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.”

The post Hang The Banner appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

PWHL Minnesota put a bow on its remarkable playoff run by defeating PWHL Boston 3-0 on Wednesday in the deciding game five of the PWHL Finals. Minnesota became the inaugural Walter Cup Champion, with captain Coyne Schofield hoisting the Cup first after the postgame celebration.

The brand-new league officially got going with training camp starting in mid-November last fall. When Coyne Schofield was asked at that time about what she hoped to accomplish this season, she was very clear.

“Win a championship,” Coyne Schofield said. “That’s the goal of any professional athlete, is to bring home a championship trophy to the city.”

Kendall Coyne Schofield is the first champion to lift the Walter Cup. (Photo courtesy of PWHL)

Accomplishment achieved.

Minnesota dominated Boston in the winner-take-all game five in Boston, outshooting them 44-17 in the game, including 19-3 in the third period. Minnesota’s play was suffocating, with no better example than just before Michela Cava’s goal in the third period for a 2-0 lead. Before she buried the wraparound tally, Minnesota skated around the offensive zone with ease, cycling the puck, passing it around and even changing out players on the fly.

Liz Schepers, who had a solid playoff run with four assists, scored her only goal of the season for a 1-0 lead in the second period. Melissa Channell also recorded three assists in the game. The final Minnesota goal of the game? That was all Coyne Schofield, using her speed to get to a loose puck and bury an empty netter with 2:06 to play in regulation. Talk about a storybook ending.

In goal, Nicole Hensley earned her second shutout of the Finals with 17 saves. In four starts in the final series, she made 87 saves on 89 shots. The goaltending tandem with Hensley and Maddie Rooney shined throughout the season but especially in the playoffs. Rooney was a big reason for their success against Toronto in the semifinals, when she put up similar stats with 92 saves on 94 shots across four starts and two shutout victories.

Minnesota coach Ken Klee rotated between the two netminders all season.

“Maddie was an absolute rock star in the first round, and Nicole got in and she started pitching shutouts,” Klee said.

A long, winding road to the championship
What’s perhaps the most intriguing about Minnesota’s championship season are all of the obstacles it overcame to reach the pinnacle. Starting from the beginning, there were rumors that this new women’s hockey league wouldn’t even place a team in Minnesota.

Even before the historic puck drop on PWHL Minnesota’s season – which was bookended with victories at Tsongas Center on Boston’s home ice – the team made a coaching change on Dec. 27. Charlie Burgraff stepped away from the position, and Klee stepped in about a week before games started. Klee had familiarity with some players, like Coyne Schofield, blue liner Lee Stecklein and Hensley, from his work on the national team, but he still had to find a quick learning curve with his new team.

Lee Stecklein added another championship to her extensive hockey resume. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Minnesota started and ended this season well, winning their first three games in early January. They broke an attendance record (at the time) with more than 13,000 fans at Xcel Energy Center for the home opener, a 3-0 victory over Montreal which included a Grace Zumwinkle hat trick and the first of multiple shutouts this season for Rooney.

They rolled along near the top of the league, going 5-0 in March before the international break. But Minnesota could not buy a victory in the final five regular-season games. As Klee put it, they were “finding ways to lose hockey games,” even though he said they played well. But they weren’t necessarily at their best, with normally crisp passes finding skate blades instead, the offense drying up and special teams stats continuing to spiral.

Minnesota had multiple chances to clinch a playoff spot and didn’t. They needed help on the final day of the regular season to get in as the No. 4 seed. Yes, this championship team almost missed the playoffs in what would have been considered a huge collapse down the stretch.

Top-seeded Toronto waited nearly a full day to choose Minnesota as its opponent in the semifinals. So, Minnesota stayed on the road and played the first two games of the best-of-five series in Toronto, getting shut out 4-0 and 2-0 and facing a must-win game at home for game three. Their losing streak reached seven games.

From the brink of elimination to jubliation
Forget a victory; would Minnesota even score a playoff goal? But the turnaround was about to get started. It took an entire team effort from start to finish, Coyne Schofield said.

“You look at the way that we won,” Coyne Schofield said, after winning the championship. “We were almost out. And as soon as we knew we weren’t out, there were times we got down, but we were never out. And that group in there believed that we could be champions.

“We never lost sight of that.”

Minnesota evened the series with two shutouts behind Rooney, including one in double overtime. Then in game five back in Toronto, Minnesota found their offensive game again, and a 4-1 win sent them to the PWHL Finals to face 3-seed Boston.

“There were moments this year, unfortunately, especially at the end, where we were pretty down,” Stecklein said. “But we were able to pull it together. Just really proud of this group.

“Again, it wouldn’t be possible without Kendall Coyne and her leadership.”

Minnesota grabbed a series lead and thought they won the Cup in game four during double overtime. Sophie Jaques put the puck in the net late in the second OT session, sending the Minnesota team and its fans into a celebratory frenzy. But the celebration was short-lived after a review of the play determined goaltender interference as Taylor Heise slid into the crease and made contact with goalie Aerin Frankel.

A little more than a minute later, Alina Muller scored the winner for Boston, leaving Minnesota and fans stunned.

