Roseville, Minn. is the epicenter of women’s hockey Dec. 11-12 in a weekend devoted to featuring competition at the youth, high school and collegiate levels at the Roseville Skating Center & John Rose Oval.

The University of Minnesota, St. Cloud State University, Roseville Area Hockey Association youth players and the Roseville and Cretin-Derham Hall high school programs will participate in a two-day, indoor/outdoor celebration of women’s hockey in a community rich with tradition and success in that regard.

Lee Stecklein

The schedule of events:

Friday, December 11:

• S. Hockey Hall of Fame Museum Women’s Face-Off Classic: University of Minnesota Gophers vs. St. Cloud State Huskies.  Former Roseville Girls High School Hockey teammates Lee Stecklein (Gophers) and Hanna Brodt (Huskies) return home to face-off at 6:37 p.m. at the Roseville Skating Center. Both Stecklein and Brodt were members of the 2010 State Championship team.

Saturday, December 12:

• Inaugural Girls Outdoor Hockey Classic at the John Rose Oval, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m., 4 vs. 4, for levels U10 & U8.
• Varsity Roseville Girls High School Hockey vs. Cretin-Derham Hall. The game start is 3:00 p.m. at the Roseville Skating Center.

“The girls hockey weekend is a great opportunity to support women’s hockey in Minnesota from the grassroots level to the professional level,” said Winny (Brodt) Brown a former Gopher who starred at Roseville High School (1992 – 1996). “It is great to have the young kids see all the opportunities that girls hockey brings at all ages.”

Hanna Brodt

With four Minnesota Ms. Hockey Award winners to its credit, including Brodt who won the inaugural award in 1996, Roseville is one of the state’s most decorated programs over the course of two decades. The list of accolades for Roseville Girls High School Hockey includes:

• 8 State Tournaments
• 3 State Championships
• 1 MN Goalie of the Year
• 10 Ms. Hockey Award Finalists

Friday’s game is the second U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Museum Women’s Face-Off Classic in as many years for the Gophers and Huskies. Last year’s HOF game saw the Gophers earn a 5-0 win over the Huskies behind a hat trick from Kelly Pannek and a 19-save shutout by Amanda Leveille at Braemar Arena in Edina.

Tickets may be purchased through the Gopher Ticket Office or online at MyGopherSports.com, priced at $7 for adults and $4 for youth and seniors. Groups of 10 or more can receive a group ticket rate of $3. All tickets are general admission.

The game will be broadcast live on CTV Channel 14 and streamed online at ctv15.org, produced by the North Suburban Access Corporation (NSAC), serving the city of Roseville. The doors will open at 5:30 p.m. with puck drop set for 6:37 p.m. Parking is limited, so fans are encouraged to car pool and arrive early.

For more detailed information surrounding these events visit: www.rghgirlshockey.com or contact Craig Rosenthal, 651-249-8191, craigr@oshockey.org

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Longtime official to become first female to skate in a WCHA men’s contest

Veteran official Kristine (Langley) Morrison, who has worked four NCAA Women’s Frozen Four tournaments and several international competitions, will serve as a referee this weekend at Ferris State, the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) announced today.

“The WCHA is committed to providing growth opportunities for all of our officials,” said WCHA Men’s Commissioner Bill Robertson and Women’s Commissioner Aaron Kemp in a joint statement. “As part of that process, we are exploring new evaluation and development paths for our female officials. Kristine has consistently been rated among the top on-ice officials in the women’s league and is certainly deserving of this opportunity for continued professional growth.”

A member of the on-ice officiating staff for the women’s WCHA since 2005, Morrison will skate Ferris State’s Crimson & Gold intrasquad game Saturday and the Bulldogs’ exhibition contest against the University of Lethbridge on Sunday.

Morrison, who played hockey college hockey at Wayne State, is married to veteran official Jonathan Morrison who works Big Ten games in Minnesota and Wisconsin as a linesman.

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Coast-to-coast action highlights a full slate of WCHA games

After successful opening weekend which saw six of its teams go 4-0-2 in non-conference action and 3-0-0 in exhibition play, all eight women’s Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) teams take to the ice this weekend in preparation for next week’s conference openers.

The weekend’s slate of interleague contests begins tonight with No. 1 Minnesota, exhibition winners over the Minnesota Whitecaps 5-4 on Sept. 25, launching its national title defense with a pair of games in State College, Penn. against the Penn State Nittany Lions. Minnesota returns three All-Americans in senior forward Hannah Brandt (first team), junior forward Dani Cameranesi (second team) and junior defenseman Lee Stecklein.

