Coach Brad Frost wasn't sure what to expect from the Gophers women's hockey team to start the season. Eleven players had graduated from the 2023 squad that advanced to the NCAA Frozen Four, and that included stars Taylor Heise, the 2022 Patty Kazmaier Award winner, and Grace Zumwinkle, a two-time Kazmaier finalist.
Rebuilt Gophers women's hockey team gets another shot at No. 1 Ohio State
After graduating 11 players, new Gophers women's hockey roster pieces came together for a strong first half, including a close series against the Buckeyes.
January 12, 2024 at 1:12AM
The Gophers' first big test came in an October series at Ohio State, last year's national runner-up. Though the Buckeyes emerged with a 4-3 overtime win and a 6-5 regulation triumph, Frost saw reason for optimism.
"We actually were really encouraged after that because that was at a point in time where we didn't really know what we had," he said.
The Gophers will get another chance to gauge themselves against the Buckeyes at 6 p.m. Friday and 2 p.m. Saturday at Ridder Arena. Top-ranked Ohio State (16-2, 13-1 WCHA) takes on No. 2 Minnesota (16-3-1, 10-3-1) in a matchup heavy with conference and national tournament implications.
The WCHA has the top three teams in the U.S. College Hockey Online poll, with defending NCAA champion Wisconsin ranked third. The Buckeyes sit atop the WCHA with 37 points, four ahead of the Gophers and six ahead of the Badgers. Both Minnesota and Ohio State have a series remaining against Wisconsin.
While last year's Gophers featured a balanced lineup with nine players collecting 26 points or more, this season's squad is excelling thanks in large part to a prolific line that — in a nod to "The Blues Brothers" — could be called Murph and the Magic Sticks.
Junior right winger Abbey Murphy leads the nation with 22 goals — four more than anyone else — and ranks fifth in points with 36. She's the linchpin of a line that includes junior center Ella Huber (eight goals, 15 assists, 23 points) and sophomore left winger Josefin Bouveng (6-17-23). The trio has combined for 43.9% of the team's goals and 38.6% of its assists.
Frost, though, doesn't consider the Gophers a one-line team.
"Obviously, Abbey Murphy, arguably the best player in the country, is scoring a ton of goals for us," he said. "But we're getting that secondary scoring as well. Players are being put in positions that they hadn't been in prior to this year in their career with us, and they've performed really, really well."
Bouveng, a Vassunda, Sweden native, has already eclipsed the 16 points she tallied last season and is on pace to collect 39 points. Huber is on pace for a career-high 14 goals.
The Gophers also are getting strong contributions from junior forward Peyton Hemp (8-9-17), sophomore defenseman Nelli Laitinen (6-9-15) and freshman forwards Emma Kreisz (3-12-15) and Ava Lindsay (7-7-14).
Backing it up are goalies Skylar Vetter, a junior who is 8-3-1 with a 1.91 goals-against average and .934 save percentage in 12 starts, and senior Lucy Morgan, a transfer from St. Lawrence who is 8-0 with a 1.37 GAA and .946 save percentage in eight starts.
"We've got two incredible goalies," Frost said, "and they give us a chance every night."
They'll need them against a Buckeyes team averaging 4.8 goals and giving up 1.5 per game. Led by forward Jennifer Gardiner (11-12-23), the Buckeyes have 12 players with 11 or more points.
"They're one of the best women's hockey teams in my time here," said Frost, who has been with the program for 24 years. "They're incredibly deep, they're relentless on the puck. … They're legit, so they'll be a great test for us."
Minnesota, ranked first in the nation, dealt with injury and absence against No. 3 Michigan State.
