3 games to 1; Sweden, Hungary win international tournaments at home

Playing Game 4 of the 2023-2024 Rivalry Series, Minnesota Women's Hockey alumna Kelly Pannek set up American teammate Megan Keller for a short-handed goal to open the scoring, and Alex Carpenter pushed Team USA's lead to 2-0. However, Danielle Serdachney & Ella Shelton lit the lamp for Team Canada in the third period to knot the score 2-2. After a scoreless overtime, Marie-Philip Poulin was the only skater to find the back of the net in a five-round shootout to give the Canadians a 3-2 victory, narrowing the U.S. lead in the series to 3 games to 1. Games 5, 6 and 7 will be played in February, with the finale on Sunday, February 11 occurring at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul (tickets available here).

Sweden won its first tournament since 2016, taking the Five Nations Cup / Euro Hockey Tour event they hosted in the city of Falun. The Swedes finished with a 3-0-1-0 (W-OTW-OTL-L) record and 10 points, ahead of 8 points for Czechia, 6 apiece for Switzerland and Finland, and winless Germany. Current Gopher Josefin Bouveng finished with a goal and an assist and a +2 plus-minus rating for Sweden, while Minnesota teammate Nelli Laitinen netted a power-play goal for Finland.

In more international action, Hungary claimed the top spot in the Four Nations Tournament they hosted in Budapest, topping Japan, France, and Slovakia. The Hungarians, Japanese, and French all finished with 2-0-0-1 (W-OTW-OTL-L) records, but the hosts had the best goal differential in the contests between the three teams. Gopher freshman Emma Kreisz dished out a pair of assists in Hungary's tournament-opening 4-0 shutout of Slovakia.

Gopher recruit Distad headed to U18 Women's World Championship with Team USA – We send congratulations to incoming 2024-2025 Gopher freshman Kendra Distad, who was named to the American roster for the 2024 IIHF U18 Women's World Championship in early November. As we shared earlier this month, future Gophers Hannah Clark and Gracie Graham have been named to Canada's U18 team. We wish Distad and again wish Clark & Graham good luck at the tournament, which runs January 6 through 14 in Zug, Switzerland.

Williamson earns National Girls & Women in Sports Day honor

Gopher Women's Hockey alumna Taylor Williamson was named 2024 recipient of the National Girls and Women in Sports Day-Minnesota Wilma Rudolph Courage Award, “presented to girls and women who courageously overcame physical challenges in their success and pursuit of sports to help ensure future opportunities for girls and women, regardless of their physical abilities,” as announced by the Minnesota Coalition for Women in Athletic Leadership last Friday, December 15.

During her time at the U. of M., Williamson was first diagnosed with an arachnoid cyst on her brain and then with myasthenia gravis (MG), an incurable disease. Though both ailments took her out of the Gopher lineup for some time, she battled through both and returned to the ice to complete her collegiate career. Following her playing days, she's helped establish a Myasthenia Gravis and MDA Center of Excellence for people and families in Minnesota suffering from the disease, and she and her father Dean have raised nearly $250,000.

Williamson is one of fifteen individuals or groups selected as 2024 National Girls and Women in Sports Day-Minnesota honorees. They will be recognized at the National Girls & Women in Sports Day-MN Celebration on Wednesday, February 7, 2024, at the Minnesota History Center in St. Paul. Exhibits will open at 11 a.m. and the honoree event will begin at 12 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.

Congratulations, Taylor!! We wish you continued success in your efforts!!

Copyright © 2023 Power Play Club, All rights reserved.

You can receive the Penalty Box Post newsletter via email by signing up here.

Power Play Club

December 15, 2023

The Two-Minute Minor - An edition of the Penalty Box Post - Friday, December 15, 2023

Power Play Club

December 15, 2023

Bench signs Reserve Player Contract with PWHL Minnesota

We send congratulations and best wishes to Gopher Women's Hockey alumna Lauren Bench, who was named Tuesday as having signed a Reserve Player Contract with PWHL Minnesota. She was mistakenly overlooked in our report on PWHL team rosters in Wednesday's Penalty Box Post, and we apologize for the oversight.

Rivalry Series: Murphy scores, Team USA wins Game 3 in OT

Current Gopher Women's Hockey forward Abbey Murphy lit the lamp for the U.S. Women's National Team in Game 3 of the 2023-2024 Rivalry Series against Canada, and American captain Hilary Knight buried a power-play one-timer in overtime to take the contest, 3-2. Knight assisted earlier on Murphy's goal, while Murphy and Taylor Heise earned assists on the gamewinner. With the victory, Team USA takes a 3-0 lead in the series.

Danielle Serdachny gave the Canadians a 1-0 lead, but Kirsten Simms evened things up for the Americans in her senior national team debut. Murphy's goal came 63 seconds later to put the U.S. up 2-1, but Emily Clark tallied in the second period to knot the score for Team Canada. After that, Team USA netminder Aerin Frankel held firm to force overtime, making 32 saves in total, and Knight ended the contest 28 seconds into the extra period. Canadian goaltender Ann-Renée Desbiens stopped 19 shots.

