The Penalty Box Post - Wednesday, January 21, 2026

Directly view the January 21, 2026 Penalty Box Post Newsletter


Brunch with the Coaches – Saturday, January 31, 2026

The Power Play Club's annual Brunch with the Coaches with be taking place on Saturday, January 31 at 9:45 a.m. as we welcome University of Wisconsin women's hockey head coach Mark Johnson and Minnesota head coach Brad Frost.  Coach Johnson has led the Badgers since 2002 and also served as the head coach of Team USA for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver.

This is a separate-fee event, with tickets running $30 per person for PPC members and $40 per person for non-members, and registrations must be received by this coming Sunday, January 25.  At this time, we are not able to accept credit card payments.  Instead, please download the registration form here, fill it out, and submit it with a check made out to the Power Play Club to the address indicated, or pick up and fill one out in-person – with payment – at the PPC table at Ridder Arena this Saturday.

 

2026 GWH Senior Celebration – Saturday, February 28
Club Cambria at Huntington Bank Stadium

RSVPs are being accepted for the 2026 Gopher Women's Hockey Senior Celebration, recognizing the nine seniors and grad students on the team.  The event is scheduled for Saturday, February 28, at Club Cambria inside Huntington Bank Stadium following the Gophers' WCHA First Round / Quarterfinal game that afternoon, with a social hour starting at roughly 5:30 p.m., followed by the dinner banquet & program at 6:00 p.m..

Tickets for the event are $50 per person, though members of the team & staff plus the immediate family members of the honorees are exempt.  RSVPs can be submitted to Jess Scott at jascott@umn.edu with a requested February 1 deadline, and payment will be collected at the event's check-in table.

 

Goals for a Goal – Gophers' January scoring blitz continues

As the official booster club for the University of Minnesota Women's Hockey program, the primary objective of the Power Play Club is to provide financial support, and one method of doing that is partnering with the Golden Gopher Fund in the Goals for a Goal pledge-per-goal program!

The Maroon & Gold continued their January scoring blitz this past weekend, lighting the lamp another 16 times to push their season-to-date total to 133 goals.  Twenty-one (21) of those have come on the power play!  Register a pledge for every goal tallied through the playoffs, with the option to double your pledge for power play conversions, 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.  Thanks as always for your support of this effort!!

#3/3 Minnesota Golden Gophers (20-4-0, 14-4-0-0 WCHA)
vs. #15/14 St. Cloud State Univ. Huskies (8-14-2, 4-12-2-1 WCHA)

Friday, January 23 at 6:00 p.m.
Herb Brooks National Hockey Center – St. Cloud

Saturday, January 24 at 2:00 p.m. – Ridder Arena

Remaining undefeated in 2026 and extending their winning streak to eight games, the Gopher Women's Hockey team looks to keep things rolling with a home-and-home series against the St. Cloud State University Huskies.  The action begins at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center in St. Cloud this Friday, January 23, at 6:00 p.m. before continuing at Ridder Arena on Saturday, January 24, at 2:00 p.m.

Game coverage –

 
Last time against St. Cloud State – A five-point performance (2 goals, 3 assists) by Sarah Paul, three goals by Abbey Murphy, and a combined 28 saves over four periods of action by Hannah Clark led the Gopher Women's Hockey team to a series sweep of St. Cloud State in October, 4-1 at Ridder Arena and 5-3 in St. Cloud.

Following a scoreless first period to open the weekend, Josefin Bouveng lit the lamp off a pass from Paul, but Maria Mikaelyan evened the score for the Huskies later in the second.  But Murphy scored on a ricochet off of SCSU netminder Jojo Chobak, Paul doubled the Gopher lead just 41 seconds later, and Tereza Plosová added a late empty-netter.

In the rematch, Laura Zimmermann lit the lamp on a deflected shot to give the Huskies a 1-0 first-intermission lead despite a 17-7 shots-on-goal advantage for Minnesota.  Chloe Primerano evened the score 1:46 into the second period and Murphy converted a power play 9½ minutes later to put the Gophers in the lead, but SCSU got their own power-play goal when another shot deflected off a Gopher, off of Mikaelyan's foot, and into the net to knot the score again.  Murphy's third goal of the series put Minnesota back in the lead, but Avery Farrell tallied for the Huskies with 31.1 seconds left in the 2nd to send the contest to the break tied up 3-3.  But Paul lit the lamp for the Gophers on a spin-o-rama 55 seconds into period 3, Emma Kreisz added an insurance goal just over 4 minutes after that, and Clark made that stand with 9 saves over a 20-minute relief appearance.  Layla Hemp had started for the Gophers and made 14 saves before being relieved.  Huskies starting goaltender Emilia Kyrkkö stopped 30 shots over the first 32 minutes of the contest but exited the game following a collision; Chobak replaced her and made another 13 saves.