Brandt enters the 2015-16 season as the NCAA’s active career scoring leader with 221 points (90 goals, 131 assists) which ranks her 16th in NCAA history.

The Maura Crowell era behind Minnesota Duluth bench continues with the Bulldogs (2-0-0) traveling to Boston to face No. 2 Boston College. Crowell’s tenure got underway last week with a pair of road wins at Lindenwood led by WCHA Offensive Player of the Week Ashley Brykaliuk. The junior forward compiled five points (2 goals, 3 assists) in 4-3 and 4-1 victories.

Senior goaltender Kayla Black stopped 48 of 52 shots in her 103rd and 104th career games between the UMD pipes. The Bulldogs’ career leader in shutouts (19) and saves (2,558) is now tied with Rita Schaublin for the most games played in team history.

Like UMD, No. 9 Bemidji State takes its undefeated record and heads east this weekend to take on Vermont. Jim Scanlan’s Beavers (1-0-1), 11-9-1 on the road last year, opened the season with a win and a tie against Robert Morris University at the Sanford Center.

Sophomore defenseman Alexis Joyce had a big weekend to earn her WCHA Defensive Player of the Week honors. Joyce tied for the team lead with three points, including the season’s first goal for BSU, and was a plus-5 with two blocked shots. Returning first-team All-American goaltender Brittni Mowat made 18 saves in Friday’s 3-1 win over the Colonials.

Crowell was not the only rookie coach to get off on the right foot last week. New Minnesota State coach John Harrington also enters the weekend undefeated after his Mavericks (1-0-1) tied and defeated Union College at home. WCHA Rookie of the Week Corbin Boyd made her first career goal even more memorable by scoring Friday’s game-tying tally with just 1:48 remaining in regulation.

MSU’s 3-0 win in its second game of the season is significant in that it took the Mavericks 18 games (0-16-1) to pick up their first win of the 2014-15 season.

Minnesota State takes on the Rochester Institute of Technology (R.I.T.) this weekend in Rochester, N.Y., less than 300 miles from Lake Placid, N.Y. where Harrington and his Team USA teammates defeated the mighty Soviet Union their way to capturing an Olympic gold medal under coach Herb Brooks.

Like the Gophers, St. Cloud State opened its season with a one-goal win over the Minnesota Whitecaps last week. Second-year coach Eric Rud’s Huskies have the privilege this weekend to welcome Merrimack College to Division I women’s college hockey.  SCSU travels to North Andover, Mass. to face off against the Warriors in their first-ever regular season games.

Elsewhere around the league … Four-time Olympic medalist and two-time WCHA Player of the Year Jenny Potter officially returns to the league this weekend for her D-I head coaching debut with Ohio State as the Buckeye hit the road to take on Lindenwood. … Wisconsin heads west to open its season in San Jose, Calif. The No. 3 Badgers face Providence in a two-game series at Sharks Ice – the official training facility for the NHL’s San Jose Sharks. … North Dakota begins its regular season in Troy, N.Y. with a series against RPI.

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Bemidji State begins season at No. 9 in the country

The season’s first U.S. College Hockey Online Division I women’s poll was released this morning and, to no one’s surprise, Minnesota opens the season as the No. 1 team in the nation. The defending national champions, coming off of a 34-3-4 season garnered all 15 first-place votes.

The Golden Gophers are joined in the poll by fellow WCHA combatants Wisconsin (3) and North Dakota (6) while Bemidji State debuts in the No. 9 spot to begin the season, up one spot from where BSU finished a remarkable breakout campaign in 2014-15 which saw the Beavers defeat the Gophers to advance to the WCHA Final Faceoff title game.

New coach Maura Crowell’s Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs open up outside the top ten but did receive five votes in the poll to earn some consideration.

All five Minnesota Division I teams take the ice competitively for the first time this coming weekend (Sept. 25-27):

Minnesota and St. Cloud State begin play hosting single exhibition games against the Minnesota Whitecaps on Friday and Saturday, respectively, while UMD opens its season on the road with a Saturday-Sunday series at Lindenwood.

Bemidji State opens Jim Scanlan’s second season at home against Robert Morris University on Friday and Saturday and John Harrington’s debut behind the Minnesota State bench with a pair of home games against Union College, also a Friday-Saturday series.

USCHO.com Division I Women’s Poll
Minneapolis, Minn./September 21, 2015

Others receiving votes: Northeastern 11, Mercyhurst 6, Minnesota-Duluth 5, St. Lawrence 4.