Taylor Heise was the first overall pick at the PWHL Draft last fall. She added PWHL Playoffs MVP and Walter Cup Champion to her list of accolades in her rookie season. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

“I think they robbed us in game four,” Heise said. “And we all felt that very much. So I think to have the feeling of being a champion taken from you is one of the worst things ever. I can’t say that it’s happened to me before.”

So, once Minnesota actually won the Walter Cup on Wednesday, Hensley shared the team’s celebration graphic on X with her comment: “So nice we won it twice.”

Oh, and about those special teams? Minnesota had a league-worst penalty kill (67.2%), allowing 20 goals against. But their PK was a perfect 19-for-19 in the playoffs. Quite the reversal, indeed.

Minnesota wins the Cup
Once the final buzzer sounded in game five, Minnesota players in their white jerseys with purple lettering rushed on the ice for hugs, smiles and maybe even some happy tears. The Walter Cup was presented in a similar fashion that hockey fans see with the Stanley Cup in the NHL, with music and a walk out to the ice.

Coyne Schofield hoisted the Walter Cup first, pumping it into the air with a giant smile as she skated over to her crowd of teammates. A few minutes later, she choked up during an on-ice broadcast interview, emotions that seemed to spill over to her 10-month-old son, Drew, who burst into tears as he was placed in the Cup during the team photo.

Alternate captain Stecklein was the first to get the Cup hand-off from Coyne Schofield, followed by Pannek, the other alternate captain and a Minnesota native. From there, players took turns skating with the Walter Cup: Hensley, Rooney, Sophia Kunin, Cava, Emma Greco, Channell, Denisa Krizova, Clair DeGeoge, Schepers, Natalie Buchbinder and Sydney Brodt, among others.

The other piece of business was honoring Heise, who was voted the recipient of the Ilana Kloss Playoff MVP award. Heise scored five goals in 10 playoff games after scoring four in 19 regular season games. Heise said “it’s awesome” that the PWHL is the only professional women’s hockey league she knows, coming right out of college.

“Not quite sure where I was going to go,” Heise said. “But this league came at an amazing time. … and I’m very honored to be a part of it.”

This championship marks the second time in five years that a Minnesota women’s professional hockey team won it all in their first season in a league. In 2018-19, the Minnesota Whitecaps won the Isobel Cup in their first year in the National Women’s Hockey League (later renamed PHF). That Whitecaps team included Coyne Schofield, Stecklein and Amanda Leveille.

Minnesota players celebrated a championship twice, this one on home ice after what turned out to be an overturned goal for goaltender interference in game four. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

That championship celebration happened after an overtime goal from Stecklein for a victory against the Buffalo Beauts in front of a sold-out crowd at TRIA Rink in St. Paul. Coyne Schofield, Stecklein and Leveille had another chance to celebrate a first in women’s hockey this week, too.

“There’s something very special about being the first to do something in life,” Coyne Schofield said, following game five. “And for us to be the first Walter Cup champions is something that is extremely special that will be part of this league’s legacy forever.

“I’ve been a part of a lot of teams that have won and that haven’t won. For whatever reason, you remember the teams that win.”

Klee shared a perfect example of that with his players before the final game. Klee received a text message from an old teammate, “not somebody that I talk to very often,” Klee said, with a reminder that 30 years ago to the day, Klee won the Calder Cup in the American Hockey League.

Klee told his Minnesota team ‘this is what you want.’

“It’s not about the trophy or a ring or anything like that,” Klee said. “It’s about having the connection with the people that you’re going to have 30 years from now.”

Photo galleries from the PWHL Playoffs: 

Gallery: PWHL Semifinals Game 3, Toronto vs. Minnesota
Gallery: PWHL Finals Game 3, Boston vs. Minnesota
Gallery: PWHL Finals Game 4, Boston vs. Minnesota

The post Cup Champions appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Following the holiday break, Charlie Burggraf stepped away from the team. In his place, former NHL defenseman Ken Klee stepped into the head coach role. Coming from Denver, Klee hopped in the car and made his way to Minnesota last week to get started with his new team.

“The drive was a little sketchy with the blizzard in Nebraska and all that,” Klee said. “But I made it through. It said ‘road closed,’ but I just kept going.”

Klee made it to Minnesota in time for the team’s first post-Christmas practice on Dec. 27, only a week before the team was set to open its inaugural season. Bringing in a new coach at this juncture might present a challenge, right? Well, yes and no, Klee said. As a former national team coach, he’s used to having a week of practice and then jumping in to play for a gold medal right away.

“I’m used to that kind of dynamic and pressure and getting everyone up to speed in a hurry,” Klee said.

Ken Klee, a former NHL defenseman, takes over the PWHL Minnesota team a week before the inaugural season starts in early January 2024. (Photo courtesy of PWHL Minnesota)

Klee, 52, went through the initial interview process for the general manager and head coach positions with PWHL Minnesota. He played 934 games across 14 NHL seasons, nine with the Washington Capitals. He was also the head coach of the USA Women’s National Team, leading them to gold in 2015 and 2016 at the world championships. His coaching experience ranges from coaching kids to the pros.

He already has familiarity with a few of the players. He coached Kendall Coyne Schofield, Lee Stecklein and Nicole Hensley, along with Kelly Pannek on the women’s national teams. Stecklein said Klee is incredible and “one of the most genuine coaches” she’s ever had.

