https://twitter.com/StribSports/status/1627810328368279552?s=20
https://twitter.com/StribSports/status/1627802098216624129?s=20
First Team
G Uma Corniea (Edina) Sr. Princeton recruit
D Josie Hemp (Minnetonka) Sr. 
sister of current Gopher Peyton Hemp
D Ellah Hause (Hill-Murray) Sr. St. Thomas recruit
F Stella Retrum (Maple Grove) Sr. Penn State recruit
F Ava Lindsay (Minnetonka) Sr. sister of current Gopher Sadie Lindsay
F Isa Goettl (Andover) Sr.
Second Team
G Hailey Hansen (Blaine) Sr. Mankato recruit
D Josie Lang (Stillwater) Jr. Providence recruit
D Cailin Mumm (Andover) Jr. St. Thomas recruit
F Ella Boerger (Andover) Sr. St. Thomas recruit
F Chloe Boreen (Hill-Murray) Jr. uncommitted, sister of current Gopher Abigail Boreen
F Suzy Higuchi (Blake) Sr. Yale recruit
Third Team
G Sedona Blair (Holy Family) Sr. New Hampshire recruit
G Grace Zhan (Hill-Murray) Jr. Dartmouth recruit
D Jenessa Gazdik (Gentry Academy) Sr. Mankato recruit
D Carly Humphrey (Elk River) Jr.
D Laine DeVries (Chisago Lakes) Sr. St. Thomas recruit
D Marie Moran (Apple Valley) Sr. St. Cloud State recruit
F Makayla Moran (Apple Valley) So. uncommitted
F Lauren O’Hara (Centennial) Sr.
F Ayla Puppe (Northfield) Jr.
F Grace Sadura (Minnetonka) Sr. UMD recruit
F Josie St. Martin (Stillwater) Jr. Ohio State recruit
F Ella Tuccitto (Simley) Sr. uncommitted
Seems like it’s time for my list of ten uncommitted players to keep an eye on during the State Tournament. Tough to trim down the list to ten this year. I may tack on an “honorable mention” to this post a little later. It will probably seem a little Andover heavy, but this sophomore group of theirs may be as strong as we’ve seen from one school. The top ten list is alphabetical. If I get around to the HM the order will have no significance.
F Hannah Christenson (Andover) ‘25
F Maya Engler (Andover) ‘25
G Layla Hemp (Minnetonka) ‘25
F Whitney Horton (Edina) ‘25
D Mackenzie Jones (Andover) ‘25
D Kate Kosobud (Moorhead) ‘24
F Grace Laager (Centennial/Spring Lake Park) ‘27
D Courtney Little (Andover) ‘25
F Zoe Lopez (Orono) ‘25
F Lorelei Nelson (Edina) ‘26
Honorable Mention: D Lily Pachl (South St. Paul) ‘25, D Katy Comstock (Warroad) ‘25, F Kaiya Sandy (Warroad) ‘25, D Mika Cichosz (Albert Lea) ‘25, F Sophie Stramel (Rosemount) ‘25, D Avery Kasick (Andover) ‘25, D Samantha Angellotti (Andover) ‘26, D Ashley Wagenbach (Lakeville North) ‘24, D Bella Finnegan (Minnetonka) ‘25, F Olivia Kortan (Moorhead) ‘25
Wow - 3 of 5 committed to STT.
They're talking about this on the broadcast. Did the Gophers recruit these players?
Isa Goettel at the end of the Andover Edina game with a cheap shot. Not sure what happened the rest of the game but not a great look.
Looks like we have another Murphy on our hands.
https://twitter.com/ZachHalverson/status/1629304935572488199?t=BTbQngENbFqreleew6XO1A&s=19
Sandelin just offered a full ride to #10 in greenIsa Goettel at the end of the Andover Edina game with a cheap shot. Not sure what happened the rest of the game but not a great look.
Looks like we have another Murphy on our hands.
https://twitter.com/ZachHalverson/status/1629304935572488199?t=BTbQngENbFqreleew6XO1A&s=19
Sandelin just offered a full ride to #10 in greenIsa Goettel at the end of the Andover Edina game with a cheap shot. Not sure what happened the rest of the game but not a great look.