In addition to her goal in the opener, Bouveng was also credited with two assists to finish with a 3-point series.  Gracie Graham, Madison Kaiser, and Ava Lindsay each also dished out two assists.

Analyzing the Huskies – Despite their sub-.500 record at 8-14-2 overall, St. Cloud State is nationally ranked in both major polls.  Following a strong series last weekend (more on that momentarily), they improved to sixth in the WCHA standings but still remain with a 4-12-2-1 (1-3 in OT) conference record under first-year head coach Mira Jalosuo.

Junior Sofianna Sundelin (#34) leads the Huskies in total scoring and goals, lighting the lamp 10 times and dishing out 8 assists for 18 points.  Senior Avery Farrell (#16) and junior Alice Sauriol (#4) are tied for second in scoring with 16 points apiece; Farrell has 6 goals and 10 assists, while Sauriol is SCSU's co-leader for assists with 11 while finding the back of the net 5 times herself.  Freshman Maria Mikaelyan (#44) has 15 points on 9 goals & 6 assists, while graduate defender Grace Wolfe (#8) is tied with Sauriol with 11 assists and has tallied 3 goals for 14 points.

Sophomore Emilia Kyrkkö (#42) and graduate player Jojo Chobak (#29) have mainly split time between the pipes for St. Cloud State.  Kyrkkö has a 6-4-2 record in her 12 starts, posting 3 shutouts, a 2.02 goals-against average, and a .939 save percentage.  Chobak has not been as successful, going 2-8-0 with one no-decision in her 11 starts; one of her two wins came by shutout but she has a 3.81 GAA and an .889 SV%.  Redshirt sophomore Paige Hoogendam (#31) made two appearances (one start, one in relief) in October for which she was goaltender of record, losing both; in 98 combined minutes of action, she's yielded 6 goals on 40 shots (3.68 GAA, .850 SV%).  Senior Hali Lawrence (#56) transferred to SCSU after spending the previous two years at Post University, but she has yet to play for the Huskies.

Last action – SCSU takes 5 points from UMD – Trailing Minnesota Duluth 2-0 after the first two periods of action last Friday, with both goals scored by Rae Mayer, St. Cloud State battled back as Avery Farrell tallied with 4:15 left in regulation and Maélie Pion knotted the score 79 seconds later; 39 total saves by Emilia Kyrkkö, including 7 in overtime, preserved a 2-2 tie.  The Huskies then earned the standings point for winning the subsequent shootout as Grace Wolfe was the only shooter to light the lamp in six rounds.  Caitlin Kraemer put the Bulldogs up 1-0 in the rematch but Laura Zimmermann tied things up early in the second period and Maria Mikaelyan found the back of the net twice to give the Huskies a 3-1 lead.  UMD pulled goaltender Ève Gascon early and SCSU capitalized as Alice Sauriol found an empty net.  Thea Johansson pulled the Bulldogs back within two with 55 seconds to play, but Farrell added another empty-netter and Kyrkkö finished with another 37 saves for a 5-2 Huskies victory.  With 76 combined stops and a .950 save percentage in the series, Kyrkkö was named WCHA Goaltender of the Week.

Gophers continue offensive outburst in sweep of Bemidji State

The Gopher Women's Hockey team continued to roll in 2026, completing a WCHA series sweep on the road at Bemidji State.  Following a 5-3 victory over the Beavers on Friday, the Gophers hit double-digit goals in a game for the third-straight weekend in an 11-1 rout on Saturday.  With the wins, Minnesota swept the four-game season series over BSU.

Five different Gophers found the back of the net and 12 in total got on the scoresheet in Friday's contest.  Abbey Murphy & Ava Lindsay lit the lamp only 14 seconds apart in the first period, and Kendra Distad, Bella Fanale & Sydney Morrow (PP) pushed Minnesota's lead to 5-0 at the second intermission.  The Beavers responded with power-play goals by Hailey Armstrong & Izy Fairchild and an unassisted tally by Shelby Sandberg; however, they ran out of time to get any closer.  Hannah Clark finished with 16 saves, while BSU's Kaitlin Groess stopped 34 shots.  With assists on Fanale's goal, Murphy was the only Gopher to record multiple points in the contest and Josefin Bouveng extended her scoring streak to 22 games. 