“If anyone’s built to take on a task like this, it’s him,” Stecklein said. “The girls, we know our job is to show up here and take care of what we need to take care of, and that doesn’t change.”

PWHL Minnesota opens its season on Wednesday evening (6 p.m. Central) in Boston. Bally Sports North will broadcast all of Minnesota’s games, or catch them on the league’s YouTube channel. Minnesota’s home opener is set for 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Xcel Energy Center.

“We’re going to be a hard-working team who’s fast and who can make plays and compete every day,” Klee said. “We’ll do that, we’ll be able to fix the Xs and Os and any mistakes that happen.”

Coyne Schofield is a player whom Klee said he’s kept in touch with over the years. In her mind, there’s no doubt that Klee is a good hockey coach, but she said his biggest strength comes in who he is as a person. She added that Klee respects the women as hockey players and people, treating them like professionals. Part of that means that every player will have a role on the team.

“Everyone’s role is important to ensure the success of the team,” Coyne Schofield said. “And he will bring that out in every single player.”

Plenty of Minnesota natives are part of the new PWHL
The Minnesota roster includes 12 natives of the state, including Stecklein and Lake City’s Taylor Heise, the first overall pick in the PWHL’s inaugural draft last summer. Former Gophers forward Grace Zumwinkle is another familiar name on the list.

PWHL Minnesota has talked about playing fast and free as they’ve come together as a group over the past few weeks of training camp and preseason games. As Stecklein noted, the team is a group mixed with hockey veterans – Stecklein and Coyne Schofield, plus goaltender Amanda Leveille were on the NWHL Isobel Cup-winning team in 2019 with the Minnesota Whitecaps, for example – and then other players who are a bit younger and fresh out of college, like Heise and Zumwinkle.

“You’re seeing a ton of skill combined with all of that experience and getting to learn from each other and push each other at practice, and I think that’ll translate well with fans,” Stecklein said.

When training camp opened in mid-November, players talked about how this new league was a long time coming to get to this point. And while this week marks the first games played in the PWHL, don’t mistake them for the first games in women’s professional hockey. That would be leaving out leagues of the past like the Canadian Women’s Hockey League and National Women’s Hockey League (later the Premier Hockey Federation).

Kendall Coyne Schofield (right) skates with the puck during the 2018-19 season with the Minnesota Whitecaps, part of the then-professional women’s hockey league, the NWHL. (MHM file photo)

“There’s been iterations of women’s professional hockey that won’t be forgotten,” Coyne Schofield said. “Those iterations helped get us to where we are today.”

As the puck dropped in Toronto on New Year’s Day to start the inaugural PWHL season, Coyne Schofield hopes that all the players who have come before this league’s players know that they’ve had a hand in the PWHL as well.

For Coyne Schofield, it’s those behind-the-scenes elements that are so important to the product on the ice. That includes having access to a weight room and being provided with nutritional meals. For so long, players juggled so many different things at once, with playing hockey being one of them. Having the resources, nutritional support, medical support and “everything that encompasses being a professional athlete” in place is a big deal, Coyne Schofield said.

“I think that’s what’s been lacking in women’s hockey, is the ability to prepare as a professional,” Coyne Schofield said. “To eat the right way, to train the right way, to have a strength coach, to have an equipment manager, to have multiple athletic trainers, to have a doctor if you need it.

“To have the resources to allow you to be the best that you can be. And I think we’re going to see that in the product this year.”

PWHL Minnesota roster (with hometowns listed for Minnesota natives)

Forwards:

Claire Butorac (Andover, Minn.)

Sophia Kunin (Wayzata, Minn.)

Kelly Pannek (Plymouth, Minn.)

Grace Zumwinkle (Excelsior, Minn.)

Clair DeGeorge

Brooke Bryant

Brittyn Fleming

Liz Schepers (Mound, Minn.)

Abby Boreen

Kendall Coyne

Taylor Heise (Lake City, Minn.)

Denisa Křížová

Susanna Tapani

Michela Cava

*Sydney Brodt (North Oaks, Minn.) Brodt starts the season on long-term IR with a broken foot.

Defensemen:

Lee Stecklein (Roseville, Minn)

Nikki Nightengale (Bloomington, Minn)

Abby Cook

Maggie Flaherty (Lakeville, Minn)

Natalie Buchbinder

Mellissa Channell

Emma Greco

Dominique Kremer

Goaltenders:

Amanda Leveille

Nicole Hensley

Lauren Bench (Eagan, Minn)

Maddie Rooney (Andover, Minn)

The post PWHL: Klee Comes In appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

A tight, physical game was scoreless at the end of regulation. But 6:39 into overtime, Allie Thunstrom gave her team a 1-0 victory and a trip to Boston for the championship game scheduled for the next week.

“Their D pinched and I was able to chip it around and then we ended up on that odd-man rush,” Thunstrom said. “I passed it across to Jonna (Curtis) and then she made a nice play back. And it was something we’ve been looking for all game, and there it was in overtime.”

Of course, that next game never happened because of the pandemic. The National Women’s Hockey League returned to play January in Lake Placid for a bubble-type situation. But positive COVID-19 tests ended play early. The NWHL is back this weekend at the Boston Pride’s home rink for two semifinal games and a championship to finally crown an Isobel Cup champion.