Game 4 will be tomorrow (Saturday, December 16) in Sarnia, Ontario at 5 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. CT, with live TV coverage on NHL Network.

Bouveng, Kreisz, Laitinen also in national team action

Meanwhile, three of Abbey Murphy's current Gopher teammates are playing with their respective national teams in Europe.

Josefin Bouveng is playing for Sweden and Nelli Laitinen is on the Finland National Team roster for the 5 Nations Cup which started this past Wednesday (December 13) in Falun, Sweden. The round-robin event also includes Teams Czechia, Germany, and Switzerland. In Wednesday's action, Czechia defeated the Swiss, 4-1, and Sweden topped Germany, 3-2. Finland won their first game of the tournament, defeating Germany 4-1 yesterday, and Sweden earned a 3-2 win over Switzerland with Bouveng lighting the lamp with 21 seconds left in the second period. Games continue through Sunday.

Elsewhere, Emma Kreisz is in action with the Hungary National Team, which is hosting France, Japan, and Slovakia in another round-robin tournament which started yesterday in Budapest. In opening day competition, Kreisz dished out a pair of assists as the Hungarians shut out the Slovakians, 4-0, and France edged out Japan 2-1. This event continues with games today and tomorrow (Saturday).

We wish Josefin, Emma, and Nelli continued success with their teams, and look forward to seeing them back with the Gophers after the break!!

Copyright © 2023 Power Play Club, All rights reserved.

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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.

Power Play Club

December 13, 2023

The Penalty Box Post - Wednesday, December 13, 2023

Power Play Club

December 13, 2023

PPC and GWH events to kick off season's “second half”

Brunch with the Coaches – Saturday, January 6 at 9:45 a.m. – Join us early in the new year in the 3M Arena at Mariucci Club Room as we welcome University of Connecticut women's hockey head coach Chris MacKenzie (pictured) and our own Brad Frost. We look forward to hearing from Coach MacKenzie about playing in Hockey East and battling for a league title & an NCAA Tournament berth. At the holiday break, the Huskies are tied atop the Hockey East standings. Register by mail by Saturday, December 30 using the downloadable form (PDF) available here and sending it in to the listed address. Tickets are $30 per person and Power Play Club membership is not required.

Skate with the Gophers – postgame on January 6 – Skate with the Gophers returns following the Saturday contest against UConn. Stick around to skate on the Ridder ice, play games on the concourse and get autographs from Gopher players. All participants must register here by Friday, December 29. Attendance at the game is required.

Locker Sponsor gathering – January 13 – We thank all of our Power Play Club members for supporting Gopher Women's Hockey. Our special event for Locker Sponsors with the team is scheduled for Saturday, January 13, before that afternoon's game against Ohio State. More details will be shared as that date approaches.

Goals for a Goal: Gophers hit 74 goals (20 on PP) at break

With 18 games down and 16 to play, the Gopher Women's Hockey team has lit the lamp 74 times this season, netting 20 of those while on the power play! The Power Play Club's Goals for a Goal program converts those into charitable contributions back to the team through your pledges to donate a dollar amount per goal scored during the regular season and postseason. We also encourage you to exercise the option to double your pledge for power play goals. Pledges can be submitted electronically through this online form.

Recap: Gophers, Badgers split Border Battle series at Ridder

Abbey Murphy lit the lamp twice, Sadie Lindsay netted her second career goal, Solveig Neunzert tallied her first goal in Maroon & Gold, Nelli Laitinen also scored, and Lucy Morgan made 33 saves at the other end of the ice to lead Minnesota to a 5-3 victory over Wisconsin in their series opener this past Friday night at Ridder Arena. Kirsten Simms recorded a goal and an assist for the Badgers, but Jane Gervais made only 17 saves.

Josefin Bouveng put the Gophers up 1-0 in the second period of Saturday's rematch, but the Badgers responded with five-straight goals, two coming from Lacey Eden. Simms recorded another goal & assist for a four-point series, and Ava McNaughton stopped 23 of 24 shots. Skylar Vetter made 36 saves for Minnesota.

Abbey Murphy reaches – and surpasses – 100 career points

Gopher Women's Hockey junior forward Abbey Murphy's opening goal in the first period Friday night was her 100th career point with Minnesota, and she followed it up with her 101st point on a power-play goal later in the stanza. She now has 58 career goals and 43 assists. Congratulations, Abbey! We look forward to seeing what awaits when the season resumes in January!

Mid-season recap...

The Golden Gopher Women's Hockey team finds themselves second not only in the WCHA standings but also in both national polls, behind top-ranked Ohio State and just ahead of #3 Wisconsin. Minnesota has a 14-3-1 overall mark and 10-3-1-1 record in conference play, losing twice to the Buckeyes (one in overtime), the recent weekend split against the Badgers, and the tie eight days ago against St. Cloud State. That said, they have sweeps of Minnesota State, Bemijdi State, and St. Thomas, plus non-conference wins against RIT (twice), Harvard, and Cornell.

