Gophers Set for Road Test in Ohio

MINNEAPOLIS – Minnesota (22-3-1, 12-3-1-0 WCHA) is back on the road for a WCHA series at No. 7 Ohio State (15-9-0, 9-7-0 WCHA) this week. The Gophers and Buckeyes face off at 5:07 p.m. CT Friday and 2:07 p.m. CT Saturday.

Fans can follow along by watching online via BTN Plus or FloHockey, and free audio and live stats are available at GopherSports.com.

About the Series: Gophers vs. Buckeyes
Minnesota owns an all-time record of 72-12-5 against Ohio State. The Gophers and Buckeyes split a series at Ridder Arena earlier this season. Minnesota won 3-0 in game on behind two goals from Taylor Williamson and one from Catie Skaja along with an 18-save shutout from Alex Gulstene but dropped a 3-2 decision in game two despite goals from Williamson and Nicole Schammel and 24 saves from Sydney Scobee.

Last Time Out: Gophers Split with Badgers
The Gophers earned a WCHA split with top-ranked Wisconsin last weekend. Minnesota fell 2-1 in game one before winning 3-1 in game two. Nicole Schammel led the Gophers with four points (3g-1a), contributing to all four goals. Grace Zumwinkle (3a), Sophie Skarzynski (1g-1a), and Patti Marshall (2a) also recorded multiple points in the series with the Badgers.

Spreading the Wealth
Nine Gopher forwards have scored at least six goals this season and, in total, 18 different skaters have scored goals. Thirteen different Gophers are in double figures for points, and 21 different players have at least one point on the year. Thirteen different players have scored game-winning goals for Minnesota led by four from Taylor Heise.

League's Top-Scoring Offense
This season, the Maroon & Gold have the WCHA's top-scoring offense averaging 4.27 goals per game while allowing just 1.65 goals per game. The Gophers had a 14-game winning streak from Nov. 2 to Jan. 12, outscoring opponents, 74-24.

Special Teams Show Improvement
The Gophers rank third in the WCHA with a .206 power play percentage this season, going 14-for-68 on the power play. In 16 games since Nov. 1, Minnesota is 9-for-37 on the power play (.243), good for second in the league. During the same stretch, Minnesota is 39-for-44 for the league's second-best penalty kill at .886.

Scoring Leaders
Through 26 games this season, Nicole Schammel (9g-24a), Grace Zumwinkle (18g-14a), and Taylor Heise (9g-16a) lead Minnesota in scoring. Kelly Pannek (11g-9a) and Amy Potomak (6g-14a) have also reached the 20-point mark this season as well. Zumwinkle leads the league with 18 goals while Schammel leads the WCHA with 33 points and 24 assists. Meanwhile, Taylor Heise (9g-16a) leads WCHA rookies with 25 points.

Offensive Defense
Two Gopher defense rank among the league's top scoring blue-liners. Emily Brown (4g-15a) leads WCHA defense with four goals and is tied for the lead among the league's blue-liners with 19 points while Patti Marshall (2g-14a) is tied for third in scoring among WCHA defense with 16 points.

Coaching Milestone
Earlier this season, the Gophers' 1-0 win over Wisconsin (Oct. 27) marked the 350th career win for head coach Brad Frost, whose all-time coaching record now stands at 365-67-31. Frost is in his 12th season at the helm of the program.

Scoring Milestones
Kelly Pannek is Minnesota's active career scoring leader as she ranks 10th among all-time Gophers with 175 points (67g-108a). She is chasing Gigi Marvin in ninth place (87g-108a). Pannek's 108 career assists rank ninth in program history as well. She recorded her 100th career assist in Minnesota's season-opener. Meanwhile, Sarah Potomak is 31st in program history with 116 career points (39g-77a), trailing 30th-ranked Milica McMillen with 120 career points (44g-76a).

First-Career Goals
Five Gopher rookies have scored their first collegiate goals as Amy Potomak (Sept. 28) and Taylor Heise (Sept. 29) scored in Minnesota's season-opening weekend while Catie Skaja found the back of the net against Minnesota Duluth (Oct. 5), and Emily Oden scored her first two career goals against St. Cloud State (Oct. 13). Abigail Boreen netted her first collegiate goal against St. Cloud State (Nov. 17).

Up Next: Gophers Host Bulldogs
Minnesota returns home to host Minnesota Duluth in a WCHA series on Saturday, Feb. 2 and Sunday, Feb. 3. The teams have met three times this season with the Gophers holding a 2-0-1 record against the Bulldogs this year.

Twenty Years of WCHA Women's Hockey
The 2018-19 season marks the league's 20th anniversary season. Throughout the season, the WCHA will celebrate the past, present, and future of college hockey's premier conference.

Nationwide Gophers
After Minnesota played in the Windjammer Classic (Nov. 23-24), Vermont is now the 14th state where the Gophers have competed in program history: Connecticut, Minnesota, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin.

Gophers Medal at Four Nations Cup
Kelly Pannek joined Gopher alums Megan Bozek, Hannah Brandt, Dani Cameranesi, Amanda Kessel, and Gigi Marvin in winning gold with the U.S. Women's National Team at the 2018 Four Nations Cup. Fellow Gophers alumna Noora Raty won bronze with Finland in the tournament, while redshirt junior Sarah Potomak was named to Canada's National Women's Team for the tournament but was unable to participate due to injury.