The Whitecaps are the No. 2 seed and will face the 3-seed Connecticut Whale Friday night following the 1-seed Toronto v. 4-seed Boston game at 4 p.m. Central time with the winners meeting at 6 p.m. Central Saturday night.

The games this weekend will be broadcast on NBCSN, marking the first women’s professional hockey league championship games that will air on a major national network in the United States.

Playing in front of a national television audience is an incredible opportunity, Whitecaps captain Winny Brodt Brown acknowledged.

“Just because when I started playing hockey when I was 4 with all the boys, and then growing up playing until I was 17 years old, I never thought that playing on national TV would ever even be a possibility,” said 43-year-old Brodt Brown.  

The Whitecaps practiced regularly for the past couple of weeks. In addition, the coaching staff told the players to keep in shape on their own with individual workouts.

They’re confident everyone is healthy and ready to go. But they’ll also be without two of their top four defensemen on the trip: Sydney Baldwin (1-2—3 in Lake Placid) and Emma Stauber. Amanda Boulier is added to the roster, however.

Stauber will be occupied with another hockey game this weekend. She’s the head coach of the Proctor/Hermantown girls’ hockey team that qualified for the Class 1A girls’ state high school hockey tournament at Xcel Energy Center with quarterfinals Friday and Saturday.

The Whitecaps went 3-1 in the bubble games this winter, losing to the league’s new team this year, Toronto. The Whale and Whitecaps did not face each other, although a game was originally scheduled but wasn’t played because of COVID-19 cases.

Speedster Allie Thunstrom looks to lead the Whitecaps to another NWHL title this weekend in Boston. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Brodt Brown finds it more exciting to play a new opponent.

“Because you just go out there and you just play and you don’t overthink it,” Brodt Brown said. “I think as a player, it’s kind of fun playing an opponent you haven’t played before. Everyone’s going to be playing their best, and it’s going to be an intense game.”

One of the newcomers who showed off her skills this year was defenseman Maddie Rowe. She leads the team, and it’s not close, this season with 19 blocked shots.

“She just is always very positive, brings a lot of energy to our team and gets everyone around her pumped up,” Brodt Brown said.

Nina Rodgers leads the team with 6 points, which includes a pair of power-play goals and four assists. Audra Richards (1-3—4) and Meghan Lorence (0-4—4) follow with four points each. Newcomer Haley Mack left a mark as a rookie in Lake Placid, scored a pair of goals and an assist.

Getting some scoring from a few new names was helpful for the Whitecaps. The pair of Curtis and Thunstrom have been the team’s go-to top scorers since the team joined the NWHL in 2018-19. Thunstrom led the league in goals last season with 24 and was the league’s co-MVP. But this year, Curtis had one goal in four games while Thunstrom hasn’t registered a point.

Whitecaps coach Jack Brodt called it surprising that the team received scoring from all over the roster while top goal scorers Curtis and Thunstrom were shut down in that category.

“But their presence on the ice and the hard work that they do in the defensive zone is very important,” Brodt said. “If we get into a run-and-gun game, we’re probably going to lose that game. We’ve had more success where we’ve kept the scores down rather than elevating the scores.”

Two other goal scorers for the Whitecaps this season? Brooke White-Lancette and Brodt Brown, who have been Whitecaps players from the very beginning.

In goal, Amanda Leveille will take her usual spot with her calm and collective demeanor.

Brodt Brown often refers to Leveille as a “gamer,” and this week called her the team MVP since she’s a competitor in every game.

“With her back there, we’re confident,” Brodt Brown said. “We’ve just got to help her out as much as we can and let her do her thing.”

The post Whitecaps prepare for Whale of a game appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Battling the undefeated Boston Pride, the Whitecaps saw three one-goal leads evaporate. When Boston tied it 3-3 with the goalie pulled, overtime looked to be on the horizon for the NWHL’s two best teams.

Enter Minnesota’s Allie Thunstrom.

“You could just see it in her eyes off the draw, she wanted to take the lead back,” said Whitecaps defenseman Amanda Boulier. “She’s a very motivated and determined player.”

Thunstrom scored with 49.6 seconds left in regulation to put her team back on top for the eventual 4-3 victory Jan. 25 in front of a sold-out TRIA Rink in St. Paul. It ended Boston’s 19-game winning streak to hand it its first loss of the season.

On the game-winner, Thunstrom got the bouncing puck behind the Boston defense and used her speed to get some space in the offensive zone. As she drove up the side of the ice, she fired the puck over goaltender Lovisa Selander’s shoulder.

“That shot usually doesn’t work for me,” Thunstrom said. “So, today I’ll take it.”

Minnesota Whitecaps forward Allie Thunstrom celebrates scoring the game winning goal with less than a minute left to defeat the Boston Pride at at TRIA Rink in St. Paul on Jan 25, 2020. (Collin Nawrocki)

It was a quick response after Boston tied the game for the third time on Jillian Dempsey’s second goal of the game off a rebound with 57.5 seconds left in regulation. Dempsey leads the National Women’s Hockey League with 36 points and 21 assists.

“It went from a not-exciting minute to a very exciting minute,” Thunstrom said. “Just a whole gamut of emotions in that last minute.”

For Thunstrom, it wasn’t just the tying goal that was deflating. A few seconds before that, she and teammate Nicole Schammel had a chance to make it 4-2 on a 2-on-1 opportunity but Thunstrom’s shot hit the post.