The USCHO.com Poll is compiled weekly and consists of 15 voters, including coaches and women’s hockey writers from across the country. USCHO.com provides in-depth coverage of college hockey.

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The Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) announced the launch of the conference’s new –look website on Tuesday, Sept. 15 for both its men’s and women’s pages. Wcha.com’s redesign is the result of a partnership between the league office and website provider 867 Studios.

“We wanted to provide WCHA fans with an easily accessible and visually striking showcase of the league’s tremendous student-athletes, coaches and institutions,” said Men’s Commissioner Bill Robertson and Women’s Commissioner Aaron Kemp in a joint statement released by the league. “With its simplified layout, content and continued statistical integration with collegehockeystats.net, we feel the new wcha.com will be a go-to resource for our fans.”

In addition to its responsive design, allowing for scalability across devices, the new wcha.com’s large, rotating displays near the top of the home page and team pages magnify current news and stories, while content is organized in a simplified manner.

The site’s statistical platform, which is integrated with collegehockeystats.net and contains some of the most expansive analysis available, is also responsive – with more enhancements planned as the season unfolds.

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Per WCHA release:

EDINA, Minn. – March 4, 2015 – The quartet of schools that will vie for the league’s postseason title this weekend at the WCHA FINAL FACE-OFF are all represented in the women’s Western Collegiate Hockey Association major individual postseason awards, as announced today by Commissioner Aaron Kemp.

For the second straight year, Minnesota’s Hannah Brandt was named WCHA Player of the Year. Brandt’s Gophers teammate, Rachel Ramsey, also repeated as Defensive Player of the Year. Wisconsin rookie Annie Pankowski captured Rookie of the Year honors, while North Dakota’s Shelby Amsley-Benzie was voted Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year. Jim Scanlan, who guided Bemidji State to the FINAL FACE-OFF in his first year at the helm, earned Coach of the Year honors.

WCHA Player of the Year – Hannah Brandt; Jr., F, Minnesota (Vadnais Heights, Minn.)

Brandt, a junior from Vadnais Heights, Minn., scored 21 goals and tallied 29 assists for a WCHA-best 50 points in 27 league games for regular season champion Minnesota. Entering the FINAL FACE-OFF, she is second in the nation with 67 total points (31 goals and 36 assists) and is third with an average of 1.86 points per contest. Brandt, who repeated as the conference scoring champion and leads the nation with a +65 on-ice rating, was named a top-10 finalist for the 2015 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award.

WCHA Defensive Player of the Year – Rachel Ramsey; Sr., F, Minnesota (Chanhassen, Minn.)
Ramsey, a senior from Chanhassen, Minn., ranks second among all NCAA defensemen with 31 points (eight goals and 23 assists) and third with an average of 0.84 points per game. Twenty-four of her points (seven goals, 17 assists) came during league play for the Gophers. The daughter of former U.S. Olympian, NHL player and assistant coach Mike Ramsey, Rachel is also among the top-10 finalists for the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award.

WCHA Rookie of the Year – Annie Pankowski; Fr., F, Wisconsin (Laguna Hills, Calif.)
Pankowski enjoyed a stellar freshman campaign, ranking second among all NCAA rookies (and 16^th overall) with 1.11 points per contest. The Laguna Hills, Calif. native leads the third-ranked Badgers with 18 goals and 39 points overall. Thirteen of her goals, along with 13 assists, came in her 27 WCHA games.

WCHA Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year – Shelby Amsley-Benzie; Jr., North Dakota (Warroad, Minn.)
Amsley-Benzie, the only goaltender among the top-10 finalists for the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, was honored for her stellar achievements on the ice and in the classroom. The junior from Warroad, Minn. is in a combined degree program within UND’s College of Engineering and Mines, which will allow her to obtain a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering and a Master of Science with a major in chemical engineering over the course of five years. A three-time recipient of the WCHA Scholar-Athlete Award, Amsley-Benzie has also been named to the University of North Dakota’s President’s Honor Roll for six consecutive semesters. She currently leads the nation with a .954 save percentage and was the WCHA goaltending champion with a 1.17 goals against average in league play

WCHA Coach of the Year – Jim Scanlan, Bemidji State
In his first season of college coaching, Scanlan has led Bemidji State to program single-season records for overall victories and league wins, posting a 20-16-1 overall record and 13-14-1 mark in WCHA play. This weekend, Scanlan will guide the Beavers into just their second ever WCHA FINAL FACE-OFF.