Special teams have been special for the Gophers this season. Their 37.7% power play conversion rate (20 of 53) leads WCHA teams and is second nationally (Colgate - 38.1%). Minnesota also leads the WCHA in penalty kill rate at 92.4% (61 of 66), though they slipped to fourth nationally after this past weekend; even so, the Gophers have scored 6 short-handed goals versus the 5 opposing power-play goals they've yielded.

Overall, Minnesota is third in the WCHA and fourth nationally in scoring offense, netting 4.11 goals per game. Abbey Murphy tops the national individual goal scoring lists with her 21 overall and 1.17 goals-per-game average. With 12 assists to give her 33 points, Murphy's tied for third in Division I with a 1.83 points-per-game average. Josefin Bouveng is having a breakout sophomore season, already passing her freshman season point total; she has 22 points on 5 goals and 17 assists. The third member of the line with Murphy & Bouveng, junior Ella Huber, has also surpassed the 20-point mark so far this season; she has 21 on 8 goals and 13 assists. Following Peyton Hemp's 15 points (7g, 8a), freshmen Emma Kreisz (3g, 11a) and Ava Lindsay (7g, 6a) are next of the Gopher scoring list with 14 & 13 points, respectively. Nelli Laitinen is the top-scoring defender, also with 13 points (6g, 7a).

At the defensive end, Minnesota is in the top 10 nationally, placing ninth at 1.67 goals-per-game, though that's fifth among WCHA teams. Junior Skylar Vetter is 7-3-1 with two shutouts in her 11 starts, posting a 2.00 goals-against average and .932 save percentage. Graduate transfer Lucy Morgan is a perfect 7-0-0 so far this season with one shutout, a 1.13 GAA (5th nationally), and a .953 SV% (4th nationally).

Team USA, three Gophers face Canada in Rivalry Series this week

We again provide a reminder that the U.S. Women's National Hockey Team will take on Canada in the third and fourth games of the 2023-2024 Rivalry Series tomorrow night (Thursday, December 14) in Kitchener, Ontario at 7 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. CT, and Saturday, December 16, in Sarnia, ON at 5 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. CT. Both games will be televised live on NHL Network.

Current Gopher forward Abbey Murphy and Minnesota alumnae Taylor Heise, Kelly Pannek, and Grace Zumwinkle were named to the American roster for this month's games on November 30. Unfortunately, Zumwinkle will not be playing as she recovers from an injury. We wish the other three all the best in these contests.

Games 5 & 6 of the Rivalry Series will be held on February 7 & 9 in Saskatoon and Regina, Saskatchewan (respectively), with tickets available here. The teams will then come south of the border to the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul on Sunday, February 11, for the series finale at 1 p.m. CT; tickets for that game can be purchased here.

Gopher recruits Clark, Graham named to Canada's U18 team – Staying on the subject of national teams, we send congratulations to incoming 2024-2025 Gopher freshmen Hannah Clark & Gracie Graham, who were named to the Team Canada roster for the 2024 IIHF U18 Women's World Championship yesterday (December 12). We also wish them good luck at the tournament, which runs January 6 through 14 in Zug, Switzerland.

Ten (10) Gopher alumnae named to PWHL final team rosters

The Professional Women's Hockey League released its final team rosters for the 2024 season yesterday afternoon, and we congratulate the ten (10) Gopher Women's Hockey alumnae who will be suiting up!

Boston – Hannah Brandt, Emily Brown, and Gigi Marvin
Minnesota – Taylor Heise, Amanda Leveille, Kelly Pannek, Lee Stecklein, and Grace Zumwinkle
New York – Savannah Norcross
Toronto – Olivia Knowles

Additionally, we recognize Abigail Boreen upon signing a Reserve Player Contract with Minnesota.

Toronto will host New York to open the league's inaugural season on New Year's Day (Monday, January 1) at 12:30 p.m. ET / 11:30 a.m. CT. Minnesota will visit Boston in the first regular-season action for both teams on Wednesday, January 3, at 7:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. CT. Minnesota will then open its home schedule at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul on Saturday, January 6, against Montreal at 2:30 p.m. CT.

Around the WCHA...

Ohio State sweeps Minnesota State – Cayla Barnes, Jenna Buglioni, and Hadley Hartmetz each tallied a goal & two assista, and goaltenders Raygan Kirk and Amanda Thiele combined to stop 42 of 44 shots for the Buckeyes, defeating the Mavericks 6-1 and 4-1 in Columbus. Kianna Roeske & Sydney Langseth lit the lamp for MSU, Whitney Tuttle assisted on both goals, and Lauren Barbro & Suzette Faucher made a combined 75 saves.

Huskies take 4 points from Bulldogs – Minnesota Duluth defeated St. Cloud State, 2-1, in their series opener in St. Cloud, but needed overtime to do it as Tova Henderson lit the lamp on a power play 2:53 into the extra period; Ève Gascon stopped 37 of 38 shots. However, five different Huskies lit the lamp in the rematch in a 5-1 victory; Alice Sauriol netted the game-winning goal, Avery Farrell scored her second goal of the weekend short-handed, and Sanni Ahola made 35 saves. UMD netminder Hailey MacLeod suffered her first loss in 14 career starts.