It was a much different end result from when the Whitecaps were swept in Boston in October by 3-1 and 5-2 margins. That was still early into the 24-game regular season. In the first meetings, the Whitecaps weren’t playing to the best of their abilities, according to goaltender Amanda Leveille.

“They’re unbelievable on the rush,” Leveille said. “They’ve scored a lot of goals on us on the rush, and I think the difference in this game was we really shut that down. We didn’t let them use their skills to their full potential.”

The Whitecaps never trailed in their latest win over Boston, taking a 1-0 lead on a Jonna Curtis goal and going up 2-1 in the second period on a short-handed goal off a breakaway. Meghan Lorence went 5-hole after getting a nice pass up ice from Schammel.

When the final horn sounded, the Whitecaps could celebrate the win and ending Boston’s perfect season.

“I think any team that’s undefeated, they’re always fun to play against,” Boulier said. “I think for those of us that were on the team last year, we kind of knew what that was like.”

The Whitecaps had a storybook inaugural season in the NWHL when they became the fifth team in the league last season. They started off with a six-game winning streak (before Boston defeated the Whitecaps in St. Paul) on their way to a 12-4 regular-season record capped with winning the Isobel Cup Championship over Buffalo in overtime in front of yet another sold-out crowd in St. Paul.

This year was a little different, starting with a different roster construction with players like Hannah Brandt, Lee Stecklein and Kendall Coyne Schofield joining the PWHPA. With some returning and fresh faces, the Whitecaps started off the year 1-2-1 and then 5-5 in their first 10 games. Since then, they’ve won 8-of-10 games, which included a five-game winning streak.

“I think lately, especially these last few weeks and after the Christmas break, we’re really jelling together,” Thunstrom said. “We’re turning into that team where you don’t know where the goals are going to come from.”

Leveille agreed that midway through the season was a bit of a turning point. They were struggling to score goals, but the scores lately – like 8-2, 7-1, 6-1 and 7-0 victories over Buffalo and Connecticut – really reflect how the Whitecaps are playing in both their defensive and offensive zones, according to Leveille. The Whitecaps are averaging about 4 goals per game with a +38 goal differential.

Those scoring abilities from leaders like Thunstrom and Curtis really help out the team a ton, Leveille said, because it gives them the mindset that they can score goals and that part of the game won’t be a problem.

“Definitely we’ve come a long way from the state of the season, especially when playing a full 60 minutes,” Leveille said. “That’s something that we struggled with early on.”

The Whitecaps had three straight January weekends of home games, outscoring opponents 34-11. Following the All-Star weekend in Boston, the Whitecaps finish the regular-season with a series in Buffalo Feb. 22-23 before the home finale against Connecticut Feb. 29 and March 1.

Minnesota Whitecaps forward Allie Thunstrom (Collin Nawrocki)

Seven Whitecaps will represent Minnesota on the All-Star rosters including Leveille, Boulier, Audra Richards on Team Packer, plus Schammel, Curtis, Lorence and Thunstrom on Team Dempsey. Lorence replaces Sydney Baldwin, who was named to the All-Star Game but is unavailable.

The Whitecaps are led by the speedy Thunstrom, who’s shattered last year’s numbers with her league-leading 19 goals and 27 points through the first 20 games this year. She scored 6 goals and 6 assists in 16 games last season. In addition to the game-winner, Thunstrom scored both Whitecaps goals in the 4-2 loss to Boston the following day. She was named VEDA Player of the Week in the NWHL.

Her linemate Curtis continues to produce for the Whitecaps for a second straight year; she has 11 goals and 25 points in 17 games so far.

Schammel leads the rookies on the team with 10 goals and 24 points in 20 games. Boulier is once again a top defender in the league with her 3 goals and team-high 20 assists in 18 games. Leveille has been the solid backstop in goal, going 13-5-2 with a .932 save percentage and 2.13 goals against average while posting three shutouts. Her latest efforts earned her NWHL Player of the Month honors for January.

It’s her efforts that have helped keep the Whitecaps in such good shape this season. They want to keep building on their recent success, watch video to try and clean up any mistakes, according to Leveille.

“Because we want to keep winning each game,” Leveille said. “And then going into playoffs, we want to be playing our best hockey. We want to be confident.”

The post Whitecaps find their stride appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

NWHL’s second season off to rocky start

It has been a tumultuous couple years for professional women’s hockey, full of highs and, recently, lows.

Yet, lost in the deluge of financial woes for the National Women’s Hockey League (NWHL) is that players are skating with a strong belief in the league’s role in the future of women’s professional hockey. Additionally, the on-ice product remains entertaining and accessible. The latter of which has traditionally been an obstacle to the growth of women’s hockey.

“You have the opportunity to watch the best players in the entire world at your fingertips,” said former Gopher defenseman and Warroad native Gigi Marvin. “Whether it’s on your phone or on YouTube, you have NWHL highlights of Hilary Knight, Brianna Decker, Kacey Bellamy, Meghan Duggan, the list goes on and on.”

The launch of the NWHL in 2015 was a milestone. They framed it with a fitting tagline: “History Begins.” It was the first professional women’s league in North America that paid athletes. Now, just seven weeks into the second season, the league dropped a bombshell on players: The finances are no longer in place to pay athletes their full salary.

