Here’s an ARTICLE on the U18 series that tells who’s committed to who on both teams.
The U.S. takes the rubber game of the U18 series 3-1.
Goals by ‘27 commit Annabelle Lovell and ‘27 target Talla Hansen. Two assists by ‘26 commit Katya Sander.
Posted this back in March……
”Neutral Zone” returns with their Mid Season Rankings for the class of 2026. Top 250 this time.
Recruits:
#3 F Maddie McCullough (Durham West)
#8 D Sloane Hartmetz (Shattuck)
#18 F Rachel Piggott (Etobicoke)
#81 D Katya Sander (Holy Family)
”Neutral Zone” updates this list with their “Year End Rankings”
#3 F Maddie McCullough (Durham West)
#9 D Sloane Hartmetz (Shattuck)
#15 F Rachel Piggott (Etobicoke)
#62 D Katya Sander (Holy Family)
Couple of notes: Did not see recent goalie commit Payton Rolli (Warroad) on the list. Maddie McCullough will be playing at Etobicoke this coming season.
An entity I’m not real familiar with called the National Girls Hockey League got the jump on the more well known Labor Day tournaments this past weekend hosting a bunch of teams. Lovell Academy U16 with recruits Sydney Stoughton and Annabelle Lovell went undefeated in their division. Results are HERE
Labor Day weekend is historically the starting point for the fall girls hockey showcase season with the long running NAHA tournament, now held in the Boston area, and the newer PIP event in Pittsburgh. Future Gopher representation is a little sparser than usual. I am only seeing recent Warroad goalie commit Payton Rolli on the MN Northern Elite U19 team at PIP, and Sydney Stoughton and Annabelle Lovell on Lovell Academy’s U16 team at NAHA. Both events start tomorrow.
“Neutral Zone” released a ranking of the top 250 players playing in North America for the class of 2027. Here are their top 10 and the top 10 rated Minnesotans.
1. F Adriana Milani (Etobicoke) 🇨🇦
2. F Jane Daley (Shattuck) 🇺🇸 Ohio State commit
3. D Chyna Taylor (Lovell Academy) 🇺🇸 Wisconsin commit
4. D Megan Mossey (Etobicoke) 🇨🇦
5. F Annabelle Lovell (Lovell Academy) 🇺🇸
6. D Aurora Matt (Durham West) 🇨🇦 Cornell commit
7. D Maggie Averill (Phillips Andover) 🇺🇸 Princeton commit
8. F Mikayla Barnes (Stoney Creek) 🇨🇦 Colgate commit
9. F Maggie Hughson (Nepean) 🇨🇦 UConn commit
10. D Avery Jones (Ottawa Lady Sens) 🇨🇦 Ohio State commit
13.
14. F Bailey Rupp (Bemidji) UMD commit
15. G Finley Engfer (Apple Valley) Providence commit, the top rated goalie here
17. F Talla Hansen (Benilde)
22. D Addy McLay (Hill-Murray) Ohio State commit
38. D Jemma McAlexander (Minnetonka) Harvard commit
42. F Grace Laager (Centennial) Boston College commit
51. D Libby Moe (Edina) Quinnipiac commit
53. F Jaylie French (Warroad) Dartmouth commit
66. F June Semling (Champlin Park) Mankato State commit
Gopher commit Sydney Stoughton, a forward who plays at Lovell Academy, is 19th on this ranking
Piggybacking off my previous post on Labor Day showcase tournaments, the Gopher staff, in a somewhat unprecedented move, are announcing where they are recruiting in the next few weeks….
https://twitter.com/GopherWHockey/status/1961441674137096612
…….of course, none of this is too earth shaking as these are the big events that basically every program will be at. The big local showcase is the Elite League NIT tournament. That will be October 16, 17,18 and 19 this year.
A roundup on the Labor Day PIP tournament. Local teams have success in the younger age divisions.
“Pittsburgh Pens Elite Take Top Spot At Labor Day Opener”
Things shift into high gear on Friday for the girl’s fall season. The high school Elite League , the Ontario girls league (OWHL) and Shattuck all start their seasons on Friday. I will convert some of these names to links for the coming season later today. High School links won’t be available until November if at all. Not sure if the Strib will start hiding all the high school stuff behind a pay wall this year.
