Power Play Club

Goals for a Goal – Gophers up to 58 through 12 games

After a third-straight series netting seven goals, the Gopher Women's Hockey team has lit the lamp 58 through their first twelve games of the season. Ten (10) of those goals have come on the power play!

Help us convert those goals into donations back to the GWH program through the Goals for a Goal program. Register a pledge for every goal scored by the Gophers all the way through the playoffs, with the option to double your pledge for power play conversions. Pledges can be submitted electronically through the online form at z.umn.edu/GoalsForAGoal. Following the conclusion of the season, you will receive an email with your pledge total and giving instructions.

PPC member enrollment still open; Chalk Talk on Nov. 15

Having entered November, membership enrollment to the Power Play Club for the 2025-2026 season continues! Again, your enrollment donations are our biggest source of financial support for the Gopher Women's Hockey team!

Our first member-exclusive Chalk Talk of the year with one of the Gopher coaches is scheduled for Saturday, November 15 at 12:30 p.m., before the team takes on Bemidji State in the second game of the weekend. It will be held in the Ridder Arena Weight Room, on the upstairs level across the hall from the suites and press box.

Locker Sponsor level – We are still accepting enrollments in our top membership tier. Each sponsor's name is posted on a nameplate next to a player's or coach's locker, and donors will have an opportunity to meet with their respective player(s)/coach at our event in January (with pictures and a team meal). A minimum $1,000 donation (per locker) is required, though any amount over and above that is encouraged. If you are interested, either as a renewing or new Locker Sponsor, please contact Bob Milligan at milligandanes@gmail.com as soon as possible but please wait to submit your donation as specific instructions for doing so will be sent out in the next few days.

Basic Membership level – A minimum donation of $125 is required for our basic membership tier, which includes up to two adults and any children at same address. Online registration is preferred at z.umn.edu/PPC25; click the "Make A Gift" button on that page and follow the instructions. To register offline, download the form here and send it in to the listed address, with a check payable to the "University of Minnesota".

Gophers split with #1 Wisconsin, climbing to #2 ranking in polls

Going into the hostile territory of LaBahn Arena in Madison, the Gopher Women's Hockey team stunned the top-ranked Wisconsin Badgers with a 5-1 victory on Friday, breaking a ten-game Border Battle losing streak and getting their first road win in the rivalry since December 2021. However, Wisconsin responded with a 7-2 win in the rematch on Saturday for the series split. Still, Minnesota's victory in the weekend opener and other results in the WCHA (more on those below) raised the Gophers' ranking in both national polls to #2 entering their bye week.

Hannah Clark's performance between the pipes on Friday was a key element to the team's win; Clark made 40 saves in total, including 23 in the second period, yielding only a first-period goal to Wisconsin's Cassie Hall. Trailing by only one, Josefin Bouveng put home a pass from Abbey Murphy with 1:10 left in the second stanza to send the game to the intermission tied 1-1. The Gophers then netted four goals in a 6-minute, 42-second span of the third frame; Sienna D'Alessandro tallied her first collegiate goal on a rebound, Sydney Morrow scored on a breakaway off a pass from Tereza Plosová, Bouveng tallied her second goal of the contest on a power play, and Murphy lit the lamp 29 seconds later. That was all for Badger netminder Ava McNaughton, who left the game with 29 saves; Rhyah Stewart entered for the final 11 minutes and stopped 4 shots.

Wisconsin got off to a quick start on Saturday as Maggie Scannell lit the lamp 14 seconds into the contest and Kirsten Simms made it 2-0 less than 2½ minutes later. Nelli Laitinen pulled the Gophers within one later in the first period, netting a short-handed goal. But the Badgers tallied the next three goals, taking a 5-1 lead in the third stanza. Murphy found the back of the net on a power play to make it 5-2, but Wisconsin added two more goals for the final margin. The goaltending situation was reversed; McNaughton yielded only the two goals while stopping 19 shots, but Clark was pulled after the sixth Badger goal, having stopped 23 shots, and Layla Hemp finished up for the Gophers with 10 saves. Five different Badgers each tallied three points, with Kelly Gorbatenko recording two goals & an assist and Simms & Caroline Harvey each adding a goal and two helpers.

For the series, Laitinen led the Gophers with 4 points, adding three assists to her goal. Bouveng (2g, 1a), Murphy (2g, 1a), and Ava Lindsay (3a) each recorded 3 points.