Murphy, Bouveng (PP), Lindsay, and Emma Kreisz netted first-period goals to open the rematch.  After Murphy tallied her second goal of the game 3 minutes into the second stanza, Lindsay followed it with two more of her own to complete her first career hat trick.  Distad extended the Gopher lead just 19 seconds after that, and Murphy lit the lamp again to complete her third hat trick in as many weekends, putting Minnesota up 9-0 after 40 minutes.  Layla Hemp couldn't maintain the shutout as BSU's Morgan Smith scored on a short-handed breakaway in the third period, but Murphy netted her career-high fourth goal of the contest on a power play, then picked up her 6th point of the game with an assist on Fanale's second goal of the series.  Bouveng's scoring streak reached 23 games on her goal & an assist.  Hemp finished with 24 saves, while Groess and Ava Hills combined for 38 saves for the Beavers.

Fanale earned two assists to go with her two goals on the weekend, joining Lindsay with four points apiece.  Seven different Gophers each tallied 3 points as Distad added an assist to her two goals, Kreisz joined Bouveng with her goal & two helpers, and Molly Jordan, Nelli Laitinen, Jamie Nelson, and Chloe Primerano each recorded three assists.

Murphy earns third-straight WCHA Forward of the Week award,
becomes second-highest GWH all-time career scorer

With a third hat trick in as many weekends and a career-high four-goal game on Saturday, Gopher co-captain Abbey Murphy claimed a third-straight WCHA Forward of the Week award, her fifth of the 2025-2026 season and the twelfth of her career.  For the series against Bemidji State, she tallied eight points (5g, 3a) with a +5 plus-minus rating.

The Gopher Women's Hockey record book went through several updates over the weekend as Murphy added to her scoring.  Her goal and assist on Friday brought her to 247 career points to put her third all-time in Minnesota history, surpassing Natalie Darwitz (246).  Her first two points on Saturday pushed her into 2nd, past Amanda Kessel (248).  Her second goal in that contest was career point #250, and she finished the weekend at 253 on 136 goals and 117 assists.  (Note that Murphy remains 33 points behind all-time leader Hannah Brandt's 286.)

With 33 goals to-date in 2025-2026, Murphy has already reached her personal single-season high, tying the mark she hit each of the last two full years (and the 8th-best mark in Gopher history).  However, we continue to watch the career record list as she now trails Nadine Muzerall as the most prolific Gopher goal scorer by only three, 139 to 136.

GWH Olympians set to depart for 2026 Winter Games next week

We again send wishes of good luck to all our Gopher Women's Hockey representatives participating in the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Milan & Cortina, Italy.

Current Gophers (as pictured above) Tereza Plosová (Czechia), Josefin Bouveng (Sweden), Nelli Laitinen (Finland), and Abbey Murphy (USA) were recognized at the Gopher Men's Basketball game last Tuesday, January 13.  The quartet will be departing to join their respective national teams following this coming weekend's WCHA series against St. Cloud State, and fans attending Saturday's contest at Ridder Arena are encouraged to stop by the tables on the concourse to leave them a message.

We similarly give a shout-out to Gopher alumnae Taylor Heise (USA), Natálie Mlýnková (Czechia), Kelly Pannek (USA), Lee Stecklein (USA), and Grace Zumwinkle (USA).  All five are playing in the PWHL, which has games scheduled through next Wednesday, January 28, before taking an Olympic break (resuming February 26).

The four Olympic teams with Gophers on their rosters will all be in action on the women's hockey tournament's opening day, Thursday, February 5.  Sweden opens against Germany in Group B at 5:10 a.m. U.S. Central Time that morning.  In Group A, Team USA will play Czechia at 9:40 a.m. Central, and Finland will face Canada at 2:10 p.m. Central.

 
Around the WCHA...

All-session tickets on sale for Final Faceoff, March 5 & 7 – All-session ticket packages for the 2026 Kwik Trip WCHA Final Faceoff, being played at Lee & Penny Anderson Arena in St. Paul, are on sale now!  The semifinals will be held at 4:00 and 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 5, and the championship is set for 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 7.  Reserved seating in the upper-level Capital Club section is $50 per ticket.  General admission seating in the main bowl is $40 for adults, $35 for youth, seniors & students, and $25 (per ticket) for groups of 10 or more.  Prices include facility & parking fees.

Tickets can be purchased here from the University of St. Thomas, and more information is available on the tournament's Information Center page.  Single-session tickets will go on sale on Monday, February 1, at 10 a.m.