Looks like we have another Murphy on our hands.
https://twitter.com/ZachHalverson/status/1629304935572488199?t=BTbQngENbFqreleew6XO1A&s=19
She's already headed to play for the Badgers, so it works out that way as well.
Is her last name Earl?Sandelin just offered a full ride to #10 in greenIsa Goettel at the end of the Andover Edina game with a cheap shot. Not sure what happened the rest of the game but not a great look.
Looks like we have another Murphy on our hands.
https://twitter.com/ZachHalverson/status/1629304935572488199?t=BTbQngENbFqreleew6XO1A&s=19
She's already headed to play for the Badgers, so it works out that way as well.
How does someone dive within a millisecond of being hit from behind? Also reading some of the replies this isn't the first type of play like this from #12.
It's definitely a cheap shot. But it's also a ridiculous dive. End of storyAnyone that is thinking that's a dive has to just be an Edina hater. It's a cheap shot. End of story.
Wow, I didn't think chicks with sticks were capable of that kind of 'roid rage.
Wow - 3 of 5 committed to STT.
They're talking about this on the broadcast. Did the Gophers recruit these players?
I’ve been a bit hard on recruiting over the last year or so and I should probably explain a bit where I’m coming from. As to whether the staff recruited any of the St. Thomas commits, I couldn’t say with any authority. My view is the staff has been recruiting some top talent from around North America and have been unable to “seal the deal” with any lately. These are the girls that are winding up at Wisconsin and Ohio State. As far as instate talent lately, I think things are going alright. If you look at the various all-this or all-that teams coming out (Ms. Hockey, Star Tribune, Youth Hockey Hub) there doesn’t seem to be as much “consensus” as other years. Who the top players are depend on whose eyes are being looked through. We seem to be in a phase instate the past couple years where there are lots of very good players, but not great ones. To my mind, the only instate “miss” that really bothered me in this class of ‘23 and ‘24 cycle we’re in has been Stillwater’s Josie St. Martin. Of course things will be clearer in a year or two and we can all say “I told you so”.
I am excited for the class of ‘25 prospects instate, hopefully the staff is up to the challenge.
Both of the future Gophers for the class of ‘24 from Canada are playing in the Canada Winter Games. The female portion of the games starts today. Gracie Graham is on Team British Columbia and Hannah Clark is on Team Ontario.
The Strib put out this list of players to watch for next year a day or two ago. I bolded the uncommitted players. If I were to add a player from each category they would be F Maya Engler (Andover), D Courtney Little (Andover) and G Layla Hemp (Minnetonka). All three are presently sophomores and uncommitted. Not sure if the list is designed as a metro only list, but if I’m adding an out state player it would be Grand Rapids’ sophomore forward Mercury Bischoff.
FORWARDS
Chloe Boreen (Hill-Murray) ‘24
Hannah Halverson (Edina) ‘24 Wisconsin recruit
Gracie Hanson (Lakeville North) ‘24
Makayla Moran (Apple Valley) ‘25
Ayla Puppe (Northfield) ‘24
Josie St. Martin (Stillwater) ‘24 Ohio State recruit
Bella Shipley (Maple Grove) ‘24 Mankato recruit
DEFENDERS
Carly Humphrey (Elk River) ‘24
Mackenzie Jones (Andover) ‘25
Josie Lang (Stillwater) ‘24 Providence recruit
Cailin Mumm (Andover) ‘24 St. Thomas recruit
Lily Pachl (South St. Paul) ‘25
GOALIES
Kayla Simonson (Delano) ‘24
Dani Strom (Maple Grove) ‘24 St. Thomas recruit
Grace Zhan (Hill-Murray’s ‘24 Dartmouth recruit
Big Update to the Transfer Portal today with 17 players entering today. Transfer season has begun!
Big Update to the Transfer Portal today with 17 players entering today. Transfer season has begun!
Looks like Idalski is doing major house cleaning up in St. Cloud. The name that jumps out at me is forward Kelsey King at Mankato. She’s an Elk River alum and has been very successful. Only one year left, doesn’t seem like she’s been there that long.