Beavers, Tommies split in Mendota Heights – Ella Boerger tallied the game-winning and insurance goals after an earlier assist, and Olivia King made 22 saves as St. Thomas defeated Bemidji State in the opener of their weekend series, 4-2. However, BSU netminder Eva Filippova stopped all 35 shots she faced in the rematch, Taylor Nelson netted her second goal of the weekend, and three other Beavers scored for a 4-0 victory and the series split.

Next action – All eight WCHA teams are idle the next two weekends for the holiday break. Bemidji State will resume action at the end of December, playing in the Battle in the Burgh against host Robert Morris on the 29th and either Colgate or Maine on the 30th.

Standings:
1. Ohio State – 37 points (.881 pts%), 13-1-0-0, 2-0 in OT (16-2-0 overall)
2. Minnesota – 33 points (.786 pts%), 10-3-1-1, 0-1 in OT (14-3-1 overall)
3. Wisconsin – 31 points (.738 pts%), 10-4-0-0, 0-1 in OT (14-4-0 overall)
4. St. Cloud State – 26 points (.619 pts%), 8-5-1-0, 0-1 in OT (13-6-1 overall)
5. Minn. Duluth – 23 points (.548 pts%), 8-6-0-0, 1-0 in OT (11-6-1 overall)
6. Minnesota State – 9 points (.214 pts%), 3-11-0-0, 1-1 in OT (7-12-0 overall)
7. Bemidji State – 6 points (.143 pts%), 2-12-0-0, 1-1 in OT (2-15-1 overall)
8. St. Thomas – 3 points (.071 pts%), 1-13-0-0, 0-0 in OT (7-14-0 overall)

Power Play Club

December 7, 2023

The Penalty Box Post - Thursday, December 7, 2023

Power Play Club

December 7, 2023

Saturday events – Tour of Ridder and Teddy Bear Toss

We provide one more reminder that our behind-the-scenes tour of Ridder Arena this Saturday, December 9, will start in the ticket lobby around 1 p.m. Once again, this is an exclusive event for enrolled PPC members; you can still register for the 2023-2024 season through our membership page on powerplayclub.org.

And bring a new stuffed animal (or several) to Saturday's game for the annual Teddy Bear Toss presented by White Bear Mitsubishi! You'll have an opportunity to toss your bagged animal(s) onto the ice at the first intermission, with all the collected animals donated to the Masonic Children's Hospital. Thank you for supporting this great program!!

PPC and GWH events to open season's “second half”...

Brunch with the Coaches – Saturday, January 6 at 9:45 a.m. – Join us early in the new year in the 3M Arena at Mariucci Club Room as we welcome University of Connecticut women's hockey head coach Chris MacKenzie (pictured) and our own Brad Frost. We look forward to hearing from Coach MacKenzie about playing in Hockey East and battling for a league title & an NCAA Tournament berth. Entering December, the Huskies sit atop the Hockey East standings. Register by Saturday, December 30 using the downloadable form (PDF) available here, which can be submitted by mail to the listed address or at the Power Play Club table at Ridder Arena this weekend. Tickets are $30 per person and Power Play Club membership is not required.

Skate with the Gophers – postgame on January 6 – Skate with the Gophers returns following the Saturday contest against UConn. Stick around to skate on the Ridder ice, play games on the concourse and get autographs from Gopher players. All participants must register here by Friday, December 29. Attendance at the game is required.

Locker Sponsor gathering – January 13 – We thank all of our Power Play Club members for supporting Gopher Women's Hockey. Our special event for Locker Sponsors with the team is scheduled for Saturday, January 13, before that afternoon's game against Ohio State. More details will be shared as that date approaches.

Goals for a Goal: Gophers' goal total reaches 68 (19 on PP)

With an 18 goal outburst last weekend against Bemidji State and one more at St. Cloud State, the Gopher Women's Hockey team has lit the lamp 68 times this season, with 19 of those coming while on the power play! Help us to convert each of those goals into donations back to the team through our Goals for a Goal program. Pledge a dollar amount for every goal the Gophers score during the regular season and postseason, with the option to double your pledge for power play goals. Pledges can be submitted electronically through this online form. Thanks, and GO GOPHERS!!

#2 Minnesota Golden Gophers (13-2-1, 9-2-1-1 in WCHA)
vs. #3 University of Wisconsin Badgers (13-3-0, 9-3-0-0)
Friday, December 8 at 6:00 p.m.
Saturday, December 9 at 2:00 p.m.
Ridder Arena

Gophers. Badgers. The 2023-2024 edition of the women's hockey Border Battle begins at Ridder Arena. The national top-three series opens tomorrow (Friday) night, December 8, at 6:00 p.m. and continues Saturday, December 9, at 2:00 p.m. at Ridder Arena.

Limited tickets remain for this weekend's games but you can still get yours here. The ticket office website shows there are “Not Many Left” for Friday's game and those for Saturday's contest are “Almost Gone”. We look forward to seeing many Maroon & Gold-clad fans in the stands for the Border Battle!!

Saturday's game televised – FOX 9+ will be televising Saturday's matchup between the Gophers and Badgers. For a channel guide, go to fox9.com/plus.