All-WCHA First Team
Brandt, a three-time member of the All-WCHA First Team, is joined at forward on the all-league first team by teammate Dani Cameranesi, a sophomore from Plymouth, Minn. who tallied 17 goals, 26 assists and 43 points in WCHA play; and, Wisconsin’s Blayre Turnbull, a senior from Stellarton, Nova Scotia who had 28 points (13 goals, 15 assists) in league competition. Turnbull was an All-WCHA Third Team member last season. Cameranesi, a member of the WCHA All-Rookie team in 2013-14, is one of four all-league players who are nominated as a Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award top-10 finalist.

The All-WCHA First Team for 2014-15 also includes Ramsey and fellow Minnesota defenseman Lee Stecklein, a sophomore from Roseville, Minn. It is the second straight year that Ramsey has been named to the All-WCHA First Team, while Stecklein – a member of the 2014 U.S. Olympic team – scored four goals and added 12 assists for 16 points.

Two players – Amsley-Benzie and Bemidji State’s Brittni Mowat – tied for the All-WCHA First Team goaltender. Mowat, a sophomore from Glenboro, Manitoba, was a member of the league’s All-Rookie team last season. She enters the FINAL FACE-OFF third in the country with a .945 save percentage to accompany a 18-12-1 record and 1.66 goals against average.

All-WCHA Second Team

The 2014-15 All-WCHA Second Team includes Wisconsin teammates Pankowski and Brittany Ammerman, along with Minnesota Duluth’s Zoe Hickel. Ammerman, who also earned All-WCHA Second Team accolades last season, scored 12 goals and recorded 16 assists for 28 points in conference games. Hickel, a senior from Anchorage, Alaska, logged 11 goals and 11 assists (22 points) in WCHA competition.

The defensemen are Minnesota’s Milica McMillen, a sophomore from St. Paul, Minn., and Minnesota Duluth’s Brigette Lacquette – both of whom tied for second in scoring among WCHA blueliners. McMillen was a first team All-WCHA member last season finished with 20 points (six goals and 14 assists) in league play. Lacquette, a senior from Mallard, Manitoba, was a second team All-WCHA defender in 2012-13 and a member of the All-Rookie team as a freshman. She netted five goals and had 15 assists (20 points) in WCHA games.

All-WCHA Third Team

The forwards on the 2014-15 All-WCHA Third Team are Minnesota’s Rachael Bona, a senior from Coon Rapids, Minn. who scored seven goals, added 16 assists and finished with 23 points; North Dakota’s Becca Kohler, a junior from St. Thomas, Ontario who had eight goals, 15 assists and 23 points; and, Wisconsin’s Karley Sylvester, a senior forward from Warroad, Minn. who finished with 25 points (seven goals and 18 assists).

Wisconsin senior Courtney Burke and North Dakota sophomore Halli Kryzaniak are the second team defensemen. Burke, a native of Albany, N.Y. who was a second team All-WCHA selection a season ago, finished with four goals and 15 assists (19 points). Kryzaniak, who hails from Neepawa, Manitoba, scored a pair of goals and logged six assists.

The third-team goaltender is Wisconsin sophomore Ann-Renée Desbiens. The native of La Malbaie, Quebec ranks second among NCAA goaltenders with 13 shutouts, including a league-best 10 blankings in WCHA play. She finished second in the WCHA with a 1.28 goals against average, part of an overall 1.14 mark that ranks third nationally.

WCHA All-Rookie Team

Rookie of the Year Pankowski headlines the forwards on the 2014-15 WCHA All-Rookie team, along with teammate Emily Clark and Minnesota’s Kelly Pannek. Clark, a native of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, compiled 22 WCHA points in her freshman campaign (10 goals and 12 assists). Pannek, from Plymouth, Minn., was the top-scoring rookie in the WCHA this season with 27 points (five goals and 22 assists).

Minnesota’s Sydney Baldwin (Minnetonka, Minn.) and Bemidji State’s Alexis Joyce (Lakeville, Minn.) are the All-Rookie defenseman. Ohio State’s Kassidy Sauve (Whitby, Ontario), who recorded four WCHA shutouts, is the goaltender.

About the 2014-15 WCHA Awards

Conference member team head coaches, assistant coaches and team captains vote for the WCHA individual award winners. The WCHA Defensive Player of the Year Award is chosen by the head coaches, while the WCHA Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year is selected by the institutional faculty representatives.

