The Frost roster skated onto the ice wearing new purple sweaters with the frosty “F” on the front. Player introductions were first, followed by about a 10-minute ceremony to recognize the inaugural season, 2024 Walter Cup Champion Minnesota team ahead of their season-opening game – an eventual 4-3 overtime loss – against the New York Sirens.

Along with Jayna Hefford, PWHL senior vice president of hockey operations, and Amy Scheer, PWHL senior vice president of business operations, joining the ceremony on the purple carpet, past championship team members were introduced for the celebration, too. Amanda Leveille, Lauren Bench, Nikki Nightengale and Brittyn Fleming touched the Walter Cup as captain Kendall Coyne Schofield skated the trophy to a table where the banner would be raised. Sixteen current Frost players were already on the ice and part of that championship team.

“I think we kind of had a unique run at the championship,” said forward Grace Zumwinkle, Minnesota’s leading scorer last season, with 11 goals and 19 points in 24 games. “And losing the last five games of the season and then coming through. I think, a huge testament to the group of us just flipping the script and turning it around.

“I think that’s something our group is so proud of.”

The championship banner was unveiled and raised during a pregame ceremony before the Minnesota Frost home opener on Dec. 1 at Xcel Energy Center (MHM Photo / Jeff Wegge)

After a highlight video showcased the historic 2024 season, the championship banner was unveiled. Players greeted each other and posed for a photo with the Walter Cup trophy and Walter Cup Champions 2024 banner (white with the team’s color purple trim and lettering). Then the banner was raised toward the rafters above the Minnesota goal, while the announced crowd of 8,022 cheered and waved commemorative rally towels.

“It was really exciting to see some of our teammates be able to come back,” Coyne Schofield said. “Wish everyone could’ve been there for it, of course. But I hope those that weren’t were able to watch from wherever they were.

“But yeah, just a reflection of so many people who made that possible. That’ll always be woven within that banner that’s up in the rafters forever.”

Frost focused on the season ahead, not offseason moves
One of the people instrumental in putting together last year’s championship roster who was not there was former Minnesota general manager Natalie Darwitz. Just days after Minnesota celebrated its Cup-clinching Game 5 victory in Boston, the PWHL announced it had “parted ways” with Darwitz. The league hired Melissa Caruso as Minnesota’s new general manager this summer.

After Darwitz was let go in June, she released a statement to reporters addressing her time with the organization last season: “As the General Manager of PWHL Minnesota, I gave my heart and soul to provide a first-class experience to the players, staff and fans.

“I am very proud of the team and organization that was built and the championship we brought home to this great State of Hockey.”

Training camp last month was the first time many Frost players met with the media in person since the offseason drama surrounding the team. That included Coyne Schofield, the player multiple media outlets reported was one of the drivers behind removing Darwitz.  

“I think the decisions that are made are not the decisions that are made by us players,” Coyne Schofield told the media on the first day of training camp Nov. 14.  “Those were league decisions. We’re here, and we’re here to play hockey. And we’re here to defend our title.

“It’s never fun to see people writing false narratives about you, false statements, and tearing you down when they don’t know the truth. But, you know, I can’t control that. I can control who I am, the way I do things, the way I carry myself, the way I lead this team. And that’s what I can control.”

A new season means a fresh start, and Minnesota’s second-year coach Ken Klee made it clear from day one of camp that his team is focused on moving forward.

“We’re focusing on the future,” Klee said on Nov. 14. “Pro hockey, things happen. It’s some unfortunate things. And some things out of our control. We’re looking forward. Excited to get the season going.”

Lee Stecklein handles the puck during the season opener for the Minnesota Frost. (MHM Photo / Jeff Wegge)

Quick goals bookend the season-opener scoring
Once the puck dropped Sunday, Minnesota didn’t waste much time picking up where it left off. Zumwinkle scored the fastest goal in PWHL history, netting a shot from the slot on a feed from Kelly Pannek only 21 seconds into the game. Zumwinkle was also the first Minnesota player to score in last year’s home opener, scoring a hat trick in a 3-0 victory over Montreal.

The Frost dominated play against the Sirens in the first period Sunday, taking a 2-0 lead and outshooting New York by a five-to-one margin. Coyne Schofield scored the second goal for the Frost, pouncing on a rebound at the goalmouth with two minutes, 14 seconds to play in the first period.

But the Sirens tied the game in the second period. First, it was a power-play goal from Jessie Eldridge about halfway through the period. Two minutes, 58 seconds later, Blaine native Gabby Rosenthal fired a sharp-angle shot top-shelf to tie the score, 2-2.

The Sirens made it three straight goals for a 3-2 lead early in the third period. Sarah Fillier, the 2024 No. 1 overall draft pick, got the puck at neutral ice and tossed a beauty of a cross-ice pass to Alex Carpenter for a goal off the rush.

“When we can get up ice quick and take advantage of odd-man rushes, I think we both want to bury them,” Fillier said.

Minnesota responded to tie the game and force overtime with rookie Dominique Petrie’s first professional goal with 4:13 left in regulation.

Blaine native Gabby Rosenthal (No. 15 in white) celebrates her first goal of the season with the New York Sirens. (MHM Photo / Jeff Wegge)

But as quickly as Zumwinkle scored to start the game, the Sirens finished off overtime by an even quicker margin. With forwards Coyne Schofield and Taylor Heise, plus defenseman Lee Stecklein, on the ice to start the 3-on-3 overtime, Fillier and Carpenter connected again, with Carpenter scoring the winner only 19 seconds into the extra session.