Other game coverage – If you cannot get to Ridder Arena, video coverage will also be streamed on the B1G+ subscription service for both contests, and audio play-by-play can be found on GopherSports.com for Friday and Saturday starting 15 to 20 minutes before each game.

Last year against Wisconsin – The Gophers and Badgers met six times in 2022-2023, including a pair of postseason games. Wisconsin was 2-0-2 in the four regular-season meetings, with a 3-3 tie and 4-1 victory in Madison and a 2-2 tie and 7-5 win at Ridder Arena; the teams split the two shootouts after the ties. The Gophers earned a 4-1 victory in the WCHA Final Faceoff semifinals, but the Badgers ended Minnesota's season with a 3-2 overtime win in the NCAA Frozen Four semis.

Taylor Heise led the Gophers with 9 points in the six Border Battle games on 5 goals & 4 assists, while Grace Zumwinkle added 7 points on 2 goals & 5 assists. Catie Skaja tallied two goals & four assists, including a 3-point performance in the WCHA semifinal, while Abbey Murphy netted 3 goals and dished out 2 assists. Jesse Compher recorded 8 points for the Badgers in the head-to-head meetings with 3 goals & 5 assists, while Casey O'Brien posted 2 goals & 4 assists for 6 points. Laila Edwards tallied 5 points on 3 goals & 2 assists while Lacey Eden dished out 5 helpers. Kirsten Simms also lit the lamp 3 times with an assist. Gopher goaltender Skylar Vetter posted a .905 save percentage with a 3.11 goals-against average, but Cami Kronish recorded a .929 SV% and 2.52 GAA for Wisconsin.

Analyzing the Badgers – Wisconsin is looking to repeat as NCAA Champion after becoming the first school to win the title as an unseeded team playing four games in the national tournament last March. But despite having four players in the top ten for Division I points-per-game, a loss this past weekend – their third this season – dropped them below the Gophers in the latest polls.

Graduate player Britta Curl (#17) leads the Badgers in total scoring with 32 points, finding the back of the net 12 times and dishing out a team-high 20 assists. Sophomore Kirsten Simms (#27) and redshirt junior Lacey Eden (#6) have each lit the lamp 13 times; Simms has 17 assists for 30 points, while Eden has recorded 12 helpers for 25 points. Senior Casey O'Brien (#26) has also passed the 20-point mark, recording 24 on 7 goals & 17 assists. Sophomore defender Caroline Harvey has only 19 points with two goals and 17 assists, but she's only played in 9 games and returned from injury last weekend.

Redshirt junior Jane Gervais (#1) and freshman Ava McNaughton (#30) have split starts between the pipes for Wisconsin. Gervais is 7-1-0 with four shutouts, posting a .928 save percentage and 1.38 goals-against average, while McNaughton has a 6-2-0 mark with 2 shutouts, a .933 SV% and 1.44 GAA. Redshirt freshman Chloe Baker (#32) made a 20-minute relief appearance against Bemidji State earlier this season, stopping all 7 shots she faced.

Last action for Wisconsin – Facing Minnesota Duluth at LaBahn Arena, the Badgers peppered Bulldogs netminder Ève Gascon with 51 shots, getting a goal & an assist from Britta Curl, goals from Kelly Gorbatenko and Lacey Eden, and a 20-save shutout performance from Jane Gervais to win the opener 3-0. The two teams played a scoreless first 40 minutes of the rematch before Clara Van Wieren & Mannon McMahon put UMD up 2-0 at the 5:13 mark of the third period. Cassie Hall pulled UW within one 2:20 later, but Jenna Lowry restored a two-goal lead for the Bulldogs with 5:20 to play. Casey O'Brien scored for the Badgers with an extra attacker, but UMD earned the weekend split with a 3-2 victory behind 42 saves from Hailey MacLeod and a 3-assist performance from Ida Karlsson. Curl added two assists on Sunday for a 4-point (1g, 3a) weekend while Ava McNaughton made 23 saves.

Gophers earn shootout standings point after tie in St. Cloud – Skylar Vetter stopped 29 of 30 shots on goal and Peyton Hemp lit the lamp for the 7th time this season, but Minnesota had to settle for a 1-1 overtime tie at St. Cloud State after Addi Scribner knotted the score and Sanni Ahola made 27 saves through the extra period for the Huskies. With the tie, the game went to a shootout to award the “bonus” point in the WCHA standings; Ella Huber and Allie Franco found the back of the net for the Gophers, while Vetter stopped both shots she faced from the Huskies at the other end of the ice for a 2-0 decision.

Abbey Murphy, Ava Lindsay earn weekly league honors

We send our congratulations to Gopher Women's Hockey players Abbey Murphy and Ava Lindsay on earning WCHA Hockey Player of the Week honors!!

Lindsay was named Rookie of the Week, her first weekly honor from the league, netting 3 goals & dishing out 2 assists for 5 points with a +5 plus-minus rating against Bemidji State.

Murphy picked up her second-straight Forward of the Week award after tallying 8 points against the Beavers. She recorded 2 goals and an assist Friday, then added another 2 goals and 3 assists on Saturday. She also had a +7 plus-minus rating for the series.