Looking at goalies as the staff will likely need to bring in a backup behind Vetter, the interesting name to me is also from Mankato, former White Bear tender Calla Frank.
Update on recruit stats. Local girls high school stats are (obviously) final. The girls playing in Canada are not quite done.
2023
D Josie Hemp (Minnetonka)
D Elly Klepinger (Minnetonka)
F Isa Goettl (Andover)
F Emma Kreisz (Stanstead College) From Budapest, Hungary
F Ava Lindsay (Minnetonka)
F Lauren O’Hara (Centennial)
2024
G Hannah Clark (Etobicoke) From Oshawa, Ontario
F Kendra Distad (Minnetonka)
D Gracie Graham (Rink Hockey Academy-Kelowna) From Kelowna, British Columbia
D Carly Humphrey (Elk River)
F Ayla Puppe (Northfield)
Interesting name entered the Portal today. Boston College leading scorer Hannah Bilka. 12-29-41 in 34 games.
Interesting name entered the Portal today. Boston College leading scorer Hannah Bilka. 12-29-41 in 34 games.
Dallas area girl. Played three years for Shattuck teams. Very skilled.
A second regional option might be Franklin Pierce goalie Suzette Faucher. Her stats from the current season don't look like much, but the numbers were far more promising a year ago:Looking at goalies as the staff will likely need to bring in a backup behind Vetter, the interesting name to me is also from Mankato, former White Bear tender Calla Frank.Big Update to the Transfer Portal today with 17 players entering today. Transfer season has begun!
Suzette Faucher, So; GP=18 W=14 L=2 T=1 GA=17 Min=1035 GAA=0.99 SO=8 SV=426 SV%=.962
She's from Badger country, Middleton, WI, and played at S-SM.
Attention for Nela Lopušanová is really taking off.
For those of you that remember the clips and stories of the 14 year old Slovakian player that led the World U18s in scoring and was named top player, she is heading to the U.S.
https://twitter.com/HockeyNewsHub/status/1633572803411603456?s=20
Youth Hockey Hub’s top girls youth players
https://www.youthhockeyhub.com/news_article/show/1264967
I’ve only seen a little youth hockey this year so I’ve only seen two of these players.
Minnetonka 12A forward Sydney Boss Krohn stands out on a very talented team. Very athletic looking player with good size, good hands, skating and shot.
Wayzata 15A forward Talla Hansen is a player I’ve seen a few times, both for her Wayzata team and for the Walleye team in the fall 14u league (the Walleyes will play in the USA Hockey national tournament later this month). Hansen is a smooth skater with silky hands. She can score the “holy ?” type goals.
A second regional option might be Franklin Pierce goalie Suzette Faucher. Her stats from the current season don't look like much, but the numbers were far more promising a year ago:Looking at goalies as the staff will likely need to bring in a backup behind Vetter, the interesting name to me is also from Mankato, former White Bear tender Calla Frank.Big Update to the Transfer Portal today with 17 players entering today. Transfer season has begun!
Suzette Faucher, So; GP=18 W=14 L=2 T=1 GA=17 Min=1035 GAA=0.99 SO=8 SV=426 SV%=.962
She's from Badger country, Middleton, WI, and played at S-SM.
I'll add Lucy Morgan from St. Lawrence via Maple Grove to this. Her numbers were down from her first three years but she has plenty of experience as a starter in one of the country's best conferences.
IMO, Morgan is at a higher level than those previously mentioned, and I don't see her going anywhere where she won't be the clear starter. UMD, maybe? Unless the U has a graduate program she wants and that's where she would go even w/o hockey.A second regional option might be Franklin Pierce goalie Suzette Faucher. Her stats from the current season don't look like much, but the numbers were far more promising a year ago:Looking at goalies as the staff will likely need to bring in a backup behind Vetter, the interesting name to me is also from Mankato, former White Bear tender Calla Frank.Big Update to the Transfer Portal today with 17 players entering today. Transfer season has begun!
