The Penalty Box Post
Wednesday, September 28th
Exhibition Special!!
Minnesota Golden Gophers vs. Minnesota Whitecaps
Friday, September 30 at 6:00 p.m. CT
Ridder Arena
The Gopher Women's Hockey team gets another exhibition tune-up match when it hosts the Minnesota Whitecaps of the Premier Hockey Federation. The two local squads will square off at Ridder Arena on Friday, September 30 at 6:00 p.m. at Ridder Arena.
FREE ADMISSION!! Friday's game features free admission with no ticketing. We hope to see many of you there!!
TRAFFIC ALERT!! Please note that the University of Minnesota Homecoming Parade is also scheduled for Friday evening, Sept. 30, along University Avenue. Please allow time for additional vehicular and pedestrian traffic on campus, both before and after the GWH game.
Live streaming of the game will be available on the BTN+ subscription service.
Last time against the Whitecaps – The Gophers earned a come-from-behind 5-1 victory over the 'Caps at Ridder Arena in September 2019. Jonna Curtis put the "visitors" up with a power-play tally, beating the horn at the end of the first period, but Grace Zumwinkle, Taylor Heise, and Amy Potomak responded with second-period goals and Sydney Shearen and Heise lit in the lamp in the third. While an exhibition for the Gophers, it was a very early preseason game for the Whitecaps, who were outshot 57-12. Gopher alumna Amanda Leveille made 52 saves, while Gophers Sydney Scobee, Makayla Pahl, and Alex Gulstene combined for 11 stops.
About the Whitecaps – As an organization, the Minnesota Whitecaps are entering their 19th year of existence. While they've seen many changes over that time, including joining the then-National Women's Hockey League (now the Premier Hockey Federation) in 2018, several big adjustments have happened this past off-season.
Jack Brodt, the team's founder and general manager, announced his retirement from coaching the team on May 16 after 18 seasons on the bench, joining the front office of NLTT Hockey – the group owning both the Whitecaps and the Buffalo Beauts – as the Assistant Director of Hockey Operations. At the end of July, the team announced its move across town to a new home as the primary tenant of the Richfield Ice Arena, leaving TRIA Rink after four years. That was followed by more retirement news as the Whitecaps shared on Twitter in August that charter members Winny Brodt-Brown and Brooke White-Lancette were hanging up their skates after 18 years on the squad. And while Gopher alumna Ronda (Curtin) Engelhardt remains head coach of the Whitecaps with a two-year contract extension, she's now doing it in a solo role while also being hired as a North American Amateur Scout for the NHL's Nashville Predators. On top of all of that, Allie Thunstrom – last year's top goal scorer for the 'Caps – signed with the Boston Pride for the new season.
Player signing information has been under the radar the past two months. Gopher alumnae Sydney Baldwin, Olivia Knowles, Amanda Leveille, and Patti Marshall were confirmed among the Whitecaps signees for 2022-2023 as of July 31. Other known signees include WCHA alumnae Stephanie Anderson (BSU), Sydney Brodt (UMD), Ashleigh Brykaliuk (UMD), Brittyn Fleming (MSU), Anna Klein (UMD), Sidney Morin (UMD), and Liz Schepers (OSU). Jonna Curtis returns after posting a team-high 24 points on 9 goals and 15 assists in 20 regular-season games last year, while international players Denisa Křížová and Ronja Mogren are joining the squad.
The regular season for the Whitecaps begins on the road at Toronto on November 5 & 6 before they return to open their new home rink in Richfield against Boston on November 18 & 19.
Gophers cruise in opening exhibition – Already with a second-period tally, Grace Zumwinkle netted two short-handed goals just 20 seconds apart in the third period to record a hat trick, punctuating the Gophers' 13-0 rout of the University of Manitoba Bisons at Ridder Arena last Saturday afternoon. Abigail Boreen added two goals and an assist and Gracie Ostertag dished out 3 helpers. Emily Zumwinkle, Josefin Bouveng, Audrey Wethington, Emma Conner, Abbey Murphy, Crystalyn Hengler, Catie Skaja, and Madeline Wethington also all lit the lamp, the team put 65 shots on goal, and the three Gopher goaltenders – Makayla Pahl, Skylar Vetter, and Olivia King – each played a period, combining for a 10-save shutout.
Jessica Scott joins Gopher Women's Hockey coaching staff
Prior to the opening exhibition against Manitoba, GWH head coach Brad Frost announced Friday that Jessica Scott has been promoted to assistant coach of the team. Scott had been serving as the Gophers' Director of Operations since 2019. She has previous high school head coaching experience locally at Coon Rapids and Wayzata, being named the Class AA head coach of the year in 2018 and Section 6AA coach of the year back-to-back in 2018 and 2019. She was also an assistant coach for four years at the University of St. Thomas while it was still a Division III program.