GWH alumna Savannah Norcross signs with PWHL New York

Gopher Women's Hockey alumna Savannah Norcross signed a one-year contract with PWHL New York, as announced by the team on X (formerly Twitter) this past Tuesday, December 5.

Norcross becomes the seventh Gopher to sign a PWHL contract, following Lee Stecklein, Kelly Pannek, Taylor Heise & Grace Zumwinkle with PWHL Minnesota and Hannah Brandt & Emily Brown with PWHL Boston. Congratulations, Savannah!!

Around the WCHA...

Upcoming games – As we noted earlier this week, “first half” action before the holiday break concludes with all eight teams in another round of league play. Bemidji State visits St. Thomas and St. Cloud State hosts Minnesota Duluth on Friday & Saturday, while Minnesota State faces Ohio State in a Saturday-Sunday series in Columbus.

Standings:
1. Ohio State – 31 points (.861 pts%), 11-1-0-0, 2-0 in OT (14-2-0 overall)
2. Minnesota – 30 points (.833 pts%), 9-2-1-1, 0-1 in OT (13-2-1 overall)
3. Wisconsin – 28 points (.778 pts%), 9-3-0-0, 0-1 in OT (13-3-0 overall)
4. St. Cloud State – 22 points (.611 pts%), 7-4-1-0, 0-0 in OT (12-5-1 overall)
5. Minn. Duluth – 21 points (.583 pts%), 7-5-0-0, 0-0 in OT (10-5-1 overall)
6. Minnesota State – 9 points (.333 pts%), 3-9-0-0, 1-1 in OT (7-10-0 overall)
7. Bemidji State – 3 points (.167 pts%), 1-11-0-0, 1-1 in OT (1-14-1 overall)
8. St. Thomas – 0 points (.000 pts%), 0-12-0-0, 0-0 in OT (6-13-0 overall)

Copyright © 2023 Power Play Club, All rights reserved.

You can receive the Penalty Box Post newsletter via email by signing up here.

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.

Power Play Club

December 4, 2023

The Penalty Box Post - Monday, December 4, 2023

Power Play Club

December 4, 2023

Saturday events – Tour of Ridder and Teddy Bear Toss

Come join us before the Border Battle contest against Wisconsin this coming Saturday, December 9th, for a behind-the-scenes tour of Ridder Arena as we check out the updates to the lower level and other areas. The tour will start in the ticket lobby around 1 p.m., an hour before game time. This is an exclusive event for enrolled PPC members and we provide a reminder that you can still register for the 2023-2024 season through our membership page on powerplayclub.org.

And don't forget to do some shopping beforehand to pick up a new stuffed animal (or several) for the annual Teddy Bear Toss presented by White Bear Mitsubishi! You'll have an opportunity to toss your bagged animal(s) onto the ice during an intermission of Saturday's contest against the Badgers. All the collected animals will be donated to the Masonic Children's Hospital. Thank you for your support of this great program!!

#3 Minnesota Golden Gophers (13-2-0, 9-2-0 in WCHA)
at
#10 St. Cloud State University Huskies (12-5-0, 7-4-0)
Tuesday, December 5 at 6:00 p.m.
Herb Brooks National Hockey Center, St. Cloud

After posting a high-scoring sweep in their first two-game home series of the 2023-2024 season, the Gopher Women's Hockey team will head up I-94 to the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center for their last road contest of the calendar year, facing the St. Cloud State Huskies for a second midweek game. The Gophers and Huskies will drop the puck tomorrow (Tuesday) night, December 5, at 6:00 p.m. (Note: listed rankings are from prior to this past weekend's games.)

Game coverage – As with all WCHA league contests, video coverage will be available on the B1G+ subscription service. Free audio play-by-play will be available on GopherSports.com here, starting around 5:45 p.m.

Last time against St. Cloud State – Minnesota defended home ice in their Ridder Arena opener with a 2-1 victory over the Huskies on October 17. Ava Lindsay lit the lamp in the 2nd period, cleaning up the rebound of an initial shot by Emily Zumwinkle. The score stayed 1-0 into the final minute when Taylor Stewart tallied her first goal as a Gopher, a short-handed bouncer into an empty net despite a deflection off a Huskies defender's stick. Stewart's goal turned into the game winner as SCSU's Avery Farrell broke up the shutout bid, lighting the lamp with 5.2 seconds remaining, but Skylar Vetter's 14 saves were enough for the win. Emma Kreisz assisted on both Minnesota goals, and St. Cloud State netminder Jojo Chobak stopped 29 shots.

Analyzing the Huskies – As we mentioned before the first meeting between Minnesota & St. Cloud State this season, the Huskies are looking to finish in the top four of the WCHA standings and earn home ice for the first round of the playoffs, something they have not accomplished since 2009-2010. They are on their way to making it happen this year, starting with a 7-4-0 conference record and a 12-5-0 mark overall including a big win in Columbus this past weekend.