All-Academic Team

The conference also released the 2014-15 All-WCHA Academic Team, comprised of 91 student-athletes representing all eight WCHA women’s-member institutions.

2014-15 WCHA Awards

• Player of the Year – Hannah Brandt, Jr., F, Minnesota
• Defensive Player of the Year – Rachel Ramsey, Sr., D, Minnesota
• Rookie of the Year – Annie Pankowski, Fr., F, Wisconsin
• Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year – Shelby Amsley-Benzie, Jr., G, North Dakota
• Scoring Champion – Hannah Brandt, Jr., F, Minnesota
• Goaltending Champion – Shelby Amsley-Benzie, Jr., G, North Dakota

2014-15 All-WCHA First Team

• Forwards: Hannah Brandt, Jr., Minnesota; Dani Cameranesi, So., Minnesota; Blayre Turnbull, Sr., Wisconsin
• Defensemen: Rachel Ramsey, Sr., Minnesota; Lee Stecklein, Sr., Minnesota
• Goaltenders: Shelby Amsley-Benzie, Jr., North Dakota; Brittni Mowat, So., Bemidji State

2014-15 All-WCHA Second Team

• Forwards: Brittany Ammerman, Sr., Wisconsin; Zoe Hickel, Sr., Minnesota Duluth; Annie Pankowski, Fr., Wisconsin
• Defensemen: Milica McMillen, Jr., Minnesota; Brigette Lacquette, Sr., Minnesota Duluth

2014-15 All-WCHA Third Team

• Forwards: Rachel Bona, Sr., Minnesota; Becca Kohler, Jr., North Dakota; Karley Sylvester, Sr., Wisconsin
• Defensemen: Courtney Burke, Jr., Wisconsin; Halli Kryzaniak, So., North Dakota
• Goaltender: Ann-Renée Desbiens, So., Wisconsin

2014-15 WCHA All-Rookie Team

• Forwards: Emily Clark, Wisconsin; Annie Pankowski, Wisconsin; Kelly Pannek, Wisconsin
• Defensemen: Sydney Baldwin, Minnesota; Alexis Joyce, Bemidji State
• Goaltender: Kassidy Sauve, Ohio State

2014-15 WCHA All-Academic Team

To qualify for the WCHA All-Academic Team, student-athletes must have completed one year of eligibility at present institution, prior to the current academic year and have a GPA of at least 3.0 for the previous two semesters or three quarters.

Following, by team, are the ninety-one (91) 2014-15 WCHA All-Academic Team honorees: (*indicates repeat honoree)

Bemidji State University

Kaleigh Chapman (Sr., D, Virden, Manitoba); Erin Deters (RS-Fr., G, Sartell, Minn.); Carley Esse (So., D, Cloquet, Minn.); Kristine Grenier (Sr., F, St. Leon, Manitoba); Kristin Huber* (Jr., F, Kelowna, British Columbia); Madison Hutchinson (So., D, Manitou, Manitoba); Rachael Kelly (Sr., F, Rosemount, Minn.); Megan Lushanko* (Jr., F, Chisago City, Minn.); Lauren Miller (So., F, Brockville, Ontario); Hanna Moher* (Jr., F, Milton, Ontario); Brittni Mowat (So., G, Glenboro, Manitoba); Ciscely Nelson (RS-Fr., F, Roseau, Minn.); Kaitlyn Tougas* (Jr., F, Thunder Bay, Ontario); Whitney Wivoda* (Jr., F, Fairbanks, Alaska)

University of Minnesota

Rachael Bona* (Sr., F, Coon Rapids, Minn.); Hannah Brandt* (Jr., F, Vadnais Heights, Minn.); Dani Cameranesi (So., F, Plymouth, Minn.); Kelsey Cline (So., D/F, Bloomington, Minn.); Kate Flug (So. F, Roseville, Minn.); Paige Haley (So., D/F, Red Wing, Minn.); Maryanne Menefee (Jr., F, Lansing, Mich.); Meghan Lorence (F, Sr., Mounds View, Minn.); Milica McMillen (Jr., D, St. Paul, Minn.); Sidney Peters (RS-Fr., G, Geneva, Ill.); Rachel Ramsey* (Sr., D, Chanhassen, Minn.); Kate Schipper (So., F, Brooklyn Park, Minn.); Shyler Sletta* (Sr., G, Elko New Market, Minn.); Lee Stecklein (So., D, Roseville, Minn.)

