UMD Women’s Hockey: Bulldogs’ Hughes Appointed Top-3 Finalist for Patty Kazmaier, Joins Giguere as All-American – Duluth News Tribune

UNIVERSITY PARK, Penn. Minnesota Duluth fifth-year senior wing Elizabeth Giguere – who won the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award as a junior at Clarkson in 2020 – will not come up with Harvard Jennifer Botterill as the sole two-time winner of the award this year.

But she got her linemate, Gabbie Hughes, saying, “I told you so,” on Thursday.

A vocal advocate for Hughes’ candidacy even before the top-10 finalists were ever announced, Giguere was pleased to celebrate her team-mate as the top-3 finalist for Patty Kaz on Thursday. Hughes has been joined by two other WCHA rivals – Minnesota senior striker Taylor Heise and Ohio State senior defender Sophie Jacques.

Jacques, Heise and Hughes were also named on Thursday by the American Hockey Coaches Association as the first All-American team. The Giguere have been named the second team for their fourth All-American honor in five seasons after landing on the first team in 2019 and 2020.

Hughes said it meant a lot to have the support of a fellow finalist in Giguere throughout the process, and it was even funny at times.

It’s hard to have the support of all his teammates, Hughes said.

“It feels amazing, it’s such an amazing award,” Hughes said of being among the top three for Patty Kaz. “The support and happiness from that wardrobe just showed a lot about Bulldog Country and how excited they were for us in the program to get a top-three Patty cat in there. That was the happiest feeling I’ve ever had. . “

The announcement for Patty Kaz came shortly after the Bulldogs closed practice on Thursday morning – and all Americans were announced in the afternoon – at the Pegula Ice Arena on the campus of Penn State University. UMD takes on Northeastern at 2:30 p.m. Friday in the first semifinal of the NCAA Frozen Four.

Jacques – the WCHA Defender of the Year and WCHA Final Faceoff Most Outstanding Player – and the Buckeyes play Yale in the other semifinal at 6 p.m. Heise and the Gophers were knocked out of the tournament by the Bulldogs last week.

Hughes played a major role in keeping WCHA regular season champion Gophers out of the Frozen Four, scoring the game-winning goal last Saturday in the NCAA quarterfinals at the Knights Arena in Minneapolis to give the Bulldogs a 2-1 victory over their biggest rival ginn. .

Hughes also had a natural hat trick in the UMD’s 4-0 victory in the first round over Harvard last Thursday. She goes into the Frozen Four with 59 points and 39 games tied for third in the nation. Their 22 goals are among the top 10 in the country, and their 37 assists are among the top five.

“She did well, did she?” Giguere said with a laugh Thursday in Pegula when asked about Hughes’ Patty Kaz candidacy. The question came before the top-3 were announced. “She deserves it more than anyone. What she did in the regular season, she does now in the postseason. I’m not surprised, I’m very happy for her and hopefully it will continue.

As strong as Hughes was on the ice, it was from the ice where she separated herself from the other finalists for the Patty Kazmaier Award, arguing like Giguere.

One of only three players to be a finalist for the Hockey Humanitarian Award and in the top-3 for Patty Kaz, Hughes has been a strong advocate this season for mental health issues affecting college, high school and youth athletes, and works with UMD’s Green Bandana Project and help Sophie find her cadre.

The Green Bandana Project is a mental health awareness campaign on the UMD campus, where student-athletes tie a green bandana to their backpacks to show support for mental health and signal solidarity with those struggling with mental illness. They also carry a resource map with local and national information for organizations such as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and the UMD Counseling Center.

Sophie’s Squad is in honor of 14-year-old Sophie Wieland, who died in the summer of suicide. Wieland was a friend and player who had trained Hughes and her family. Sophie’s squad to help raise awareness of mental health issues facing athletes at the youth and college level, and the organization held a hockey hits back event this season at the Amsoil Arena to raise funds and raise mental health awareness the collection.

“Gabbie is an amazing player and person. So many people do not know what she’s doing outside of the rink, and I think that’s a big thing that should go with the award,” Giguere said earlier this month. “She manages her time so well. What she did with the Green Bandana Project and Sophie’s Squad this year was just a ghost for me because I’ve never been a part of it.

Hughes is the seventh Bulldog to be named a Top 3 finalist for the Patty Kazmaier Award and the first since Lara Stalder to make the Top 3 in 2017. No Bulldog has ever won the Patty Kazmaier (though a Patty Kazmaier winner, Giguere, played in the UMD).

The 2022 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award will be announced during an hour-long television special on the NHL Network at 10:30 a.m. March 26th.

The AHCA named Yale’s Mark Bolding the Division I Women’s Coach of the Year after leading his Bulldogs to their first NCAA Tournament appearance and their first Frozen Four appearance. Bolding was named three times Division III National Coach of the Year in Norwich.

UMD coach Maura Crowell, Division I Women’s Coach of the Year 2017, was a finalist for the second consecutive season 2021-22.

This story was updated at 5:22 pm with comments from Hughes and at 1:51 pm Thursday, March 17, with the announcement of the All-American teams and National Coaches of the Year. It was originally posted at 11:11 on Thursday, March 17th.