Scoring has been very spread out for SCSU. Fifth-year forward Klára Hymlárová (#12) is the team's points leader with 14 and is tied with a team-high 6 goals, while grad student Katie Kaufman (#10) has the assist lead with 9 while scoring 3 goals of her own for 12 points. Grad student CC Bowlby (#28; 6g, 3a) and freshman Alice Sauriol (#4; 3g, 6a) are tied for third to scoring with 9 points apiece.

Goaltending has been a definite strong point for the Huskies. Seniors Sanni Ahola (#1) and Jojo Chobak (#29) have combined for 8 shutouts in St. Cloud State's 17 games. Ahola is 7-1-0 with five of those shutouts, a ridiculous .967 save percentage and 0.75 goals-against average. Chobak has a 5-4-0 record this season with a .932 SV% and 1.69 GAA. Freshman Paige Hoogendam (#31) has yet to see any action.

Last action for St. Cloud State – Making the longer trip to Columbus, the Huskies found themselves down 1-0 to the top-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes in the first period Friday on a Makenna Webster goal, but CC Bowlby & Greta Henderson each lit the lamp for SCSU on second-period power plays. That was enough for Sanni Ahola, who stopped 46 shots and earned the 2-1 upset victory. Cayla Barnes again gave OSU a 1-0 lead on Saturday only to have Laura Zimmerman knot the score for the Huskies; however, the Buckeyes took control, scoring the next five goals including two by Olivia Mobley. Taylor Lind converted another power-play late for SCSU but they had to settle for a split after a 6-2 loss. OSU held a 90-33 shots-on-goal advantage in the series.

Gophers sweep Beavers at Ridder – After spotting Bemidji State a 1-0 lead on Friday night, Minnesota exploded for 18 goals in a 9-2, 9-1 weekend sweep at Ridder Arena. Abbey Murphy scored early and often, recording 8 points on 4 goals & 4 assists, Ella Huber dished out 5 assists while also lighting the lamp once for a 6-point weekend, and Ava Lindsay (3g, 2a) & Peyton Hemp (2g, 3a) each added 5 points. Josefin Bouveng also lit the lamp twice with two assists, Emma Kreisz tallied a goal and two assists, and Solveig Neunzert dished out 3 helpers. Skylar Vetter stopped 17 shots on Friday, and Lucy Morgan posted 25 saves – including one on Friday in a brief appearance while Vetter made a skate change. BSU's line of Genevieve Hendrickson, Talya Hendrickson, and Kate Johnson accounted for all their scoring as each recorded a goal and assisted on the other two.

Additionally, two Gophers each netted their first goals in Maroon & Gold. Freshman Lauren O'Hara lit the lamp not once but twice in Friday's contest, while junior Sadie Lindsay found the back of the net with a rebound goal on Saturday. Congratulations, Lauren & Sadie!!

Murphy closes in on century mark after earning monthly award

Gopher Women's Hockey junior Abbey Murphy continued to collect awards as she was named Sterling Trophy WCHA Forward of the Month for November on Thursday, following recognition as the Forward of the Week and having the Howie's Hockey Tape Performance of the Week for her play over Thanksgiving weekend.

For the moment, attention now turns to Murphy's career statistics. Recording four goals and four assists this past weekend against Bemidji State, she now sits at 99 points as a Gopher on 56 goals and 43 assists.

Heise, Murphy, Pannek & Zumwinkle to join Team USA this month

Abbey Murphy and Gopher Women's Hockey alumnae Taylor Heise, Kelly Pannek, and Grace Zumwinkle will don the Red, White & Blue again later this month, being named to the U.S. National Team roster for the third and fourth games of the 2023-2024 Rivalry Series against Canada. Those contests are scheduled for Thursday, December 14 in Kitchener, Ontario, and Saturday, December 16, in Sarnia, Ontario.

All four Gophers played in the opening two games of the seven-game series last month, with Team USA winning 3-1 in Tempe, Arizona, and 5-2 in Los Angeles. Heise posted a goal and an assist while Murphy dished out a pair of helpers.

Tickets for the upcoming pair of games are available through Hockey Canada here.

PWHL releases inaugural season schedules for all six teams

The Professional Women's Hockey League announced its composite 2024 regular-season schedule this past Thursday, November 30, featuring 72 games among its six teams.

The schedule includes a pair of breaks for international competition. The first will occur in February for Rivalry Series games and other contests. The second will span 3½ weeks, starting in late March and running into April, for the 2024 IIHF Women's World Championship.

The league also announced it will have players participating as part of the 2024 NHL All-Star Weekend at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, in the Canadian Tire PWHL 3-on-3 Showcase™ on Thursday, February 1. Festivities that day begin at 6 p.m. ET and will conclude with the showcase event. More details are forthcoming.

Univ. of Delaware adds varsity women's ice hockey for 2025-2026

The University of Delaware will add women's ice hockey as a varsity sport, starting competition in the 2025-2026 season, as announced by the school this past Friday, December 1. The Blue Hens will become the 45th Division I women's ice hockey program and will join the College Hockey America conference. The team will play at the Fred Rust Ice Arena in Newark, DE, the home of the university's current club hockey programs.