University of Minnesota Duluth

Kayla Black (Jr., G, Blyth, Ontario); Brienna Gillanders* (Sr., F, Kyle, Saskatchewan); Zoe Hickel* (Sr., F, Anchorage, Alaska); Katherine McGovern (So., F, Scottsdale, Ariz.); Katerina Mrázová (So., F, Prague, Czech Republic); Lara Stalder (So., F, Luzern, Switzerland); Emma Stauber* (Sr., D, Duluth, Minn.); Tea Villilä* (Sr., D, Hyvinkaa, Finland)

Minnesota State University

Anna-Maria Fiegert (So., D, Landshut, Germany); Elisabeth Hewett (Sr., D, Oak Bluff, Manitoba); Katie Johnson* (Jr., F, Anoka, Minn.); Erin Krichiver* (Sr., G, Chicago, Ill.); Shelby Moteyunas* (Sr., D, Cicero, N.Y.); Kathleen Rogan* (Sr., F, Vancouver, British Columbia)

University of North Dakota

Shelby Amsley-Benzie* (Jr., G, Warroad, Minn.); Annie Chipman (RS-Fr., G, Winnipeg, Manitoba); Andrea Dalen* (Sr., F, Hønefoss, Norway); Meghan Dufault* (Jr., F, Winnipeg, Manitoba); Tanja Eisenschmid* (Jr., D, Kaufbeuren, Germany); Johanna Fällman* (Sr., D, Luleå, Sweden); Kayla Gardner (So., F, Warroad, Minn.); Samantha Hanson* (Jr., D, White Bear Lake, Minn.); Gracen Hirschy (So., D, Fort Wayne, Ind.); Josefine Jakobsen* (Sr., F, Aalborg, Denmark); Leah Jensen* (Jr., F, East Grand Forks, Minn.); Shannon Kaiser* (Jr., F, Crookston, Minn.); Halli Krzyzaniak (So., D, Neepawa, Manitoba); Sam LaShomb* (Jr., D, Inver Grove Heights, Minn.); Layla Marvin* (Jr., F, Warroad, Minn.); Lisa Marvin (So., F, Warroad, Minn.); Amy Menke (So., F, Shakopee, Minn.); Marissa Salo* (So., F, Grand Rapids, Minn.); Lexie Shaw (So., G, Troy, Mich.); Tori Williams* (Sr., D, The Pas, Manitoba)

Ohio State University

Kendall Curtis* (Jr., F, Highlands Ranch, Colo.); Stacy Danczak* (RS-Jr., G, Macedonia, Ohio); Kara Gust* (RS-Sr., D, Orland Park, Ill.); Claudia Kepler (So., F, Verona, Wis.); Taylor Kuehl* (Sr., F, Minnetrista, Minn.); Katie Matheny (So., F, Chesterfield, Mo.); Julia McKinnon* (Jr., F, Kelowna, British Columbia); Melani Moylan* (Jr., F, Mississauga, Ontario); Bryanna Neuwald* (RS-So., D, Oakville, Ontario); Alexa Ranahan (So., D, Salmon Arm, British Columbia); Kari Schmitt* (Sr., D, Canton, Mich.); Sara Schmitt* (Sr., D, Canton, Mich.); Kayla Sullivan* (Sr., F, Flower Mound, Texas)

St. Cloud State University

Hanna Brodt* (Jr., F, Roseville, Minn.); Julie Friend* (Sr., G, Minnetonka, Minn.); Audrey Hanmer* (Sr., D, Wyoming, Minn.); Lauren Hespenheide (So., F, Shakopee, Minn.); Caroline Markström (So., D, Kovland, Sweden); Christa Moody (So., D, Battle Creek, Mich.); Abby Ness* (Sr., F, Roseau, Minn.); Payge Pena (So., F, Maple Ridge, British Columbia); Jenna Redford* (RS-So., D, Soldotna, Alaska); Vanessa Spataro* (Jr., F, Stouffville, Ontario)

University of Wisconsin

Brittany Ammerman* (RS-Sr., F, River Vale, N.J.); Ann-Renée Desbiens (So., G, La Malbaie, Quebec); Kim Drake* (Jr., F, Mosinee, Wis.); Sydney McKibbon (So., F, Oakville, Ontario); Sarah Nurse (So., F, Hamilton, Ontario); Jenny Ryan (So., D, Victor, N.Y.)

