Star U.S. blueliner Lee Stecklein is the only player to win an NCAA championship (Minnesota) and Women's World gold in the same year on three occasions.
photo: Andre Ringuette / IIHF
There’s an old saying that college is the best four years of your life. Certainly, that rings true if one of those years includes winning both an NCAA women’s hockey title and an IIHF Women’s World Championship gold medal.
In total, 15 American players have achieved that special double whammy.
At the 2023 Women’s Worlds, four U.S. players have a chance to add their names to the list. Forwards Britta Curl and Lacey Eden and defenders Caroline Harvey and Nicole LaMantia cracked the Brampton roster after their Wisconsin Badgers beat Ohio State 1-0 to win a record seventh NCAA championship on 19 March.
In total, 15 American players have achieved that special double whammy.
At the 2023 Women’s Worlds, four U.S. players have a chance to add their names to the list. Forwards Britta Curl and Lacey Eden and defenders Caroline Harvey and Nicole LaMantia cracked the Brampton roster after their Wisconsin Badgers beat Ohio State 1-0 to win a record seventh NCAA championship on 19 March.
However, here’s a surprising fact: even though the NCAA launched its women’s Frozen Four tournament in 2001 and players from all over the world have flocked to the U.S. on scholarships, no Canadians have ever accomplished the same feat.
Canada and the U.S., of course, are the only two nations ever to win the Women’s Worlds. Since the tournament’s 1990 inception, the Canadians have won 12 times (including back-to-back titles in 2021 and 2022), while the Americans have won nine times.
Frankly, it’s easier to explain why no Canadian has ever won an NCAA title and an Olympic gold medal in the same year. That’s because Team Canada has historically centralized its roster heading into a Winter Games.
So, for instance, Meghan Agosta, the 2010 Olympic MVP, did not compete with Mercyhurst University in what would have been her senior year in 2009-10. The future Vancouver police officer spent that entire season with Team Canada and returned to captain Mercyhurst and complete her degree in criminal justice law enforcement in 2010-11.
Now, let’s take a look back at how we got to 15 American winners of both an NCAA title and Women’s World gold in the same year.
In 2001, the University of Minnesota-Duluth won the inaugural Frozen Four with a 4-2 final victory over St. Lawrence. At Minneapolis’s Mariucci Arena, the home of the archrival Minnesota Golden Gophers, coach Shannon Miller’s squad was powered by European talent.
That included tournament all-stars like goalie Tuula Puputti, the future GM of the Finnish national team, and forward Maria Rooth, whose two goals in regulation time and shootout tally sparked Sweden’s 3-2 semi-final upset over the U.S. at the 2006 Olympics.
If St. Lawrence had prevailed, Canadian defender Isabelle Chartrand – another Frozen Four all-star – could have “done the double,” as she won Women’s Worlds gold with Canada the following month, also at Mariucci Arena.
In 2004, the Canadians won a record-setting eighth consecutive Women’s Worlds on home ice in Halifax. But there were no Canadian national team members on the Gophers squad that won the Frozen Four in Rhode Island.
Canada and the U.S., of course, are the only two nations ever to win the Women’s Worlds. Since the tournament’s 1990 inception, the Canadians have won 12 times (including back-to-back titles in 2021 and 2022), while the Americans have won nine times.
Frankly, it’s easier to explain why no Canadian has ever won an NCAA title and an Olympic gold medal in the same year. That’s because Team Canada has historically centralized its roster heading into a Winter Games.
So, for instance, Meghan Agosta, the 2010 Olympic MVP, did not compete with Mercyhurst University in what would have been her senior year in 2009-10. The future Vancouver police officer spent that entire season with Team Canada and returned to captain Mercyhurst and complete her degree in criminal justice law enforcement in 2010-11.
Now, let’s take a look back at how we got to 15 American winners of both an NCAA title and Women’s World gold in the same year.
In 2001, the University of Minnesota-Duluth won the inaugural Frozen Four with a 4-2 final victory over St. Lawrence. At Minneapolis’s Mariucci Arena, the home of the archrival Minnesota Golden Gophers, coach Shannon Miller’s squad was powered by European talent.
That included tournament all-stars like goalie Tuula Puputti, the future GM of the Finnish national team, and forward Maria Rooth, whose two goals in regulation time and shootout tally sparked Sweden’s 3-2 semi-final upset over the U.S. at the 2006 Olympics.
If St. Lawrence had prevailed, Canadian defender Isabelle Chartrand – another Frozen Four all-star – could have “done the double,” as she won Women’s Worlds gold with Canada the following month, also at Mariucci Arena.
In 2004, the Canadians won a record-setting eighth consecutive Women’s Worlds on home ice in Halifax. But there were no Canadian national team members on the Gophers squad that won the Frozen Four in Rhode Island.
From those Gophers, U.S. forwards Krissy Wendell, Natalie Darwitz, and Kelly Stephens and defender Lyndsay Wall would comprise the first four players to win an NCAA title and Women’s Worlds gold in 2005. Harvard star Angela Ruggiero – a future IIHF Hall of Famer and Hockey Hall of Famer – scored the historic 1-0 shootout winner versus Canada in the gold medal game in Sweden that year.
Pause for a moment to consider the relative depth of the North American superpowers. Today, in 2023, Canada and the U.S. are truly neck-and-neck in terms of player pools. Canada has 89,009 registered female players to the U.S.’s 88,387.