Home, Sweet Home
The 2018-19 season marks the 17th season of Ridder Arena serving as the home of Gopher women's hockey. Minnesota entered the season with a record of 268-42-21 in home games at Ridder Arena, dating back to the 2002-03 season.

Pannek Serving as Captain
Senior Kelly Pannek is Minnesota's captain this year. Pannek returns to Minnesota for her redshirt senior season as an Olympic gold medalist after helping Team USA to gold at the 2018 Winter Olympic Games.

Gophers Tabbed as League Favorite
Minnesota and Wisconsin tied for the top spot in the 2018-19 WCHA Preseason Coaches' Poll with 33 points apiece. Defending WCHA Final Faceoff champion Minnesota and defending WCHA regular season champion Wisconsin collected all seven first-place votes in the poll as the Badgers had four votes and the Gophers received three. Ohio State earned 24 points to edge Minnesota Duluth by one point and secure the third spot in the poll while Bemidji State (16), St. Cloud State (12), and Minnesota State (6) rounded out this year's poll.

Who's Back?
The Gophers return 17 players from last year's team, including seven seniors. Minnesota returns seven of its top-10 leading scorers from last year, including 2018 WCHA Scoring Champion and team scoring leader Grace Zumwinkle (17g-21a). Nicole Schammel returns after recording a career-high 32 points (17g-15a) last season, and Sophie Skarzynski (8g-19a) was one of the Gophers' top-five leading scorers a year ago as well. Along with 17 returners, the Gophers enjoy the addition of three players who red-shirted the 2017-18 season: U.S. Olympic gold medalist Kelly Pannek and Canada's National Women's Team members Amy Potomak and Sarah Potomak.

Heise Leads Incoming Class
Seven newcomers join the Gophers for the 2018-19 season, made up of six true freshmen and one junior transfer. WCHA Preseason Rookie of the Year Taylor Heise (Lake City, Minn./Red Wing HS) leads Minnesota's talented freshmen class, which includes Abigail Boreen (Somerset, Wis./Hill-Murray), Crystalyn Hengler (Eden Prairie, Minn./Eden Prairie HS), Emily Oden (Edina, Minn./Edina HS), Gracie Ostertag (Shakopee, Minn./Shattuck St. Mary's), and Catie Skaja (New Prague, Minn./New Prague HS) along with Heise. Meanwhile, goaltender Sydney Scobee (Minnetrista, Minn.) joins the Maroon & Gold after spending two years at the University of Vermont where she played in 31 games, posting a .923 save percentage and a 2.59 goals against average.

Season Recap: A Look Back at 2017-18
Minnesota's 2017-18 season came to a close in the NCAA quarterfinal round after the Gophers punched their ticket to the NCAA tournament by winning the program's seventh overall WCHA Final Faceoff title and the team's first since 2013-14. The Gophers posted an overall record of 24-11-3 while going 13-8-3-0 in WCHA action. Minnesota finished third in the WCHA regular season race. Sydney Baldwin collected WCHA Player of the Year, WCHA Defensive Player of the Year, and CCM/AHCA All-American First Team honors while Sidney Peters was selected as this year's recipient of the prestigious Hockey Humanitarian Award.

WCHA Final Faceoff Returns to Ridder Arena
Minnesota will serve as host of the WCHA Final Faceoff in each of the next four seasons. The 2019 WCHA Final Faceoff is set for March 9-10, and the league awarded the 2020 through 2022 tournaments to Ridder Arena prior to the start of the 2018-19 season. The decision for the host site for the next three-year championship cycle was made following a vetting process by the league's Postseason Tournament Committee of submitted bids, the committee's subsequent recommendation, and a unanimous vote of approval by the WCHA Women's League Board of Directors. The league's postseason tournament has been held at Ridder Arena 11 times, most recently in 2017-18. Ridder Arena has also hosted the NCAA Women's Frozen Four in 2010, 2013, 2015, and 2018.

Goldy's Kids Club Returns in 2018-19
Youth in 8th grade or under can receive exclusive access to sporting events and Gopher gear. Goldy's Kids Club annual memberships run from July to May and allows members to have exclusive access to select ticket deals and special events. New Goldy's Kids Club memberships are $25 for each child and renewals are $20 for each child. All Goldy's Kids Club members receive free admission to all regular-season Gopher women's hockey home games at Ridder Arena.

Quest for Eighth National Title in 2018-19
Minnesota has won four of the last seven national championships and has seven national titles overall (2000, 2004, 2005, 2012, 2013, 2015, and 2016). The program looks for a historic eighth title national crown in 2018-19.

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Players Mentioned

Sydney Baldwin

Abigail Boreen

Emily Brown

Alex Gulstene

Taylor Heise

Crystalyn Hengler

Patti Marshall

Emily Oden

Gracie Ostertag

Kelly Pannek

Sidney Peters

Amy Potomak

Sarah Potomak

Nicole Schammel

Sydney Scobee

Catie Skaja

Sophie Skarzynski

Taylor Williamson

Grace Zumwinkle