“We believe in the product on the ice. We have a great game to display here. The athletes are amazing. It’s something that definitely needs to be in the public eye and we are really proud of what this league has accomplished.” – Gigi Marvin

To read more of this article, and many other great stories like it, click HERE to view the January, 2017 issue of our digital magazine and subscribe to have future issues delivered directly to your email inbox. 

The post Inspiring In Spite of Challenges appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

It was June 20, 2015. Her named was called out 12th, the third of four University of Minnesota juniors. Though there was no lectern or freshly pressed jersey handed off in front of photographers, it was nonetheless significant. Gopher goaltender Amanda Leveille had been drafted by the Buffalo Beauts in the inaugural National Women’s Hockey League (NWHL) draft.

Though the league had yet to play a game, it was historic. It was one of the earliest actions taken by the first North American professional women’s hockey league actually paying athletes. Following Harvard’s Emerance Maschmeyer, Leveille was the second goaltender selected. On April 28, she became the first draft pick to sign a contract in league history.

All that’s left now is the actual season.

“I was really honored,” Leveille says, remembering that day in June. “It was really nice to see that women’s professional hockey was starting up.”

It will be a new experience not just because it’s a professional league or that she will be playing closer to home. The big change may be going from playing on a dynastic team to a franchise that will start the season as underdogs.

For the last four years, she has been backstopping college hockey’s dominant force in Minneapolis. The Gophers won three national titles while she was part of the program, including a 41-0 run her freshman year that was the second of four total national titles in the last five years. The year they didn’t win, they made it to the national championship.

Playing there, she’s rarely had a taste of losing, posting a 98-9-5 record with a .947 save percentage. “I knew the Gophers were a talented team when I came in as a freshman, they had just won a national championship, but I didn’t think we would go 41-0 that season,” she said.

“I remember just looking around the room my freshman season and seeing players like Amanda Kessel, Megan Bozak, Noora Raty, Hannah Brandt and thinking wow these are my teammates, they’re so talented. And then each year [head coach Brad Frost] would recruit very talented players and good people off the ice. We all clicked and the chemistry we had led to a lot of our success.”

The off-ice chemistry proved important to Leveille while she was a part of the program, and it left an impression on her as she started moving toward the next chapter of her career.

“I was a little different than most people on the Gophers,” Leveille said. “I didn’t grow up in-state watching the Gophers like most people did. [Frost] recruited me at the beginning of my senior year of high school. When I came down on an official visit with the team, that’s when I knew it was the perfect fit for me

“The team culture really grabbed me. I wanted to be a part of something the Gophers demonstrated. They’re a very good hockey team, but they also have a high standard of how they want people to act off the ice.”

Those same considerations of team culture and her place in the larger picture came into play as Leveille began determining what her post-collegiate career would hold. “Being a Canadian, I thought I was going to play in the [Canadian Women’s Hockey League (CWHL)] because that had been established, but when I got drafted I felt really honored and thought I should learn more about the program that drafted me.

“[Beauts general manager Ric Seiling] called me and explained a lot to me about the opportunities I would have in Buffalo. That it wouldn’t just be on the ice, but off the ice as well. We talked training and his experience in the NHL, which is something I thought separated him as a coach from other coaches in the NWHL. The location is also ideal for me. It’s right on the border of Canada. My family will be able to watch me play for the first time in four years without any difficulty.”

While getting paid is no doubt alluring — the CWHL does not pay a salary, but does have some compensation — the two leagues are largely split along the border. Canadians play in the CWHL, with a lot of the national team spending the regular season with one of that league’s five clubs. Meanwhile, Americans play in the NWHL (or with the Minnesota Whitecaps), where a majority of the U.S. National team skates during the regular season.

As an Ontario-native, Leveille’s decision wasn’t the obvious route.

“I think both leagues have players that are extremely talented,” she said. “I hope one day the two leagues can join and create something very special for female hockey players. The ’N’ was just a great fit for me at this point.”

That fit will have her battling for the Beauts’ net with U.S. National Team goaltender Brianne McLaughlin, who is returning to Buffalo after having been the team’s starter last season, helping lead them to the Isobel Cup Final where they were swept by the Boston Pride in two close contests.

This season will be a new challenge. The Beauts aren’t the NWHL’s powerhouse, though they have plenty of talent with Kelley Steadman, who was electric in very limited time last season, as well as former Whitecaps defenseman and St. Cloud native Anne Schlepper and former Gopher teammate Megan Bozek. Leveille stands to face some stiff challenges, like the league’s reigning champion Boston Pride, who feature National Team players like Hilary Knight, Meghan Duggan, Brianna Decker and Boston College’s Alex Carpenter. She’ll also face former teammate Amanda Kessel, who is about to become the face of league’s gritty flagship team in New York.

But until those challenges rise, there’s training and the space to be able to step back and appreciate the larger picture.

“When I was a little kid, I used to watch hockey with my dad and dream about playing professional hockey,” said Leveille. “As I grew up I realized that wasn’t a possibility. But now women have the option of playing professional hockey and I think that’s fantastic.

“I want to be a part of a league that will give young girls hope that they can play professional hockey just like their guy peers.”

The post Opportunity Knocks appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Golden Gophers women grab sixth national title

Minneapolis — There is no question that Minnesota is the “State of Hockey” in women’s hockey, too.