Suzette Faucher, So; GP=18 W=14 L=2 T=1 GA=17 Min=1035 GAA=0.99 SO=8 SV=426 SV%=.962
She's from Badger country, Middleton, WI, and played at S-SM.
I'll add Lucy Morgan from St. Lawrence via Maple Grove to this. Her numbers were down from her first three years but she has plenty of experience as a starter in one of the country's best conferences.
IMO, Morgan is at a higher level than those previously mentioned, and I don't see her going anywhere where she won't be the clear starter. UMD, maybe? Unless the U has a graduate program she wants and that's where she would go even w/o hockey.A second regional option might be Franklin Pierce goalie Suzette Faucher. Her stats from the current season don't look like much, but the numbers were far more promising a year ago:Looking at goalies as the staff will likely need to bring in a backup behind Vetter, the interesting name to me is also from Mankato, former White Bear tender Calla Frank.Big Update to the Transfer Portal today with 17 players entering today. Transfer season has begun!
Suzette Faucher, So; GP=18 W=14 L=2 T=1 GA=17 Min=1035 GAA=0.99 SO=8 SV=426 SV%=.962
She's from Badger country, Middleton, WI, and played at S-SM.
I'll add Lucy Morgan from St. Lawrence via Maple Grove to this. Her numbers were down from her first three years but she has plenty of experience as a starter in one of the country's best conferences.
I agree she was a two time ECAC goalie of the year, a all American in a conference where that is dominated by Canadian Olympic players, and most of the pro women goalies are from the ECAC. what would the locker be like if your bring in a better goalie than what you have?
Two big time “D” have shown up in the portal. Cayla Barnes (Boston College) and Anna Wilgren (Mankato). Wilgren is a local from across the river in Hudson, and Barnes is a Southern California native. Both have one year of eligibility.
Would definitely like to see Wilgren wind up here. The Gophers are going to need some success with the portal in order to be very relevant next year.
Although in general, the program has done very well over the years in seasons where not much has been expected of them. Not NCAA titles, although they graduated a lot in 2012, and it was a bit of a surprise that the perfect season team was as dominant as it was right out of the gate. It helps to get a class of Brandt/Stecklein/McMillen/Menefee/Leveille. I look at teams like 2002-02, 2005-06, and 2013-14 as teams that were able to overcome their weaknesses for much of the season.
Would definitely like to see Wilgren wind up here.
My son and I went to Christmas tournaments in Farmington in Heise’s final two years at Red Wing. Hudson was also in the tournament and Wilgren was fabulous. I have no clue how both Frosty and Johnson missed out on her.
IMO, Morgan is at a higher level than those previously mentioned, and I don't see her going anywhere where she won't be the clear starter. UMD, maybe? Unless the U has a graduate program she wants and that's where she would go even w/o hockey.A second regional option might be Franklin Pierce goalie Suzette Faucher. Her stats from the current season don't look like much, but the numbers were far more promising a year ago:Looking at goalies as the staff will likely need to bring in a backup behind Vetter, the interesting name to me is also from Mankato, former White Bear tender Calla Frank.Big Update to the Transfer Portal today with 17 players entering today. Transfer season has begun!
Suzette Faucher, So; GP=18 W=14 L=2 T=1 GA=17 Min=1035 GAA=0.99 SO=8 SV=426 SV%=.962
She's from Badger country, Middleton, WI, and played at S-SM.
I'll add Lucy Morgan from St. Lawrence via Maple Grove to this. Her numbers were down from her first three years but she has plenty of experience as a starter in one of the country's best conferences.
I agree she was a two time ECAC goalie of the year, a all American in a conference where that is dominated by Canadian Olympic players, and most of the pro women goalies are from the ECAC. what would the locker be like if your bring in a better goalie than what you have?
I take that back maybe we should go after her looking at the 1st goal on Friday that should of never happened having 2 good goalies pushing each other would only raise the bar especially next year when defense could be down
Any ideas as to which players are moving on (i.e. graduating)? Just curious who won't be on the roster for 2024. I'm trying to remain as optimistic as possible.
Any ideas as to which players are moving on (i.e. graduating)? Just curious who won't be on the roster for 2024. I'm trying to remain as optimistic as possible.
