R 2016-17 WCHA SEASON IN REVIEW JULY 10, 2017 / wcha.com @wcha_whockey @wcha_whockey /WCHAWomensHockey Matt Hodson ● o: 952-818-8872 ● c: 612-801-2808 ● [email protected] WESTERN COLLEGIATE OPENING FACE-OFF HOCKEY ASSOCIATION • No. 18 In the Books: The Women's League of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) proudly completed its 18th • FOUNDED 1999 • year of competition in 2016-17, another fantastic season of on- and off-ice accomplishments by its student-athletes, coaches Minnesota State Univ., Mankato at Edina and programs. 7700 France Avenue South, Suite 360C • The WCHA led the country with three teams in the top-five of the final opinion polls; landed three programs in the Edina, MN 55435 NCAA tournament and comprised half of the Frozen Four Field; celebrated the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award 952-818-8869 winner, along with another top-three finalist and five top-10 finalists; honored the National Coach of the Year (as awarded by both the American Hockey Coaches Association (AHCA)/CCM Hockey and USCHO); saw a NCAA-high eight MEMBER TEAMS players earn AHCA/CCM Hockey All-America accolades; was inspired by the four student-athletes nominated for the Bemidji State University NCAA Woman of the Year and/or the Hockey Humanitarian award; and, applauded numerous current and former University of Minnesota players that competed on the international stage, along with 39 alumnae that starred professionally in either the University of Minnesota Duluth Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL) or the National Women's Hockey League (NWHL). Minnesota State University, Mankato • Polling Place: Second-ranked Wisconsin, No. 4 Minnesota and No. 5 Minnesota Duluth gave the WCHA an NCAA-best three of Ohio State University the top-five teams in the final USCHO.com and USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine opinion polls. St. Cloud State University • Five (5) of the WCHA’s eight teams (also Bemidji State and North Dakota) spent at least one week ranked in the top 10 University of Wisconsin of at least one poll, while a sixth school (Ohio State) received votes at various times. • NCAA Tournament and the Frozen Four: For the first time since 2012, the WCHA landed three teams in the NCAA 16 National Championships tournament: Top overall seed Wisconsin, No. 3 seed Minnesota Duluth and Minnesota. 95 All-Americans • For the fourth-straight year and 12th time in the event’s 17-year history, at least half of the NCAA Women's Frozen 100+ Olympians and Four field was comprised of teams from the WCHA, with the Badgers and Gophers competing in national semifinals. National Team Members • With UW's appearance, the WCHA has been in every NCAA National Championship game held to date (17-straight). • Badgers Remain atop WCHA Mountain: Wisconsin’s stellar season included its second-consecutive WCHA regular season title and its third-straight Final Face-Off crown. 2017-18 IMPORTANT DATES • The Badgers repeated as league regular season champions, capturing the program’s sixth WCHA title with a 22-win, 73-point campaign. Date Event • UW won its league-record seventh WCHA playoff championship, while becoming the second team in league history to Sept. 22-24 Regular Season begins earn three-straight postseason titles, by defeating North Dakota and Minnesota Duluth to win the 2017 Final Face-Off. Oct. 6-8 First WCHA league series • National On-Ice Accolades led by Patty Kaz: Wisconsin senior goaltender Ann-Renée Desbiens, who cemented her place as Oct. 13-15 First weekend of three (3) one of the sport’s all-time greatest during a record-setting career in the Badger net, won the 2017 Patty Kazmaier Memorial WCHA league series Award as the top player in Division I. Nov. 6 U.S. HOF Game • The WCHA also boasted two of the top-3 Patty Kaz finalists, along with star Minnesota Duluth senior forward Lara BSU v. UMD Stalder. Minnesota forwards Kelly Pannek and Sarah Potomak (as a sophomore, the lone underclassmen in the group), and Wisconsin junior forward Annie Pankowski (a two-time top-10 finalist), gave the WCHA a NCAA-best five Nov. 24-26 In-season tournaments players among the top-10 finalists. Windjammer Classic • For leading Minnesota Duluth to a 25-win campaign, an NCAA-best 12-game improvement over the previous season D.C. Tournament and its first NCAA tournament appearance since 2011, second-year bench boss Maura Crowell was named the Dec. 18-Jan. 1 Holiday Break national Coach of the Year by both AHCA/CCM Hockey and USCHO. Jan. 2-4 Play resumes • A NCAA-high Eight WCHA players earned AHCA/CCM Hockey All-America honors, including first-team selections Jan. 20 Hockey Day Minnesota Desbiens (UW), Minnesota senior defenseman Lee Stecklein, the