BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – The Western Collegiate Hockey Association is proud to recognize 25 student-athletes on its 2022-23 All-WCHA Teams, presented by Sterling Trophy.
 
Showcasing the strength of the league’s players have developed during their time within the WCHA, graduate players, fifth-years, and seniors account for 14 of the 19 spots overall among the All-WCHA First, Second, and Third teams.
 
The 2022-23 WCHA Forward, Defender, Goaltender, and Rookie of the Year are set to be announced on Wednesday, March 1. Coach, Outstanding Scholar-Athlete, and the 2022-23 WCHA Player of the Year will be announced on Thursday, March 2.
   

Name	Pos.	Class	School	Hometown
Taylor Heise	Forward	5Yr.	Minnesota	Lake City, Minn.
Grace Zumwinkle	Forward	5Yr.	Minnesota	Excelsior, Minn.
Jenn Gardiner	Forward	Sr.	Ohio State	Surrey, British Columbia
Sophie Jaques	Defense	Grad.	Ohio State	Toronto, Ontario
Ashton Bell	Defense	5Yr.	Minnesota Duluth	Deloraine, Manitoba
Emma Soderberg	Goaltender	Grad.	Minnesota Duluth	Jarved, Sweden

 
As the WCHA’s scoring champion, Minnesota’s Taylor Heise leads off the First Team All-WCHA lineup with her 57-point season by 25 goals and 32 assists. She tallied a league-leading four shorthanded goals on the year, and garnered WCHA Forward of the Week accolades on four occasions. By 22 goals and 30 assists, fellow Gopher Grace Zumwinkle joins First Team All-WCHA with 52 points and a plus-31 rating on the ice.  Zumwinkle was most recently January’s WCHA Forward of the Month and has net a nation-leading eight game-winning goals for Minnesota this season. Rounding out the forwards is Ohio State’s Jenn Gardiner, who has registered 53 points through the regular season by 20 goals and 33 assists. Behind her plus-35 rating on the ice, Gardiner has scored four power play goals in addition to her three game-winners.
 
A player highlighted all season for her outstanding contributions from the blueline, Sophie Jaques has been named First Team All-WCHA after recording a the most points by any defender in the league with 19 goals and 23 assists for 42 total points. Jaques has been a six-time WCHA Defender of the Week honoree, two-time WCHA Defender of the Month, and set the Ohio State career scoring record by a defender. She is joined on the First Team by Minnesota Duluth’s Ashton Bell, who held 33 points through the regular season by 12 goals and 21 assists. A native of Deloraine, Manitoba, Bell earned a plus-27 rating on the ice and was both a two-time WCHA Defender of the Week and WCHA Defender of the Month honoree.
 
Rounding out First Team All-WCHA is Minnesota Duluth netminder Emma Soderberg. Through her 1648:41 of action this season, Soderberg has earned a .935 save percentage and 1.419 goals against average to become the league’s 2023 Goaltending Champion. Soderberg recently set the Minnesota Duluth program record with her 21st career shutout, that included 10 this season. A four-time WCHA Goaltender of the Week, Soderberg led off the season with a WCHA Goaltender of the Month title for her play in September.
   

Name	Pos.	Class	School	Hometown
Gabbie Hughes	Forward	Grad.	Minnesota Duluth	Lino Lakes, Minn.
Emma Maltais	Forward	Grad.	Ohio State	Burlington, Ontario
Casey O’Brien	Forward	Jr.	Wisconsin	Milton, Mass.
Caroline Harvey	Defense	Fr.	Wisconsin	Salem, N.H.
Nicole LaMantia	Defense	Grad.	Wisconsin	Wayne, Ill.
Saskia Maurer	Goaltender	So.	St. Thomas	Rothenbach, Switzerland

 
The Second Team All-WCHA honorees is home to a pair of 200-point scorers as Minnesota Duluth’s Gabbie Hughes holds 45 on the year by 10 goals and 35 assists. She has tallied three power play goals, 405 faceoff wins, and recently surpassed 200 career points. Hughes is joined on the Second Team by Ohio State’s Emma Maltais, who holds 42 points by nine goals and 33 assists this season. A two-time WCHA Forward of the Week, Maltais has recorded two game-winners, two power play goals, and a shorthanded goal on her way to becoming the first Buckeye in program history to reach 200 career points. Rounding out the forwards is Wisconsin’s Casey O’Brien, who net 16 goals and 24 assists for 40 points through the regular season. A well-rounded player, O’Brien recorded four game-winners off of 159 shots on goal, along with 341 faceoff wins.
 
Defensively, the Second Team is made up by Wisconsin’s Caroline Harvey and Nicole LaMantia. Harvey, a first-year that has tallied 34 points by 10 goals and 24 assists, has skated to a plus-34 rating on the ice. She’s joined by LaMantia, who’s posted 26 points by 10 goals and 16 assists, while marking an impressive 49 blocked shots.
 