The University of Minnesota stopped Harvard 4-1 in front of a full house of 3,400 at Ridder Arena Sunday afternoon, giving the Gophers their third NCAA title in four seasons and their sixth national title overall.

Gophers coach Brad Frost – who joked that he was attempting to launch a tradition by cutting up the hockey nets for mementos for the first time after the game the way it’s done in basketball – says he’s basically a bit mystified by all the success.

Frost, who has a seven-season record of 226-38-17 at Minnesota and a 146-10-7 mark over the past four seasons, took a seat at a postgame news conference next to captains Rachel Ramsey and Rachael Bona and shook his head.

“I don’t know how you explain what’s going on,” he said. “To have these two and Meghan Lorence and Shyler Sletta play in four national championship games in a row and to come away with three of them, I think it just speaks volumes to our team and our program and our players. We are so blessed.”

Minnesota teams have now won 10 of 15 championships since women’s hockey moved under the NCAA umbrella in 2001 – five by the Gophers and five by UMD, in addition to Minnesota winning the American Women’s College Hockey Association title in 2000.

Asked if the Golden Gophers have constructed a dynasty, Ramsey smiled mischievously and said she will leave that up to outsiders.

“I will say, I think what we’ve done is incredibly special and won’t happen again,” she commented.

The Gophers, who finished with a 34-3-4 record, outshot the Crimson 14-6, 11-8 and 8-6 over three periods for a 33-20 edge, got goals from Megan Wolfe, Hannah Brandt, Lorance and Bona to make the final difference appear much more lopsided than the way the game went.

“We had to play probably our most complete game of the year to beat Harvard,” Frost said.

It was 0-0 until late in the first period when Wolfe, a sophomore who has shuttled between forward and defense this season and came into the game with just two goals, ripped in a pass from Dani Cameranesi to make it 1-0.

“That’s her shot,” Bona said.

“What a goal,” Frost commented. “That was a beauty.”

It appeared that goal might be enough because of the standout goaltending supplied by Gophers junior Amanda Leveille, who was relegated to backup status when Minnesota won the title two years ago and suffered a 5-4 loss to Colgate in last season’s title game.

“Tonight you could tell she was confident,” Frost said. “She made a couple of big saves early to allow us to settle in.”

Harvard (27-6-3) did not score until it pulled within 2-1 with just 4:54 remaining in the third period, but Lorence scored less than two minutes later and Bona added an empty-netter to lock things up.

Leveille, who made 34 saves to thwart Wisconsin in the semifinals on Friday, finished with 19 saves Sunday as well as a spot on the all-tournament team.

Brandt, who had a goal and two assists against the Badgers, was selected as the tournament’s most outstanding player, while Maryanne Menefee, Cameranesi and Wolfe were also picked to the team. Harvard defender Sarah Edney, who scored the Crimson goal, was the lone non-Gopher selected.

It didn’t hurt Minnesota’s cause, of course, that the game was played at the home of the Gophers, where they went 17-0-2 to end the season and have gone 130-6-5 in their most recent 141 games there.

Minnesotans, who are typically big supporters of the Gophers men’s team as well as the NHL Wild that coined the “state of hockey” term, dominated the crowd.

“It was a great atmosphere,” Crimson coach Katey Stone said. “It’s a difficult environment to play in, an exciting environment to play in.”

Before departing, Frost took one more stab at defining his team’s success, referring to things like culture and values. But he said he knew going into the final game that this has been an outstanding season for his players.

“Winning,” he added, “is icing on the cake.”

The post A Golden Dynasty appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Leveille’s 34 saves leads Minnesota back to Frozen Four final

Minneapolis — Backstopped by superb goaltending from Amanda Leveille, the Gophers climbed into the national championship game in women’s hockey for the fourth consecutive year Friday.

Minnesota, which won NCAA titles in 2012 and ’13 before falling in the final a year ago, rallied with three goals within 8 minutes, 1 second of the second period and knocked out Wisconsin 3-1 in the women’s Frozen Four opener in front of 3,400 at Ridder Arena.

For long stretches early on, this looked like Wisconsin’s game. The Badgers built a lopsided early advantage in shots on goal, then grabbed a 1-0 lead in the first minute of the second period.

But that was all Leveille, a 5-foot-7 junior from Kingston, Ontario, would yield.

“We had our opportunities,” Badgers coach Mark Johnson said, “but we didn’t capitalize.”

That was never more evident than late in the second period, when Leveille, with Minnesota leading 2-1, left a tantalizing rebound in the right faceoff circle and Wisconsin center Blayre Turnbull got a bead on it.

Leveille, at the opposite corner of the net for the earlier save, had a long way to travel for Turnbull’s quick shot, but she got there.

“A little bit of luck,” Leveille said.

“Somehow, she slid across and made that glove save,” Gophers coach Brad Frost said. “And we were able to score shortly after that to go up 3-1. It could have been 2-2 there and they have the momentum; instead it’s 3-1 and we were able to hang on.”

The Badgers outshot Minnesota 12-7 in the first period and 10-3 in the third and finished with a 35-23 edge.

“In the first, Amanda made two or three saves, just back to back to back, to keep it 0-0,” Frost. “That was obviously huge.”

Brandt says she has seen numerous good games from Leveille, but Friday was near perfection.