A formal press conference will take place this morning (Monday, December 4) at 10 a.m. ET / 9 a.m. CT and will be streamed live on YouTube.

Around the WCHA

Badgers, Bulldogs split in Madison – Despite a 48-save performance by UMD netminder Ève Gascon, Wisconsin took the opener of their series 3-0; Britta Curl recorded a goal & an assist, Kelly Gorbatenko and Lacey Eden also lit the lamp, and Jane Gervais stopped all 20 shots she faced. After two scoreless periods, Clara Van Wieren & Mannon McMahon put Minnesota Duluth up 2-0 in the rematch; Cassie Hall pulled UW within one 2:20 later, but Jenna Lowry restored a two-goal lead for the Bulldogs with 5:20 to play. Casey O'Brien scored for the Badgers with an extra attacker, but UMD earned the weekend split with a 3-2 victory behind 42 saves from Hailey MacLeod and a 3-assist performance from Ida Karlsson. Curl assisted on both Wisconsin goals on Sunday for a 4-point (1g, 3a) weekend while Ava McNaughton made 23 saves.

Mavericks sweep Tommies in home-and-home series – Sydney Langseth tallied 3 goals & 2 assists and Lauren Barbro stopped a combined 38 of 40 shots as Minnesota State completed a weekend sweep of St. Thomas, 7-1 in Mankato and 3-1 in Mendota Heights. Taylor Otremba (2g, 1a) and Jamie Nelson (1g, 2a) each added 3 points in the opener for MSU, who had an 87-40 shot advantage in the series. Lauren Stenslie and Ellah Hause lit the lamp for the Tommies, and Calla Frank made 61 saves in a little over four periods of action.

Upcoming games – This next weekend will conclude action before the holiday break, with all eight teams in another round of league play. In addition to the Border Battle between the Gophers and Badgers, Bemidji State will visit St. Thomas and St. Cloud State will host Minnesota Duluth on Friday & Saturday, while Minnesota State faces Ohio State in a Saturday-Sunday series in Columbus.

Power Play Club

November 30, 2023

The Two-Minute Minor - An Edition of the Penalty Box Post - Thursday, November 30, 2023

Power Play Club

November 30, 2023

GWH schedule reminder – Tuesday, Dec. 5 at St. Cloud State

We provide a reminder to our members and other fellow fans that, after this weekend's series against Bemidji State, Gopher Women's Hockey has a rare midweek game on Tuesday, December 5, at 6:00 p.m., on the road at St. Cloud State. We hope to see a lot of Maroon & Gold at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center for this league contest. We'll also have a special edition of the Penalty Box Post on Monday previewing the contest against the Huskies.

Looking ahead to upcoming PPC and GWH events:

Tour of Ridder – Saturday, December 9 at 1:00 p.m. – Come join us before the Border Battle contest on December 9th for a behind-the-scenes tour of Ridder Arena as we check out the updates to the lower level and other areas. The tour will start in the ticket lobby roughly an hour before game time. This is an exclusive event for enrolled PPC members, and we provide a reminder that you can still register for the 2023-2024 season through our membership page on powerplayclub.org.

Teddy Bear Toss on December 9 – Come help us and the Gopher Women's Hockey team support the patients at the Masonic Children's Hospital with the annual Teddy Bear Toss presented by White Bear Mitsubishi! Bring a new stuffed animal (or two, or three...) in a bag to the game against Wisconsin on Saturday, December 9, and you'll have an opportunity to toss it onto the ice during the intermission.

Skate with the Gophers – postgame on January 6 – Gopher Women's Hockey is pleased to announce the return of Skate with the Gophers following the Saturday contest against UConn. Stick around afterward to skate on the Ridder ice, play games on the concourse and get autographs from Gopher players. Space is limited and all participants must register here by Friday, December 29. Attendance at the game is required.

Locker Sponsor “save the date” reminder – We thank all of our Power Play Club members for supporting Gopher Women's Hockey. Our special event for Locker Sponsors with the team is scheduled for Saturday, January 13, before that afternoon's game against Ohio State. More details will be shared as that date approaches.

Murphy recognized for league's Performance of the Week

Following her three-goal, one-assist showing at the D1 In DC Showcase and being named the Sterling Trophy WCHA Forward of the Week on Monday, Gopher Women's Hockey junior Abbey Murphy was further recognized by the league Tuesday as having the Howie's Hockey Tape Performance of the Week!!

We again send our congratulations to Abbey!!

PWHL announces playing venues, schedule of home openers

The Professional Women's Hockey League released its list of playing venues for its six teams and the schedule of home openers this past Tuesday. The inaugural season will begin on New Year's Day – Monday, January 1 – as Toronto will host New York at the Mattamy Athletic Center. Minnesota will start its season on the road at Boston on Wednesday, January 3, before opening its home schedule at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul against Montreal on Saturday afternoon, January 6.

We continue to watch league news and announcements regarding the Gopher Women's Hockey alumnae signed, drafted, or invited to PWHL training camps, and will share updates as they are published.

Copyright © 2023 Power Play Club, All rights reserved.

You can receive the Penalty Box Post newsletter via email by signing up here.

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.