Murphy moves into tie for 7th in GWH career scoring – With her three-point performance in Madison, Gopher sixth-year forward Abbey Murphy moved into a tie with Kelly Stephens for seventh in Minnesota Women's Hockey's all-time career scoring with 219 points apiece. Murphy's assist on Saturday was the 100th of her career to go along with her 119 goals, and she now sits eight points behind Taylor Heise (227) for 6th place.

Four current Gophers, 5 alumnae named to national teams for competitions running today through Saturday (Nov. 5-8, 2025)

Four members of the current Gopher Women's Hockey team and five Minnesota alumnae have been named to the national team rosters of their respective countries for events starting today and running through Saturday.

Six players at Canada-U.S. Rivalry Series – The Rivalry Series between the national teams of Canada and the United States enters a new hockey season in preparation for the 2026 Olympic Winter Games, starting with contests this Thursday, November 6 at 6 p.m. CT at Rocket Arena in Cleveland, OH, and Saturday, November 8 at 5 p.m. CT at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, NY. As we shared two weeks ago, Abbey Murphy and alums Taylor Heise, Kelly Pannek, Lee Stecklein, and Grace Zumwinkle were named to the U.S. National Team roster. Meanwhile, Gopher sophomore defender Chloe Primerano has been training with Hockey Canada and was officially announced on Monday as a member of their team for this week's games. Both contests will be televised on NHL Network in the U.S.

Bouveng, Plosová, Mlýnková at Women's Euro Hockey Tour – Meanwhile, three Gopher representatives will be participating in the Women's Euro Hockey Tour's Lidl Hockey Games, which start today and run through Saturday (Nov. 5-8) in Ängelholm, Sweden. Freshman Tereza Plosová and alumna Natálie Mlýnková were named to Czechia's National Team roster on October 17, while senior forward Josefin Bouveng was announced as a member of the host Swedish team last week. The four-team event also includes Finland & Switzerland, with the following game schedule:

Finland vs. Switzerland – today (Nov. 5) at 8:00 a.m. U.S. Central
Czechia vs. Sweden – today (Nov. 5) at 12:00 p.m. U.S. Central
Czechia vs. Finland – Friday, Nov. 7 at 7:00 a.m. U.S. Central
Sweden vs. Switzerland – Friday, Nov. 7 at 11:00 a.m. U.S. Central
Czechia vs. Switzerland – Saturday, Nov. 8 at 4:30 a.m. U.S. Central
Finland vs. Sweden – Saturday, Nov. 8 at 9:00 a.m. U.S. Central

Other international competitions – Two other events are also occurring today through Saturday. Germany is hosting the Deutschland Cup tournament in the city of Landshut, with the national teams of France, Hungary, and Slovakia participating. Meanwhile, the IIHF Women's Asia Championship is taking place in Kazakhstan, including the teams from China, Japan, and South Korea.

Around the WCHA...

Buckeyes get 5-point sweep of Tommies – Whitney Horton and Chloe Boreen each recorded a goal & an assist as St. Thomas took a 2-1 lead on Ohio State on Friday with 7:01 to play, but a Tommies penalty led to Hilda Svensson's extra-attacker, power-play goal for OSU – her second of the game – with 2:14 remaining to force overtime, and Sanni Vanhanen lit the lamp for the Buckeyes 1:37 into the extra period for the 3-2 victory. Joy Dunne erupted for 4 goals and 2 assists in Saturday's rematch and Taylor Kressin posted a 20-save clean sheet as Ohio State completed the sweep with an 8-0 win.

Bulldogs earn road sweep of Huskies – After St. Cloud State netted the first goal of both games, Minnesota Duluth battled back for 5-3 and 3-2 victories behind a combined 63-save performance by freshman netminder Sophia Villanueva and three goals & an assist from Thea Johansson. Danielle Burgen added a goal and two helpers and Rae Mayer lit the lamp twice for UMD. Grace Wolfe, Raili Mustonen, and Sofianna Sundelin each tallied a goal & an assist for SCSU.

Mavericks get tie, win against Beavers – Bemidji State earned a standings point when they played Minnesota State to a 2-2 tie on Friday, getting the equalizing power-play goal from Isa Goettl with 4:24 left in regulation, but Taylor Otremba netted the only goal of a three-round shootout to give MSU the bonus point. Kaydence Roeske posted a 25-save clean sheet in the rematch and Kamryn Van Batavia & Mercury Bischoff lit the lamp for a 2-0 Mavericks victory; Bischoff's goal was her second of the weekend. Ava Hills made a combined 67 saves for the Beavers.

Upcoming games – Only two WCHA teams are in action this week as Bemidji State hosts St. Thomas in matinee games Friday and Saturday.

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