Hearing Ava Moe, a class of ‘29 forward worth keeping an eye on, is transferring from Eden Prairie to Edina. I’ve always assumed that Ava is the sister of Gopher freshman Mason Moe. Edina has a very good junior defender named Libby Moe, who has committed to Quinnipiac. Not sure if there is a relation there.
EDIT: Confirmed by a frequent GPL poster - Ava and Mason are siblings. Libby is not related.
The list happy people at “Neutral Zone” have put out another ranking just so we would have something to talk about around this time next year. They have put out their rankings of the top 225 players playing in North America for the class of 2028. Here’s their top ten Minnesotans and non-Minnesotans.
Non-Minnesotans
1. F Savannah Halleran (Durham West) 🇨🇦
2. F Catherine McCool (Noble and Greenough School) 🇺🇸 From West Roxbury, Massachusetts
5. D Callie McCullough (BK Selects) 🇺🇸 From Westport, Connecticut
6. D Sarah Aquilina (Durham West) 🇨🇦
8. D Gem Winter (North York Storm) 🇨🇦
10. D Whitney Basso (Whitby Jr. Wolves) 🇨🇦
11. D Maeve Aird (Whitby Jr. Wolves) 🇨🇦
12. D Cassidy Cha (Team Illinois U16) 🇺🇸 From Glenbrook, Illinois
13. F Isabella Freitas (Cushing Academy) 🇺🇸 From Everett, Massachusetts
14. F Makenna Vinc (Ridley College) 🇨🇦
Minnesotans
3. F Sydney Boss Krohn (Shattuck) Formerly at Minnetonka
4. D Taylee Manion (Hermantown)
7. D Olivia Braunhausen (Hill-Murray) From Stillwater
9. F Amelia Sutch (Centennial)
19. F Allie Defauw (Holy Family) From Apple Valley
20. D Alexis Ulrich (Breck) From Prior Lake
24. F Mackenna Schlieman (Breck) From Prior Lake
46. D Jahnica Holtzleicer (Hill-Murray) From Ham Lake
53. F Peyton DeMuth (Marshall*)
59. F Taylor Hall (Breck) Formerly at Rogers
#79 Annabelle Buccicone (Centennial) and #87 Maddison Boone (Woodbury) are a couple of locals that seem a little low to me. It will be interesting to revisit this a year from now and see how it might change.
* This is not Duluth Marshall, it is the Southwest Minnesota town.
The staff will be north of the border this weekend for the Stoney Creek University Showcase. commits Maddie McCullough and Rachel Piggott of the Etobicoke Dolphins and Lovell Academy’s Annabelle Lovell will be on display along with many potential targets. I didn’t mention ‘27 commit Sydney Stoughton as a check through the rosters shows her listed as injured. She did play last weekend as Lovell Academy’s U16 team ran the table and won the championship in Stoney Creek’s U18 Showcase. Lovell seems to bounce their top players back and forth between their U16 and U19 teams. The University Showcase is especially important for recruiters as the Ontario teams are here. The OWHL suspends their season for this weekend. No Minnesota teams here as the High School Elite League is in full swing.
The
Well, they delayed departure long enough to put in an appearance in Blaine tonight. Frosty and Coach May were at Fogerty for the Elite League game between SILVER and VEGAS. Hadn’t seen any of the staff at an Elite League game before tonight. Something going down with Emily Pohl and/or Talla Hansen? Some interesting class of ‘28 prospects on Silver and the BLUE team that played in the second game.
Etobicoke steamrolls through the competition to win the Stoney Creek tournament this past weekend. Only tight game was a 2-1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins Elite team. The Penguins have been a, somewhat surprisingly, strong team in the fall showcase season, winning the PIP tournament on Labor Day weekend.
The last of the Wethington sisters heading east.
https://twitter.com/YouthHockeyHub/status/1967983484578021531
“Neutral Zone” strikes again putting out a list of their top 130 North American prospects for the class of 2029. Personally I think the younger these lists get the less confidence we should have in them. But, having said that, I’m a bit of a sucker for these kind of things. Here are the top ten Non-Minnesotans and top ten Minnesotans.