But, for instance, back in 2005-06, the U.S. had just 53,030 registered female players to Canada’s 65,951. That gap has historically made it easier for Canada to rely on mature talent and use fewer college-aged players in IIHF competition, reducing the chances that a Canadian would win an NCAA title and a Women’s Worlds gold in the same year.
Since 2005, the Americans have had between one and four NCAA champions on every Women’s Worlds-winning team they have iced – with the exception of 2017.
Coach Mark Johnson’s victorious Wisconsin squad contributed elite forwards Hilary Knight, Meghan Duggan, and Erika Lawler and goalie Jessie Vetter to the 2009 U.S. team that won the Women’s Worlds in Finland. Duggan and Knight would return, joined by Brianna Decker, for the golden 2011 team in Switzerland.
Next, star defender Lee Stecklein kicked off a run that has made her the only player in history to win the NCAA and Women’s Worlds three times. With the University of Minnesota in 2013, Stecklein won a national championship along with two U.S. teammates, forward Amanda Kessel and fellow blueliner Megan Bozek. The Americans topped the Women’s Worlds in Ottawa that year.
Pause for a moment to consider the relative depth of the North American superpowers. Today, in 2023, Canada and the U.S. are truly neck-and-neck in terms of player pools. Canada has 89,009 registered female players to the U.S.’s 88,387.
But, for instance, back in 2005-06, the U.S. had just 53,030 registered female players to Canada’s 65,951. That gap has historically made it easier for Canada to rely on mature talent and use fewer college-aged players in IIHF competition, reducing the chances that a Canadian would win an NCAA title and a Women’s Worlds gold in the same year.
Since 2005, the Americans have had between one and four NCAA champions on every Women’s Worlds-winning team they have iced – with the exception of 2017.
Coach Mark Johnson’s victorious Wisconsin squad contributed elite forwards Hilary Knight, Meghan Duggan, and Erika Lawler and goalie Jessie Vetter to the 2009 U.S. team that won the Women’s Worlds in Finland. Duggan and Knight would return, joined by Brianna Decker, for the golden 2011 team in Switzerland.
Next, star defender Lee Stecklein kicked off a run that has made her the only player in history to win the NCAA and Women’s Worlds three times. With the University of Minnesota in 2013, Stecklein won a national championship along with two U.S. teammates, forward Amanda Kessel and fellow blueliner Megan Bozek. The Americans topped the Women’s Worlds in Ottawa that year.
Forwards Hannah Brandt and Dani Cameranesi joined Stecklein for her second Frozen Four victory under Minnesota coach Brad Frost before the trio triumphed at the 2015 Women’s Worlds in Malmo, Sweden. And in 2016, Stecklein was the lone member of the champion Gophers to also win gold at the Women’s Worlds in Kamloops, British Columbia.
The fifteenth and last American to “do the double” was sniper Annie Pankowski in 2019. The Wisconsin captain and perennial Patty Kazmaier Award finalist scored in the 2-0 NCAA championship win over Minnesota. Pankowski then tallied in regulation and added the shootout winner as the U.S. controversially defeated host Finland 2-1 in Espoo.
So when will a Canadian pull off this particular feat? Not in 2023, since coach Troy Ryan’s squad includes no Wiscons players. But realistically, it’s just a matter of time as our game trends toward youth, even Canada uses fewer NCAA players at Women’s Worlds than the Americans.
Take a what-if scenario like 2020.
If the global pandemic hadn’t wiped out both the Frozen Four and Women’s Worlds that season, Princeton’s Sarah Fillier and Claire Thompson might well have joined the club. Princeton won a record 26 games that season, captured the ECAC championship, and could have won the Frozen Four. As we know, Fillier and Thompson have turned in superstar performances for gold-medal Canadian teams at the Olympics and Women’s Worlds since then.
Women’s hockey continues to grow worldwide. Efforts like the IIHF’s new Inspire the Next campaign are spurring the momentum. As time goes by, we can also look forward to seeing players from countries like Czechia, Finland, and Switzerland winning both an NCAA title and a Women’s World gold medal in the same year. Stay tuned.
The fifteenth and last American to “do the double” was sniper Annie Pankowski in 2019. The Wisconsin captain and perennial Patty Kazmaier Award finalist scored in the 2-0 NCAA championship win over Minnesota. Pankowski then tallied in regulation and added the shootout winner as the U.S. controversially defeated host Finland 2-1 in Espoo.
So when will a Canadian pull off this particular feat? Not in 2023, since coach Troy Ryan’s squad includes no Wiscons players. But realistically, it’s just a matter of time as our game trends toward youth, even Canada uses fewer NCAA players at Women’s Worlds than the Americans.
Take a what-if scenario like 2020.
If the global pandemic hadn’t wiped out both the Frozen Four and Women’s Worlds that season, Princeton’s Sarah Fillier and Claire Thompson might well have joined the club. Princeton won a record 26 games that season, captured the ECAC championship, and could have won the Frozen Four. As we know, Fillier and Thompson have turned in superstar performances for gold-medal Canadian teams at the Olympics and Women’s Worlds since then.
Women’s hockey continues to grow worldwide. Efforts like the IIHF’s new Inspire the Next campaign are spurring the momentum. As time goes by, we can also look forward to seeing players from countries like Czechia, Finland, and Switzerland winning both an NCAA title and a Women’s World gold medal in the same year. Stay tuned.