The post WCHA announces 2014-15 postseason awards appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

WCHA Offensive Player of the Week
Dani Cameranesi – Sophomore, Forward
University of Minnesota

Cameranesi led Minnesota with three points in a home sweep of Minnesota Duluth that clinched the Gophers’ third straight WCHA regular season title. The sophomore from Plymouth, Minn. registered two assists in Friday’s 7-1 win, before scoring the game-winning goal in Saturday’s 2-0, championship-clinching victory. Cameranesi, who has surpassed her freshman year point total, ranks fourth in the nation with 51 points, third with 32 assists and tied for third with six game-winning goals. In WCHA play, she ranks second with 39 points, 15 goals, 24 assists and a +31 on-ice rating in 25 league games.

Also nominated: Danielle Gagne, Sr., F, Ohio State; Josefine Jakobsen, Sr., F, North Dakota; Abby Ness, Sr., F, St. Cloud State; Kaitlyn Tougas, Jr., F, Bemidji State; Blayre Turnbull, Sr., F, Wisconsin

WCHA Defensive Player of the Week
Shelby Amsley-Benzie – Junior, Goaltender
University of North Dakota

Amsley-Benzie recorded her second pair of back-to-back shutouts, blanking St. Cloud State by scores of 4-0 and 2-0 for a weekend sweep that vaulted North Dakota into third place in the WCHA standings. The junior from Warroad, Minn. made a total of 38 saves between the two games and helped UND go a perfect nine-for-nine on the penalty kill. Amsley-Benzie, who has set UND’s records for career wins (47), career shutouts (12) and single-season blankings (7), leads the nation with a .953 save percentage this season. Since Jan. 1, she has been even better, pacing all NCAA netminders with a .972 save mark, 0.72 goals against average and six shutouts.

Also nominated: Ivana Bilic, Jr., D, Bemidji State; Stacy Danczak, Jr., G, Ohio State; Rachel Ramsey, Sr., D, Minnesota

WCHA Rookie of the Week
Alexis Joyce – Freshman, Defenseman
Bemidji State University

Joyce led Bemidji State with three points as the Beavers pulled within one point of fourth place – and home ice for the WCHA playoffs – following a road sweep at Minnesota State. The freshman from Lakeville, Minn. recorded all of her points Friday, recording a trio of assists to spark a 4-0 Bemidji State victory. She also finished the weekend with a team-best five blocked shots. Joyce leads the Beavers’ freshman class – and all WCHA rookie defensemen – with 16 points on four goals and 12 assists. She also ranks second nationally with 106 blocked shots.

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Minnesota Wild prospect Alex Tuch, a freshman at Boston College, has been named Hockey East’s Pro Ambitions Rookie of the Week for his performance last weekend against No. 17 Vermont.

The Baldwinsville, N.Y. native selected by the Wild in the first round (No. 18 overall) of the 2014 NHL Entry Draft picked up three points (2g, 1a) in the series including the tying goal in Friday’s game with 9.6 seconds remaining in regulation to force overtime. Tuch followed that up on Saturday by scoring the game winner in the Eagles’ 6-5 win over the Catamounts.

Tuch’s teammate Ian McCoshen, a senior from Faribault, Minn. was also recognized by the league as one of its Weekly Top Performers after registering his first two-goal game Saturday, including a power-play goal, to help lift the B.C. over the Vermont.

On the women’s side Hockey East lists Minnetonka’s Erin O’Neil and Elk River’s Jonna Curtis among its Weekly Top Perfomers. O’Neil, a freshman goaltender at Boston University, stopped 27 shots and collected an assist in a 6-1 win over Providence Saturday. Curtis, meanwhile, recorded three points (2g, 1a) to help her New Hampshire team to a three-point weekend at rival Vermont.

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EDINA, Minn. – Feb. 3, 2015 – A pair of goal-scoring freshman and the nation’s hottest goaltender highlight the women’s Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) Players of the Week for games of Jan. 30-Feb. 2, 2015. The honorees are: Wisconsin freshman forward Emily Clark (Offensive Player of the Week), North Dakota junior goaltender Shelby Amsley-Benzie (Defensive Player of the Week), and Minnesota State freshman forward Nicole Schammel (Rookie of the Week).

WCHA Offensive Player of the Week
Emily Clark – Freshman, Forward
University of Wisconsin

Clark, a freshman from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, had a four-point weekend to pace No. 3 Wisconsin to a WCHA road series sweep at Minnesota State. The rookie played a role in all three Badger goals during Friday’s 3-0 victory, scoring twice while assisting on the game-winning score. Clark also had an assist on Jenny Ryan‘s game-tying goal Saturday, sparking Wisconsin’s rally to a 5-1 triumph. She finished the weekend with a +4 rating and nine shots on goal.