“That’s the best game I’ve ever seen her play,” Brandt added.

Wisconsin outshot Minnesota 35-23, including 10-3 in the final period, but Leveille made the key saves to raise her season record to 27-3-3.

“Their elite players, their go-to players, seemed to come up big in the big moments when they needed a boost,” Johnson said.

Goals by Hannah Brandt, Maryanne Menefee and Kelly Pannek erased a 1-0 deficit and allowed Minnesota to extend its season record against Wisconsin to 4-0-1.

None proved bigger than Brandt’s, which came on a rebound 8:53 into the second period to draw Minnesota even.

Until then, the Badgers seemed in control.

“Wisconsin is really, really good,” Frost said. “They’re playing unbelievable hockey, and it took us awhile to get our legs. Once Hannah scored that goal you could just feel the tide turn a little bit.

“They came off the ice and I said, ‘Did you guys hear the crowd?’ They were too involved in the game, but I heard it. It felt like the roof was going to blow off the place. It was just awesome, but it took that goal to really get us going.”

Minnesota, seeded No. 1 entering NCAA play, advanced to the final with a 33-3-4 record while the fourth-seeded Badgers finished with a 29-7-4 mark.

The post Gophers roll over Badgers appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Gophers prevail in shootout as unbeaten streak versus Wisconsin remains intact

With 2:07 remaining in overtime during Sunday’s series finale, the University of Minnesota women’s hockey team received a power play after Wisconsin’s Katrina Zgraja got called for interference. In many cases, the opportunity is a chance to complete a comeback which began in the third period when Hannah Brandt tied the game.

That wasn’t the case Sunday. Instead, the Badgers stopped Minnesota from getting a chance when the Gophers had possession for 75 seconds and stopped a losing streak in the process.

Minnesota’s winning streak against the Badgers turns into an unbeaten streak as the two teams played to a 1-1 tie Sunday at Ridder Arena. The Gophers (19-1-3, 12-1-3-1 WCHA) won a shootout – the first time it has since January 2012 – to take an extra point in an effort which serves as a season-long one in the standings.

Minnesota coach Brad Frost said his Gophers were not at their best.

“We looked sluggish after playing three lines last night and five D,” said Frost, whose team was playing its fourth game in eight days. “I’m proud of our kids with the guts that they showed because (goalie Amanda Leveille) played great. She kept us in there until we could get one and I’m obviously happy with five points on the weekend.”

In out-shooting the Gophers 33-30, Wisconsin (17-3-2, 13-3-2-0 WCHA) takes home more than a tie. The one point earned is important because the Badgers still lead (41-40) in the WCHA standings by that margin. (Minnesota has two games in hand on Wisconsin, however.)

It’s safe to say Sunday’s finale turned into a physical slugfest between two rivals. Neither would let the other push them around either on the ice or on the scoreboard. Two of the top four offenses in women’s hockey were stifled. Despite Wisconsin coach Mark Johnson changing up his lines in an attempt to get more focus and offense compared to Saturday’s 4-1 loss, every shot attempt had to be earned.

The rivalry between the number two and three teams in the country was on full display at Ridder Sunday.

Both goaltenders, Wisconsin’s Ann-Renee Desbiens and Minnesota’s Leveille were unsolvable for nearly forty minutes.

“The defense kept a lot of shots to the outside so it’s kind of deceiving how many shots they got versus the quality of shots,” Leveille said before adding. “I like getting shots so it helped me get into the game.”

Finally, Wisconsin senior Karley Sylvester broke the deadlock with 21.6 seconds remaining in the second period.

The Badgers spent the final five minutes in the offensive zone coming close to getting a goal with Minnesota either blocking shots or Wisconsin being unable to get one in an open net. Just when it looked like the Gophers could escape the period weathering the storm, Sylvester got her second of the weekend.

“She’s doing good,” Johnson said about Sylvester, a Warroad, Minn. native. “She’s been a good four year player for us and like a lot of seniors they want to go out on a high note.”

Brandt tied the game with 6:32 remaining on a dirty goal in front of the net. The junior, who leads the nation with 21 goals, got hers by crashing the net and knocking a rebound over Desbiens with her body. It was reviewed yet ultimately deemed a good goal.

“Obviously things weren’t going our way for scoring goals today,” she said. “I think at that point anything goes and you just try to put the puck in any way you can.”

Both teams had chances in the third period and overtime before the shootout, in which Brandt was the only one of the six shooters to score. Though it appeared Dani Cameranesi may have won the charity contest for the Gophers, the referees ruled Desbiens made the save. That forced the ending on Leveille, whose nonchalant stop on Katy Josephs was the first calm moment.

“For us it’s actually a little more full just because we were the ones that came back and we know we didn’t play our best game and we still came away with a tie against a very good team,” Brandt said. “I think we’ll take a positive out of that, but know that we have to play better for sixty minutes.

“We’re happy with the result I guess.”

Frost mentioned after Saturday’s 4-1 win that no two games in the team’s then-14 game winning streak against Wisconsin have been the same. In a way, he was right.  Minnesota had already completed a 2-1 third-period and overtime comeback against the Badgers in Madison.

Although the Gophers left Sunday with two points in another comeback that wasn’t the team’s best performance, history was not going to repeat itself.

The post Minnesota comes back, ties Badgers appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.