We congratulate Jessica on this promotion, as she has been a great partner of the Power Play Club the past three years!! We look forward to her time on the coaching bench!!
7 GWH alums named to PWHPA Secret© Dream Gap Tour rosters
Seven alumnae of the Gopher Women's Hockey program have been named to the rosters of Professional Women's Hockey Players Association teams for the 2022-2023 Secret© Dream Gap Tour. This year's four teams are region-agnostic. We congratulate and send best wishes to our Gopher representatives:
Team adidas – Amanda Kessel, Sarah Potomak & Sydney Scobee
Team Harvey's – Lee Stecklein
Team Scotiabank – Kelly Pannek
Team Sonnet – Hannah Brandt & Emily Brown
As noted in the press release, the teams will compete in events across North America, starting in Montréal, QC on October 15-16 and Truro, NS on November 4-6.
Around the WCHA...
Badgers split with Nittany Lions – The new season began with a big upset as Penn State upended Wisconsin, 4-1, on Thursday night; PSU goaltender Josie Bothun stopped 27 of 28 shots on goal, her teammates blocked 22 more shots, and Tessa Janecke tallied two goals and an assist. Penn State took a 1-0 lead on Friday on Kiara Zanon's second goal of the series but the Badgers exploded after that, rolling to a 9-1 victory; Sophie Shirley recorded two goals & two assists, Lacey Eden added two goals & one assist, and Jesse Compher, Britta Curl, and Casey O'Brien each tallied a goal & two assists.
Minnesota Duluth earns road sweep over LIU – Long Island University goaltender Tindra Holm made 114 saves over two games, but it wasn't enough as the UMD Bulldogs swept the Sharks, 4-1 and 5-0, with a 123-13 shot advantage. Ashton Bell led the Bulldogs with a hat trick Sunday plus two assists, Taylor Anderson scored twice Saturday & added an assist Sunday, and Gabbie Hughes recorded a goal & three assists.
Bemidji State sweeps Lindenwood at home – The BSU Beavers defended home ice in their opening weekend, defeating the Lindenwood Lions, 3-2 (OT) and 6-3. After the two teams traded goals on Friday, forcing overtime after regulation finished tied 2-2, Bemidji State's Taylor Nelson got free and scored 1:30 into the extra period. Lindenwood took a 1-0 lead 9:52 into Saturday's rematch, but Raeley Carney netted two power-play goals to give the Beavers the lead and Genevieve Hendrickson & Claire Vekich (PP) extended the advantage to 4-1. The Lions pulled within 4-3, with Morgan Neitzke tallying her second goal of the contest, but Nelson and Gabbie Smith scored for BSU to put it out of reach. Smith led the Beavers in total scoring in the series, dishing out two assists to go with her goal.
Elsewhere last weekend – Manitoba's road trip to the state of Minnesota was a tough one. Before playing the Gophers, they were defeated 5-1 by Minnesota State with Anna Wilgren scoring twice. St. Thomas then beat the Bisons 4-1 on Sunday; the Tommies scored their four goals in a 4:56 span of the third period after falling behind earlier in the stanza. St. Cloud also began their season with an exhibition victory, defeating the Durham West Jr. Lightning 5-1.
Upcoming games – Minnesota Duluth plays in a three-team, three-game scramble hosted by St. Lawrence; the Bulldogs square off against the Saints on Thursday night and face Penn State on Friday, with SLU playing PSU on Saturday. Wisconsin also plays on Thursday & Friday, hosting Lindenwood. In-conference action begins when Ohio State opens the defense of its national championship on the road at Minnesota State on Friday & Saturday. A pair of non-conference series also feature Friday & Saturday games as St. Cloud State hosts RPI and Bemidji State visits Clarkson.
Chalk Talk – Saturday, October 8 at 12:30 p.m.
The first Power Play Club Chalk Talk with a member of the Gopher Women's Hockey coaching staff is scheduled for Saturday, October 8, at 12:30 p.m. in the Ridder Arena weight room (upstairs), prior to the team's second game against the Bemidji State Beavers. The Chalk Talk will include a discussion of team strategy, reviewing the previous night's game film, and time for a brief question & answer session.
Note that this is an exclusive event for registered Power Play Club members.
Club registration reminder...
Enrollment in the Power Play Club for 2022-2023 – the 26th year of Gopher Women's Hockey – continues as the regular-season approaches!
A minimum donation of $50 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/PPC22; 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".
For a minimum $600 donation, you can become a Locker Sponsor for the season, our top membership tier. Your name would be posted on a nameplate next to a player's or coach's locker, with an opportunity to meet with your respective player(s) at our event in January. If you are interested, either as a renewing or new Locker Sponsor, please contact Susan "Rennie" McPherson at lockersponsorship@powerplayclub.org (before making a donation).
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