“I saw Filly get the puck, so I was like ‘get going. Get to the net,’” Carpenter said. “Just trying to find a nice seam. She was able to find it, and then get anything on net.”

The Frost earned a point but lost despite outshooting the Sirens 38-20. The Frost also went 0-for-2 on the power play, while the penalty kill went 0-for-1.

“I thought we did a lot of good things,” Klee said. “It was just finishing our chances. That’s kind of the message after that: We played hard, we got a point. And now, we just need to continue to get better.”

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But a Minnesota native stole his thunder once the puck dropped.

Arizona center – and another former Wild player – Nick Bjugstad, who grew up playing hockey in Blaine, Minn., scored his second career hat trick in a 6-0 shutout of the Wild.

“It felt good,” Bjugstad said. “It had been a while since I scored. That first one, it felt pretty good.

“Sometimes it just goes in for you. It was one of those nights.”

Nick Bjugstad scored 13 goals in a Wild sweater a couple of seasons ago. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

For the Wild, it was “one of those nights” in a completely different way as Minnesota was shut out on home ice for the second time in less than a week, dropping their fourth consecutive game to make it eight losses in the past nine games. The loss led to a players-only meeting following the game.

As of Saturday’s game, Bjugstad skated in 659 career NHL games. He has one four-point game to his name, plus five other three-point games. His one other hat trick came with the Florida Panthers on March 6, 2018, against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Bjugstad played in 101 games with the Wild in the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons. He scored 13 goals and 30 points wearing his home-state sweater.

He came into Saturday’s game with only six goals this season, his last tally coming Dec. 4 against Washington. But maybe the dam was just about to burst; he recorded eight shots on goal in the Jan. 11 game against Calgary but came up empty other than a single assist.

“You want to create volume,” Bjugstad said. “I’ve been in situations where I’ve been in some droughts. I just tried to stay even-keeled through all that. You just know eventually it’s going to go in.”

When Bjugstad completed his hat trick in the second period (with an assist from another former Wild player, Jason Zucker), hockey fans tossed a few hats onto the ice for the hometown player. There wasn’t much else to cheer about for the Wild faithful, other than the “t-shirt guy” pumping up the crowd with his hype moves.

As one would expect, the hat trick was all the more special for Bjugstad because it came in a building that he referred to as “the mecca” for him as a kid.

“I don’t really know how to put it in words,” Bjugstad said. “Yeah, it’s a fun one to have, and it’s a fun one to have with this team.”

PWHL Minnesota wraps up its first homestand, gets goals from alternate captains
One Minnesota professional hockey team still sits atop the league standings. That’s despite PWHL Minnesota (3-0-0-1) suffering its first loss of the season with a 3-2 overtime defeat at the hands of PWHL New York (2-1-2-0) on Sunday.

Roseville native and alternate captain Lee Stecklein scored her first goal of the season with a point shot that made it through traffic for a 1-0 lead in the first period. Another Twin Cities native, Kelly Pannek, of Plymouth, added to the lead with her first PWHL goal. Pannek’s tally started with her taking the puck into the zone, sliding it past two colliding New York players to get her all alone with the goaltender before firing her shot for a 2-0 lead in the first intermission.

PWHL Minnesota played its first overtime game on Sunday afternoon, against PWHL New York. (MHM Photo / Heather Rule)

“That was the best first period as a whole that we’ve had in the first, now four games,” Pannek, the other alternate captain, told Bally Sports North during the first intermission.

New York pressured more in the next two periods and eventually tied the game with a pair of power-play goals from Alex Carpenter and Jessie Eldridge, who scored with 10:49 remaining in regulation.

Special teams were a huge factor in the game. Minnesota had an early 5-on-3 advantage for nearly a full two minutes. They also had another power play in the third period with the chance to regain their two-goal lead. The puck possession and offensive zone time were there, but the conversion was not.

“It’s just a little lack of finish,” said Minnesota coach Ken Klee. “We’re getting good looks.

“You get enough good looks, you’re going to score goals.”

Minnesota is 0-for-8 on the power play so far this season, standing as the only team that hasn’t cashed in on the power play.

Minnesota had a couple of prime chances to win the game in the 3-on-3 overtime, too. Taylor Heise just missed popping the puck over the goal line right in front. Then Grace Zumwinkle was hauled down on a scoring chance and was awarded a penalty shot. She couldn’t convert with 1:40 left in OT. Then 41 seconds later, the game was over when New York’s Emma Woods fired a shot that deflected high on the blocker side to beat Minnesota goaltender Maddie Rooney.

New York celebrated handing Minnesota its first loss of the season.

“They obviously came out hot,” Woods said. “But I think we just stayed in the game and battled. They’re a fast team and very skilled. We matched that tonight. It felt good to take them out of the win column for a bit.”

There’s still plenty to be excited about with PWHL Minnesota as the season is now a couple of weeks old. Minnesota has also scored first in all four of its games and has yet to allow a first-period goal this season while scoring six goals of their own in the first frame.

Minnesota still remains the only PWHL to win on home ice thus far. Minnesota leads the PWHL in points with 10; it’s three points for a regulation victory, two points for an overtime victory and one point for an overtime loss.

Minnesota opened the season in Boston before playing their last three at Xcel Energy Center. After a record-breaking crowd for a professional women’s hockey game of 13,316 for the home opener, Minnesota drew 4,707 fans for Wednesday night’s game before another solid 7,951 on Sunday afternoon, closely filling up the lower bowl.

“Every game we’ve played here, we’ve had a fantastic crowd,” said Minnesota captain Kendall Coyne Schofield. “Definitely have the best crowd in the league, that’s for sure. They showed up.”

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