The 10 finalists for the 2026 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award were announced today by The USA Hockey Foundation, and the list includes six players from the Western Collegiate Hockey Association representing three teams in the league.
The honor, which was first presented in 1998, is awarded annually to the top player in NCAA Division I Women’s Ice Hockey by The USA Hockey Foundation.
Click here for the full list of finalists.
Representing the WCHA on the top 10 list this season are the University of Wisconsin's Lacey Eden, Caroline Harvey, Laila Edwards, and Kirsten Simms, along with the University of Minnesota's Abbey Murphy and The Ohio State University's Joy Dunne. Five of the six were named top-10 finalists for the honor last season in Harvey, Dunne, Murphy, Simms, and Edwards. Wisconsin's Harvey and Edwards were also top-three finalists for the honor a season ago, along with teammate Casey O'Brien, who won the honor last season.
The top-three finalists are expected to be announced on Wednesday, March 11, with the winner being revealed on March 21 as the highlight of Saturday at the NCAA Women’s Frozen Four on the campus of Penn State University.
SELECTION PROCESS
The selection process commenced in early February when NCAA Division I women's ice hockey coaches were asked to nominate players for the award. Players who were nominated by multiple coaches were then placed on an official ballot, which was returned to the coaches to vote for the ten finalists. The three finalists, including the recipient of the 2026 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, will be chosen by a 13-person selection committee made up of NCAA Division I women's ice hockey coaches, representatives of print and broadcast media, and an at-large member and representative of USA Hockey, the national governing body for the sport of ice hockey in the United States.
SATURDAY AT THE NCAA WOMEN’S FROZEN FOUR
The 2026 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award Show will be broadcast live on NHL Network from the HUB-Robeson Center on the campus of Penn State University, as part of Saturday at the NCAA Women’s Frozen Four. The event is free of charge and fans can enter the facility at 12 p.m. ET with all guests seated at 12:20 p.m. and the live 30-minute television show beginning promptly at 12:30 p.m. The three finalists will be on hand, in addition to the Frozen Four teams, as the 29th winner of the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award will be revealed. For more information, click HERE.
ABOUT THE PATTY KAZMAIER MEMORIAL AWARD
An award of The USA Hockey Foundation, the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award is annually presented to the top player in NCAA Division I women's ice hockey. Selection criteria includes outstanding individual and team skills, sportsmanship, performance in the clutch, personal character, competitiveness and a love of hockey. Consideration is also given to academic achievement and civic involvement. For a full list of previous honorees, click HERE.
ABOUT PATTY KAZMAIER
The Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award is named in honor of the late Patty Kazmaier, who was a four-year varsity letter-winner and All-Ivy League defenseman at Princeton University from 1981-86. An accomplished athlete who helped lead the Tigers to the Ivy League Championship in three consecutive seasons (1981-84), Patty Kazmaier-Sandt died Feb. 15, 1990, at the age of 28 following a long struggle with a rare blood disease.
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