Non-Minnesotans
1. F Isla McCoubrey (Waterloo Jr.) 🇨🇦 From Heidelberg, Ontario
2. F Paige Fox (North York Storm U18) 🇨🇦
4. F Kate Jessup (BK Selects U16) 🇺🇸 From St. Charles, Illinois
5. F Eleanor Quattromani (BK Selects U16) 🇺🇸 From Madison, Wisconsin
7. F Teagan Gloyns (North York Storm U18) 🇨🇦
8. F Teagan Beigel (Dexter Southfield) 🇺🇸 From Natick, Massachusetts
9. F Anna Downey (North York Storm U18) 🇨🇦
10. F Sawyer Gillings (Bow Valley Nationals U14) 🇨🇦 From Calgary, Alberta
11. F Kelsey MacPherson (St. Paul’s) 🇺🇸 From Hopkinton, Massachusetts
12. F Genevieve Walsh (BK Selects U16) 🇺🇸 From Fairfield, Connecticut
Minnesotans
3. F Anna Pohl (Hill-Murray)
6. F Audrey Nichols (MN Lakers) From Victoria
41. F Ellie Bailey (OS Hockey) Sister of Gopher freshman defender Sydney Bailey
51. G Poppy Carlson (MN Lakers) From Minnetonka
56. F Alaina Lindsay (Minnetonka) Sister of Gopher forward Ava Lindsay
71. D Stella Kramer (Centennial)
79. F Nora Ptak (Shattuck U16) From Prior Lake
89. F Josie Kelzenberg (Centennial)
96. F Carmen Benedict (Shakopee)
102. F Stella Strothman (Breck) From Excelsior
A few notes:
- I’ve written a little on Audrey Nichols before. She was on a talented Chaska/Chanhassen 15u team that won the state tournament last spring. Also was “Youth Hockey Hub’s” girls youth PLAYER OF THE YEAR this past season. Audrey will be at Holy Family this season.
- Mikayla Fanale (Webster, NY/BK Selects U16), rated 28th on this list is the sister of of Gopher freshman forward Bella Fanale.
- Some research suggests that Carmen Benedict has transferred to Minnetonka.
Talla Hansen, forward from Benilde, commits.
Talla’s got an interesting résumé. Former winner of the Sue Ring-Jarvi award (Youth Hockey Hub’s female youth hockey player of the year) LINK . Somewhat surprisingly I believe Talla will be the first winner of the award to skate for the “U”. Talla played her youth hockey for Wayzata and scored a ton of goals her final year. Talla has also played for two national champion Minnesota teams and was leading scorer at both tournaments (tied for the lead one of the years).
I'll repost the watch list (all players who the team's Instagram account follows):
F Adrianna Milani (Etobicoke)
F Emily Pohl (Hill-Murray)
D Aurora Matt (Durham West)
D Megan Mossey (Etobicoke)
This is a little over a year old.
Adrianna Milani commits. Undersized but speedy and dynamic forward from Toronto (but also an American citizen, though she wasn't eligible for Team USA at the U18s last year because of residency requirements). Teammates with recruits Maddie McCullough and Rachel Piggott. Probably the most hyped player in this recruiting class. By all accounts, this is a big one.
A couple things…..
A goal Adrianna scored against the U.S. earlier this fall
https://twitter.com/JrDolphins/status/1955724911147655207
Adrianna’s MOTHER has worked with a couple NHL teams as a skating and skills developer/consultant.
Here’s a STORY on Adrianna I had posted a while ago.
The Elite League end of the season NIT tournament starts two weeks from today. Information came out today….
As far as Gopher recruits are concerned, there are four teams to keep an eye on…
- Shattuck Prep (Sloane Hartmetz)
- MN Elite Green (Payton Rolli)
- MN Elite Vegas (Katya Sander, Talla Hansen)
- Lovell Academy 16u Prep (Sydney Stoughton, Annabelle Lovell)
A couple notes:
- Emily Pohl also plays for the MN Elite Vegas team
- Annabelle Lovell is also on Lovell Academy’s 19u team roster
- Sydney Stoughton missed a tournament a few weeks ago ago with an injury. Hopefully she will play here
FREE ARTICLE from “Neutral Zone” regarding September commitments.