I posted this about a month ago in the Women’s thread. I think it’s pretty accurate.
A little early to think of this, but the season is winding down and it’s in my head this morning.
I’m counting 11 players departing at the end of the season and 6 incoming freshmen.
Goalie
Out: M. Pahl and O. King
In: none
Even if recent addition Sophia Johnson returns, a transfer tender (or late freshman signee) seems inevitable.
Defense
Out: G. Ostertag, C. Hengler, E. Oden and L. Norton
In: J. Hemp and E. Klepinger
Maggie Nicholson and Josie Dunne return after red-shirt seasons. Allie Franco looked o.k. in limited action, still, a transfer here probably isn’t out of the question. Long shot speculation, Emma Kreisz has quite a bit of experience on “D” in her younger days playing for Hungary.
Forwards
Out: C. Skaja, T. Heise, G. Zumwinkle, A. Boreen and S. Norcross
In: A. Lindsay, L. O’Hara, E. Kreisz and I. Goettl
Emma Conner returns after missing the bulk of this season with an injury. A transfer here seems possible also.
Would love one of the BC transfers-- get Norcross to work on them.
But if you can get the three from Mankato that makes your team better too and might be easier.
Another top “D” in the portal - Ohio State freshman Sidney Morrow. Younger sister Sophie, a sophomore at Shattuck, is also a top talent.
Another top “D” in the portal - Ohio State freshman Sidney Morrow. Younger sister Sophie, a sophomore at Shattuck, is also a top talent.
Morrow's from my home state of Connecticut. Wouldn't be surprised if she goes a little closer to home, an ECAC school or maybe Northeastern.
Obviously, the biggest must have for next year is a goalie. Beyond that, if I could pick just one player from the portal for next year only, not considering who may bring more value over three years, I would choose Wilgren. I get that Barnes is a two-time Olympian, but given that both of the incoming D strike me as more on the offensive side at this point of their careers, I think being solid on the back end is at a premium.
Welp. It was fun being competitive in the WCHA while it lasted.
OSU and Wisconsin are going to run away with this thing next year.
@gopherguy05 better get our defense tightened up it could get ugly we will be missing a lot of goal scorers it will take a good team effort to score on those teams!
“USA Hockey” youth nationals start Thursday in sites around the country. Girls Tier 1 will be held in Dallas for all age groups (14u, 16u and 19u). I’ll look at these one group at a time starting with 14u. Truthfully I don’t know a great deal about anyone here except the two local teams that come from the 14u fall league that is run by Minnesota Hockey. All of these girls are uncommitted and won’t be committing to schools for at least a year and a half.
The Minnesota Lakers represents Minnesota Hockey District 6. They won the 14u fall league. Some Lakers players to keep an eye on are:
- Callie Arthur (Blake) ‘27
- Ellie Stewart (Benilde) ‘26
- Addie Wethington (Blake) ‘27
- Katya Sander (Holy Family) ‘26
- Jemma McAlexander (Minnetonka) ‘27
- Audrey Davis (Edina 15u A) ‘27
The Minnesota Walleye represents Minnesota Hockey District 3. They finished second in the 14u fall league. Some Walleye players to keep an eye on are:
- Talla Hanson (Wayzata 15u A) ‘27
- Hadley Bakker (Osseo/Maple Grove 15u A) ‘27
Buckeyes add another top transfer.
This is getting ridiculous.
I guess losing the championship game still stings for muzzy pick up best available what do you do with your freshman recruits at Ohio ?
Got lazy yesterday. Here’s a little on the 16u division of the girls nationals starting tomorrow.
https://nationals.usahockey.com/2023girlstieri16u
Of course the biggest Gopher ties are with the Minnesota MSP Magazine team. The only three current commits at nationals are on this team: Kendra Distad (Minnetonka) ‘24, Ayla Puppe (Northfield) ‘24 and Carly Humphrey (Elk River) ‘24. Other likely targets include Chloe Boreen (Hill-Murray) ‘24, Makayla Moran (Apple Valley) ‘25 and Layla Hemp (Minnetonka) ‘25.