Also nominated: Zoe Hickel, Sr. F, Minnesota Duluth; Josefine Jakobsen, Sr., F, North Dakota; Taylor Kuehl, Sr., F, Ohio State; Kathleen Rogan, Sr., F, Minnesota State

WCHA Defensive Player of the Week
Shelby Amsley-Benzie – Junior, Goaltender
University of North Dakota

Amsley-Benzie continued her run of stellar play, backstopping North Dakota to a five-point weekend at No. 6 Minnesota Duluth. The junior from Warroad, Minn. recorded her fourth shutout of the season – third against a nationally-ranked opponent – when she stopped all 30 shots faced Friday in a 1-0 victory. She then followed up her shutout performance with a 25-save effort Saturday, helping UND to a 2-2 tie and shootout victory. North Dakota’s netminder helped her team’s penalty kill go a perfect 6-for-6 on the weekend, stopping 10 shots while short-handed. Amsley-Benzie currently leads the nation with a .949 save percentage. Since Jan. 1, she tops the country with both a .971 save percentage and 0.71 goals against average.

Also nominated: Ann-Renée Desbiens, So., G, Wisconsin

WCHA Rookie of the Week
Nicole Schammel – Freshman, Forward
Minnesota State University

Schammel recorded her first career hat trick and added an assist to lead Minnesota State to a 5-1, Monday night victory over St. Cloud State – the Mavericks’ first WCHA win this season. The freshman from Red Wing, Minn. scored a pair of even-strength goals – including the game-winner – in the first period, before adding a power-play strike and an assist in the second. She becomes the first Maverick to record a hat trick since senior teammate Kathleen Rogan on Jan. 2, 2013, and the first Minnesota State freshman with three goals in a game since Rogan accomplished the feat Oct. 22, 2010. Schammel ranks fourth among WCHA freshman with 17 points in 27 games this season (7 goals, 10 assists).

Also nominated: Kelly Pannek, F, Minnesota

The post WCHA honors Warroad’s Amsley-Benzie, Red Wing’s Schammel appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Menke, a sophomore from Shakopee, Minn., led North Dakota with four points during a weekend sweep of Bemidji State. She tallied three goals and one assist, including her team-leading third game-winning goal of the season in Saturday’s 4-1 victory. After the Beavers opened the second period of Saturday’s game with a 1-0 lead, Menke scored twice in the period, including a shorthanded goal, to put UND on top for good. She then followed that performance with a goal and an assist during Sunday’s 5-1 triumph. Menke finished the weekend with a +4 rating and currently leads UND with nine goals this season.

Also nominated: Hannah Brandt, Jr., F, Minnesota; Zoe Hickel, Sr., F, Minnesota Duluth; Karley Sylvester, Sr., F, Wisconsin

WCHA Defensive Player of the Week
Brigette Lacquette – Senior, Defenseman
University of Minnesota Duluth

Lacquette had a five-point weekend, including a hat trick of power-play goals last Friday night, to help No. 6 Minnesota Duluth sweep a WCHA road series at Minnesota State. The senior from Mallard, Manitoba scored in each period Friday night to tie a UMD record for most power-play goals in a game, while also adding an assist for a four-point night. She also excelled on the defensive side of the ice during a pair of UMD shutouts, anchoring a penalty-kill unit that kept the Mavericks scoreless in six power-play attempts. Currently training with Team Canada until this Friday, Lacquette ranks eighth nationally with five power-play goals and eighth among scoring defenseman with 19 points (6g, 13a).

Also nominated: Shelby Amsley-Benzie, Jr., G, North Dakota; Ann-Renée Desbiens, So., G, Wisconsin; Shyler Sletta, Sr., G, Minnesota

WCHA Rookie of the Week
Annie Pankowski – Freshman, Forward
University of Wisconsin

Pankowski recorded her second career hat trick to give No. 4 Wisconsin a 4-0 victory over No. 7 Clarkson on Sunday. The freshman from Laguna Hills, Calif. broke a scoreless tie against the defending national champions with two second-period goals, before notching a third-period tally that iced the 350th career victory for Badgers’ head coach Mark Johnson. Pankowski finished the weekend with a +3 rating and now has 12 goals, 16 assists and 28 points on the season. She is tied for second nationally among freshmen with an average of 1.12 points per game.

Also nominated: Nina Rodgers, F, Minnesota

The post WCHA honors Shakopee’s Menke, UMD’s Lacquette appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.