Talla Hansen – Commits to Minnesota
Hansen had an awesome season with Benilde-St. Margaret’s. She had 25 goals in 27 games and an additional 21 assists.
NZ Scouts say: “Hansen looked very strong in the all star game and was a no brainer pick out of that game to proceed to the 18s camp. She did so many things well and blended them all together nicely to put together awesome shifts.”
Adrianna Milani – Commits to Minnesota
Milani played in 39 games last season for the Etobicoke Jr Dolphins. She had 58 points in her 2024/25 campaign and will be playing for them again this season.
NZ Scouts say: “Milani is a highly skilled, shifty player with smooth hands and a nice long stride that makes her a confident skater. She sees the ice well to create scoring opportunities for her team. With fast footwork, she steps around defenders and into scoring lanes. Her shot is very accurate and the release is quick. She excels at picking corners with her shot and uses strong edge work to maintain balance and agility on the ice.”
Megan Mossey commits. Right-shot D from Prince Edward Island, playing for the Etobicoke Jr. Dolphins along with McCullough, Piggott, and Milani. She's being talked about as one of the best blueliners in the class. First D commit of the recruiting cycle.
Just saw this. Thought I was going to beat you for a change 😉. As I said before, I saw her a couple years back when she was playing for a undermanned Rothesay Netherwood School squad at Ridder in the annual JWHL thing. She was the youngest player on the ice that day, but really jumped out at me. Here’s an ARTICLE I posted recently.
EDIT: The more I run this around in my increasingly feeble brain, the more sure I am that the game where I saw Ms. Mossey play was at Mariucci and not Ridder.
2026
Really odd to this untrained eye how few in-state recruits they have.
@ agreed. But the only clear response to that is being out classed by Wisconsin and Ohio State over the past few years. This is a solid group of women on this team I think and has a shot to legitimately compete with those top end teams now for a championship. Will see how things shape up but I like what I see so far from watching them play. Go Gophers!
Found this ARTICLE where new commit Megan Mossey looks back on her experience playing for Canada in the three game u18 series against the U.S. back in August.
I thought this was kind of interesting….
Although 16 years old and competing with under-18-aged players, Mossey is no stranger when it comes to playing against older players. Mossey played for Team P.E.I. as a 13-year-old in the 2023 Canada Winter Games in P.E.I.
“That was an amazing experience,” said Mossey. “It was my first time playing girls’ hockey.
You used to hear more about "I didn't play girls' hockey until x age", with the age usually being around the time when body-checking was introduced. Probably less so now because girls' hockey has grown so much, but I'd imagine in areas such as where Mossey's from it's still pretty common.
One of my jobs is as a play-by-play announcer. About four years ago I worked a boys' youth tournament near Boston and I think in the 11 games I called there were three girls playing. One of them was Annabelle Lovell, playing for a team coached by her dad. She played defense back then.
Not sure if anyone has any interest, but here is the Gopher’s new farm team, Etobicoke’s, first league game back on September 25th.
Beside the four Gopher commits on Etobicoke, Durham West defender Aurora Matt seems like a likely target also for this class of ‘27. Durham West played exhibitions against a couple of NCAA teams recently. Losing to Ohio State 6-1 and beating Robert Morris 2-1 in o.t.
Emily Pohl commits to Wisconsin. This isn't gonna make the fanbase happy.
WTF...
She must not want the pressure but man that's a kick in the balls.
@gopherguy05 her parents do not have the best reputation when it comes to girls hockey in Minnesota. They have left and taken girls from small communities at each level, from youth hockey to OS hockey and now to High school.
Well that honestly sours my feelings towards the parents. I wouldn't blink if it were anywhere else but freaking Wisconsin?
This is a legit intended snub and we should figure out why this happened and fire the person responsible.
Wow, unbelievable. This speaks so loudly but to what?