Shattuck’s 16u team is in the field. Rochester’s Sawyer Fleming ‘25 will likely be a top target. Sawyer’s older sister Delaney will be a freshman at Ohio State this fall, so that will likely be the biggest competition. Other Shattuck names to remember are Sophie Morrow ‘25 (from Darien, Connecticut), Sage Smith ‘25 (from Lafayette, Louisiana) and Mary Derrenbacher ‘27 (from Raleigh, North Carolina).
Chicago Mission has produced several Gophers over the years. A few to watch on this team: Ella Pukala ‘25, Iris Cheng ‘26 and Emerson Tuvell ‘26. Twins Nicole and Rachel Gorbatenko are talented players also, but older sister Kelly will be a badger freshman this fall so….
Team North Dakota has a couple of interesting players. Defender Kenleigh Fischer (Fargo North/South) ‘26 was the only freshman to be named all-state in North Dakota. Saw her a couple times in some of Winny’s summer events and was impressed. West Fargo had a very good 15uA team this winter. Probably a coin flip with Minnesota champion Edina. They have two players on this team Addison Moos ‘25 and Taylor Reese ‘26. Finally, I don’t know how good this girl might be, but I love a good story. Ashlyn Abrahamson ‘24 was the leading goal scorer (45) in the state by more than double over the second girl. Her team (Devils Lake) only won three games and only scored 71 goals total.
From the rest of the field, I’m no expert but I’ll throw out a couple of names. The girl that probably has her pick of schools is Bella Fanale ‘25 of Selects Academy (or Rochester Youth Hockey, as they’re called here). I’ve liked Kennedy Walker (East Coast Wizards) ‘25 and True Thompson (Little Caesars) ‘25 in some limited views.
I’ll wind this up with a little on the 19u division for the girl’s nationals. Not a lot to say from a recruiting angle as the large majority of these girls are older and have made their commitments. No local team except for the Shattuck Prep team who won the Minnesota district playoff last fall.
https://nationals.usahockey.com/2023girlstieri19u
Two class of ‘25 girls that will be getting a lot of recruiting attention are Megan Healy (Selects Academy) and Ava Thomas (Philadelphia Jr. Flyers). Healy is a defender from South Burlington, Vermont. She was one of the two 2007 birth years on the U.S. World u18 team in January. Thomas is a forward from Downington, Pennsylvania. Very athletic and skilled player.
Minnesota Walleye team wins the 14u division at USA Hockey nationals. The top seeded Minnesota Laker team loses in the quarterfinals.
https://nationals.usahockey.com/news_article/show/1267474
Girls mentioned in the story:
- Isabella Prosser (Osseo/Maple Grove 15uA)
- Ali Butler (Mound Westonka)
- Hadley Bakker (Osseo/Maple Grove 15uA)
- Madeline Elfstrand (Maple Grove)
- Madelyn Kimbrel (Orono)
- Talla Hansen (Wayzata 15uA)
Un bleeping believable.
Do they not have a recruiting class incoming or...
https://twitter.com/mattwellens/status/1643770106797862912?t=sZSyutsAb16b8bY2Cw-6ww&s=19
Don’t remember this being done in past years, but all-tournament teams have been released in the various divisions for the recently completed national championships. Here’s the 14u tier 1 division. I’ll have the 16u and the 19u a little later.
- G Isabella Prosser (Minnesota Walleyes/Osseo Maple Grove 15uA) ‘27
- D Margaret Averill (East Coast Wizards) from Wayland, Massachusetts
- D Madeline Elfstrand (Minnesota Walleyes/Maple Grove) ‘27
- F Talla Hansen (Minnesota Walleyes/Wayzata 15uA) ‘27
- F Madyson Kirsch (Pittsburgh Penguins Elite)
- F Annie Schwartz (Mid Fairfield Stars)
Sorry, wasn’t able to find grad years for the non-Minnesota girls.
The Minnesota Lakers team won one of the tier 2 14u titles. Minnetonka 12uA forward Sidney Boss Krohn was an all-tournament forward in that division. She is a ‘28 grad year and, while early, is an impressive player.