Badgers sweep Tommies in St. Paul – Lacey Eden scored twice in each game for a four-goal weekend, Laila Edwards dished out four helpers, Cassie Hall tallied 2 goals & an assist on Saturday, and Ava McNaughton stopped a combined 36 of 38 shots as Wisconsin went on the road and swept St. Thomas by matching 5-1 scores.  Chloe Boreen & Rylie Bartz lit the lamp for UST and Julia Minotti made a combined 68 saves.

Buckeyes earn road sweep of Mavericks – Joy Dunne's first goal on Friday broke a 3-3 tie in the second period but she was just getting started, lighting the lamp 3 more times for a four-goal performance to lead Ohio State to a 7-4 victory over Minnesota State in Mankato; Jocelyn Amos added 2 goals & 2 assists for OSU, while Mercury Bischoff found the back of the net twice for MSU.  Dunne tallied another goal & an assist Saturday, Hilda Svensson added a goal to her three Friday assists, and Taylor Kressin stopped 16 of 17 shots in a 4-1 OSU win and the weekend sweep; Taylor Otremba scored for the Mavericks.

Looking ahead – In two other Friday-Saturday series, St. Thomas heads to Columbus to face Ohio State and Minnesota State hosts Minnesota Duluth in Mankato.  Meanwhile, Bemidji State visits Wisconsin in a Saturday-Sunday series, with Sunday's contest getting an early 11 a.m. start.

Standings:
1. Wisconsin – 47 points (.870 pts%), 15-1-2-1, 1-0 in OT (21-1-2 overall)
2. Ohio State – 44 points (.815 pts%), 15-3-0-0, 1-0 in OT (21-3-0 overall)
3. Minnesota – 42 points (.778 pts%), 14-4-0-0, 0-0 in OT (20-4-0 overall)
4. Minn. Duluth – 27 points (.500 pts%), 8-8-2-1, 0-0 in OT (12-10-2 overall)
5. Minnesota State – 17 points (.315 pts%), 5-12-1-1, 1-1 in OT (11-12-1 overall)
6. St. Cloud State – 17 points (.315 pts%), 4-12-2-1, 1-3 in OT (8-14-2 overall)
7. St. Thomas – 16 points (.296 pts%), 5-13-0-0, 2-3 in OT (10-14-0 overall)
8. Bemidji State – 6 points (.111 pts%), 2-15-1-0, 1-0 in OT (5-16-3 overall)

From Penalty Box Quick Hit - January 16, 2026:

Clark named to National Goalie of the Year watch list

We congratulate Gopher Women's Hockey sophomore netminder Hannah Clark upon being named to the Division I Women's National Goalie of the Year watch list by the Hockey Commissioners Association on Wednesday.

In 16 appearances this season, including 15 starts and one relief showing, Clark has a 13-3-0 record with 3 shutouts, an .818 winning percentage (4th nationally), a .929 save percentage (17th), and a 1.85 goals-against average (12th).

The watch list is comprised of 31 goaltenders with a goals-against average of 2.20 or lower and/or a save percentage of .923 or higher.  A committee of voters will pare the list down within the next two weeks and then choose the winner who will be announced in March during the NCAA Frozen Four.

Gopher recruits shining brightly at IIHF U18 Women's Worlds;
USA, Canada, Czechia, Sweden advance to tomorrow's semifinals

We send a round of shout-outs to the five members of the Gopher Women's Hockey freshman class of 2026-2027 who are playing at the IIHF U18 Women's World Championship currently occurring in Nova Scotia, Canada.

Through the preliminary round (3 games) and yesterday's quarterfinals, the five have posted the following stats:

  • Sloane Hartmetz (D - USA) – 1g, 2a, +4 rating

  • Maddie McCullough (F - CAN) – 2g, 3a, +4 rating

  • Adrianna Milani (F - CAN) – 8g, 3a, +11 rating

  • Rachel Piggott (F - CAN) – 5g, 4a, +15 rating

  • Katya Sander (D - USA) – 3a, +10 rating


Teams USA and Canada have been dominant in the tournament, finishing atop Groups B and A (respectively) with perfect 3-0 records.  Czechia finished second in Group B to the Americans, winning their preliminary round contests against Slovakia & Finland, while Sweden took the second spot in Group A with wins over Switzerland & Hungary.  Those four top teams each won their quarterfinals yesterday – USA over Hungary (9-0), Canada over Finland (12-0), Czechia over Switzerland (2-1), and Sweden over Slovakia (7-2).

The semifinals are set for tomorrow – Saturday, Jan. 17 – with Team USA playing Sweden at 4 p.m. Atlantic Time / 2 p.m. Central, and Canada taking on Czechia at 7:30 p.m. AT / 5:30 p.m. CT.  The Bronze and Gold Medal Games are scheduled for Sunday, January 18.

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