USA U18 selection camp roster:
Forwards
Kylie Amelkovich, 08, Glen Ellyn, Ill., Shattuck-St. Mary's (Penn State '30)
Sydney Boss Krohn, 09, Excelsior, Minn., Shattuck-St. Mary's (not eligible to commit)
Haley Box, 08, Eden Prairie, Minn., Etobicoke Jr. Dolphins (Wisconsin '30)
Lily Bromley, 09, Carlisle, Mass., Noble & Greenough (Princeton '31)
Jane Daley, 09, Medfield, Mass., Shattuck-St. Mary's
Alaina Gnetz, 08, Woodbury, Minn., Woodbury HS (Minnesota Duluth '30)
Talla Hansen, 08, Wayzata, Minn., Benilde-St. Margaret's (Minnesota '31)
Maddy Kimbrel, 08, Long Lake, Minn., Orono HS (Wisconsin '30)
Annabelle Lovell, 09, Hingham, Mass., Lovell Academy (Minnesota '31)
Catherine McCool, 09, Boston, Mass., Noble & Greenough (not eligible to commit)
Jillian McLaughlin, 08, Oceanside, Calif., Rink Hockey Academy (Cornell '30)
Zahra Nauhaus, 08, Pittsburgh, Pa., Shattuck-St. Mary's (Cornell '30)
Emily Pohl, 08, Woodbury, Minn., Hill-Murray (Wisconsin '31)
Bailey Rupp, 08, Bemidji, Minn., Bemidji HS (Minnesota Duluth '31)
Christina Scalese, 08, West Boylston, Mass., Groton (Princeton '30)
Bria Schilling, 09, Valencia, Calif., Shattuck-St. Mary's (Cornell '31)
June Semling, 08, Champlin, Minn., Champlin Park-Coon Rapids (Minnesota State '31)
Lindsay Stepnowski, 08, South Glastonbury, Conn., Loomis Chaffee (Harvard '30)
Defense
Maggie Averill, 08, Wayland, Mass., Phillips Academy (Princeton '31)
Olivia Braunshausen, 09, Lake Elmo, Minn., Hill-Murray (not eligible to commit)
Ava Decourcey, 08, Rockland, Mass., Noble & Greenough (Yale '31)
Sloane Hartmetz, 08, Phoenixville, Pa., Shattuck-St. Mary's (Minnesota '30)
Taylee Manion, 09, Hermantown, Minn., Proctor-Hermantown (not eligible to commit)
Addison McLay, 08, Hastings, Minn., Hill-Murray (Ohio State '31)
Mia Miller, 08, Dundas, Minn., Northfield HS (Minnesota State '30)
Kateryna Sander, 08, Chanhassen, Minn., Holy Family Catholic HS (Minnesota '30)
Chyna Taylor, 09, Louisville, Ky., Lovell Academy (Wisconsin '31)
Alexis Ulrich, 10, Prior Lake, Minn., Breck (not eligible to commit)
Goalies
Bianca Birrittieri, 08, Flower Mound, Texas, Pittsburgh Penguins Elite (Providence '30)
Morgan Stickney, 08, Manhattan Beach, Calif., Shattuck-St. Mary's (Penn State '30)
Cecilia Wielenberg, 09, Downers Grove, Ill., Team Illinois (Princeton '31)
With a name like Sydney Boss you have to land her once eligible.
Interesting to see Breck’s Alexis Ulrich as the only 2010 birth year invited. I think she’s definitely a worthy player and one to watch, but a little surprised she’s the only one.
I watched Team Illinois 16u play a strong MN SILVER team on Saturday. They had a 2010 defender named Cassidy Cha who really jumped out at me. Maybe the best Chicago girl I’ve seen that wasn’t playing for a Mission team. Silver’s depth finally wore them down and they won 3-0.
—————
I’m guessing Sydney Stoughton is not healthy yet.
“USA Hockey Invites 31 Players To U-18 Team Selection Camp”
Doesn’t seem like Canada will hold a selection camp. This was their ROSTER for the three game series against the U.S. back in August. Canada does have their annual U18 Women’s National Championship tournament coming up November 2-8. A lot of scouting and evaluation will surely be done then.
A short ARTICLE on the Gopher’s current top farm team. The video has a couple Adrianna Milani goals.