Between the pipes for the Second Team squad is St. Thomas’ Saskia Maurer, who has earned a .917 save percentage and 2.921 goals against average through 1129:39 of action. The Tommie recently posted a 53-save shutout that helped St. Thomas claim a league point from the No. 4 team in the nation, and has marked 24 saves in a period on two occasions this season. Ultimately, Maurer has earned 45 or more saves in a game on five occasions as a sophomore and has been named WCHA Goaltender of the Week twice.
   

Name	Pos.	Class	School	Hometown
Paetyn Levis	Forward	Grad.	Ohio State	Rogers, Minn.
Abbey Murphy	Forward	So.	Minnesota	Evergreen Park, Ill.
Britta Curl	Forward	RSr.	Wisconsin	Bismarck, N.D.
Abigail Boreen	Forward	5Yr.	Minnesota	Somerset, Wis.
Maggie Flaherty	Defense	Grad.	Minnesota Duluth	Lakeville, Minn.
Madison Bizal	Defense	Grad.	Ohio State	Elk River, Minn.
Skylar Vetter	Goaltender	So.	Minnesota	Lakeville, Minn.

   
The WCHA’s two-time Forward of the Week, Paetyn Levis of Ohio State leads off the Third Team All-WCHA squad as she holds 37 points on the year by 21 goals and 16 assists. Levis holds an impressive five power play goals and five game-winners. She’s joined by Minnesota’s Abbey Murphy, who holds 43 points by 24 goals and 19 assists on the year. Murphy also net five game-winning goals and power play tallies and was recognized as October’s WCHA Forward of the Month. She’s joined by fellow Gopher Abigail Boreen, who has net six power play goals on her way to 33 total points by 21 goals and 12 assists. Wisconsin’s Britta Curl completes the Third Team forwards behind her 33-point season, in which she’s tallied 17 goals and 16 assists, along with 45 blocked shots on the year.
 
Defensively, Minnesota Duluth’s Maggie Flaherty and Ohio State’s Madison Bizal complete the blueline. Flaherty has tallied 24 points by eight goals and 16 assists, while skating to a plus-32 rating on the ice. She has also tallied 50 blocked shots, matched by fellow Third Team blueliner Bizal, who recently scored the game-winning goal to clinch the Julianne Bye Cup for the first time in program history for the Buckeyes. Bizal earned 19 points on the year behind four goals and 15 assists.
 
Rounding out the Third Team honorees is Minnesota netminder Skylar Vetter, as she earned a .920 save percentage and 1.964 goals against average through 1740:59 of action. Vetter has built a 22-5-3 record on her way to three WCHA Goaltender of the Month titles and six WCHA Goaltender of the Week honors.
   

Name	Pos.	Class	School	Hometown
Kirsten Simms	Forward	Fr.	Wisconsin	Plymouth, Mich.
Laila Edwards	Forward	Fr.	Wisconsin	Cleveland Heights, Ohio
Taylor Otremba	Forward	Fr.	Minnesota State	Lakeville, Minn.
Caroline Harvey	Defense	Fr.	Wisconsin	Salem, N.H.
Nelli Laitinen	Defense	Fr.	Minnesota	Lohja, Finland
Hailey MacLeod	Goaltender	Fr.	Minnesota Duluth	Abbotsford, British Columbia

 
Showcasing the top first-year talent in the league is the WCHA All-Rookie Team, led off by December’s WCHA Rookie of the Month in Wisconsin’s Kirsten Simms. In her first season, Simms has registered 27 points by 13 goals and 14 assists, and most recently scored the overtime game-winning goal for the Badgers over the top team in the nation by capitalizing on a penalty shot opportunity. She’s joined by fellow Badger Laila Edwards and Caroline Harvey. Edwards earned her slot on the All-Rookie Team behind a 21-point season with nine goals and 12 assists, while skating to a plus-22 rating.
 
Rounding out the forwards is Minnesota State’s Taylor Otremba, who earned 20 points in the 2022-23 regular season. Marking eight goals and 12 assists, Otremba was most recently the January WCHA Rookie of the Month along with a three-time WCHA Rookie of the Week honoree.
 
Defensively, Harvey scored 34 points from the blueline behind 10 goals and 24 assists. The mark is the most of any first-year player in the league, while she was honored as a two-time WCHA Rookie of the Month. Harvey is joined on the All-Rookie Team by Minnesota defender Nelli Laitinen, who despite missing a handful of games due to injury, still produced a 16-point regular season. Her 25 games played included a trio of goals, 13 assists, and 20 blocked shots.
 
For her outstanding .936 save percentage and 1.027 goals against average, Minnesota Duluth’s Hailey MacLeod completes the All-Rookie Team as the goaltender honoree. MacLeod saw 409:05 of action, where she earned an unbeaten 5-0-1 record and recorded her first career shutout. Ultimately, MacLeod made 103 saves on the 110 shots she faced, only allowing seven goals on the season.
 
About Sterling Trophy
Sterling Trophy has grown into a leader in the award and recognition industry in the Twin Cities since its founding in 1999. A family business that started in the basement of the home of founders David Steinbring and Patty Steinbring, Sterling Trophy has built a proud tradition of quality service and unique products. For more information, visit sterlingtrophy.net.