Gophers' Pannek (a junior) and Stalder (UMD). UMD at SCSU Ohio State redshirt-sophomore goaltender Kassidy Sauve, along with Wisconsin teammates Jenny Ryan (senior, Feb. 16-18 Final weekend of the defenseman), Sarah Nurse (senior, forward) and Pankowski (junior, forward) garnered second-team accolades. regular season • The WCHA was also well-represented on the All-USCHO teams, with nine players earning recognition: UW's Desbiens, Feb. 23-25 2018 WCHA Quarterfinals UMN's Pannek and UMD's Stalder (First Team); UMN's Stecklein and UW's Pankowski (Second Team); and, UMD's Host sites; seeds 2-4 Sidney Morin (senior defenseman), UW's Ryan and Sarah Nurse (senior forward), and UMN's Potomak (Third Team). Top seed receives bye • College Hockey's Best Fans: For the sixth straight season, WCHA teams ranked 1-4 nationally by total and average attendance. March 3-4 2018 WCHA Final Faceoff • Wisconsin drew 55,315 (2,911 per game) for 18 dates at LaBahn Arena and one game at the Kohl Center; Minnesota Ridder Arena welcomed 39,059 (1,953) over 19 dates at Ridder Arena and one game at Braemar Arena; 22,342 fans (1,176) saw Minneapolis, MN games at Minnesota Duluth’s AMSOIL Arena and North Dakota hosted 15,344 (808) at the Ralph Engelstad Arena. March 9-11 2018 NCAA Quarterfinals FINAL 2016-17 WCHA STANDINGS Host sites; top four seeds Conference Overall March 16-18 2018 NCAA Frozen Four Rk (Natl Rank) Team Pts GP W L T SW % GF GA GP W L T % GF GA Ridder Arena 1 (2/2) Wisconsin 73 28 22 2 4 3 .857 110 24 40 33 3 4 .875 157 35 2 (3/3) Minnesota 65 28 19 4 5 3 .768 88 46 39 26 8 5 .731 124 69 3 (5/5) Minnesota Duluth 62 28 19 5 4 1 .750 82 47 37 25 7 5 .743 110 62 4 North Dakota 41 28 11 12 5 3 .482 62 57 38 16 16 6 .500 84 73 5 Ohio State 28 28 7 16 5 2 .339 40 73 37 14 18 5 .446 69 82 6 St. Cloud State 26 28 7 18 3 2 .304 43 82 36 9 23 4 .306 61 113 7 Bemidji State 25 28 7 18 3 1 .304 49 80 35 12 20 3 .386 67 90 8 Minnesota State 16 28 4 21 3 1 .196 33 98 37 7 26 4 .243 45 127 (shootout win = 1 additional point; rankings listed by USCHO.com first, followed by USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine) HOME OF A RECORD 16 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP TEAMS 2000 • 2001 • 2002 • 2003 • 2004 • 2005 •2006 • 2007 • 2008 • 2009 • 2010 • 2011 • 2012 • 2013 • 2015 • 2016 TRADITION STARTS HERE 2016-17 WCHA SEASON IN REVIEW - NEWS AND NOTES #WeAreWCHA CELEBRATING INCREDIBLE ACCOMPLISHMENTS THE NEXT LEVEL • Desbiens' Record-Setting Career: Fans of Wisconsin women’s hockey and the • International Stage: The nation's premier women's college hockey conference WCHA have had the privilege of watching Ann-Renée Desbiens fashion possibly continued to make its mark on international ice during the 2016-17 season. the greatest goaltending career in the sport’s history. Through 122 record- • Four Nations Cup: Twenty-nine (29) current or former WCHA student- setting games in a Badgers sweater, Desbiens kept pucks out of the net at an athletes, representing seven member institutions and all four competing historic rate, helped UW to tremendous team success and, with an equally countries, participated in the 2016 Four Nations Cup hosted by Finland. impressive commitment to academics and the Madison community, crafted a truly • The U.S. won its second consecutive Four Nations Cup gold medal remarkable legacy. with a roster featuring 13 WCHA players - including 2016-17 • Desbiens set NCAA Division I career records (regardless of gender) with 55 student-athletes Annie Pankowski (Wisconsin) and Lee Stecklein shutouts (topping the 43 by Minnesota's Noora Räty from 2010-13), a 0.89 (Minnesota). Team USA defeated Canada, 5-3, in the championship goals-against average (lower than the 1.09 mark posted by UW's Christine game behind three combined goals from former Badgers stars Hilary Dufour from 2004-07) and a .955 save percentage (besting the .947 mark Knight (2g) and Brianna Decker (1g). by UMN's Amanda Leveille between 2013-16). • IIHF Worlds: Forty-six (46) current, former or incoming WCHA student- • She holds NCAA Division I single-season standards (regardless of gender) athletes, representing seven member institutions and competing in the same categories, with 21 shutouts in 2015-16 (Räty had 16 in 2012- for all eight participating countries, skated in the 2017 IIHF World 13), a 0.71 GAA in 2016-17 (her 0.76 mark in 2015-16 was also a record Championships. at the time, topping the 0.83 by UW's Jesse Vetter in 2006-07) and a .963 • Led by the 13 who helped the United States win its fourth save percentage in 2016-17 (again, her .960 in 2015-16 had been the consecutive gold, 30 players with WCHA ties medaled at the 2017 record, breaking the previous mark of .956 set by Räty in 2012-13).