Minnesota Spotlight: Minnesotans on PWHL Rosters & from MN University Hockey Programs

The State of Hockey isn’t just a nickname — it’s a legacy. As a Minnesotan, I always love to see the impact that Minnesota has on women’s hockey, so I thought it would be fun to look at just what that impact means in terms of numbers on PWHL rosters.

Minnesotans are making their mark across the league, from hometown heroes skating for Minnesota to alumni representing coast to coast. I took a closer look at two key threads: which PWHL teams have the most Minnesotans, and how our D1 university programs are fueling the league’s talent pool.

Minnesotans in the PWHL

First, let’s look at Minnesotans on each team’s roster: 

It’s no surprise that the Frost leads the pack with eight Minnesotans on the roster, but what’s striking is how widely our players are spread. Ottawa and Boston each feature three or more, and even Vancouver, Seattle, and Montreal have Minnesota ties; Toronto is the only team without a Minnesota native playing for them.

Players in the PWHL from the Minnesota D1 Universities

Let’s also look at the number of players that played for a Minnesota D1 women’s hockey team; the numbers I used were for players that played half or more of their college seasons at a MN university; with transfers becoming more and more common in the NCAA, I didn’t count players that played less than half of their years for a MN university. I definitely don’t think that those seasons or players don’t count, but I needed to make some sort of cut off or definition when I was pulling together these numbers, and that felt like a clean way to define who would be included in these numbers.

The University of Minnesota leads in diversity, with alumni skating for seven different PWHL teams. MN Duluth and St. Cloud also show strong representation, especially in Vancouver and Montreal. It’s a testament to the strength of Minnesota’s D1 programs — not just developing talent, but preparing players to thrive in any system, anywhere.

In Closing

Whether they’re skating in purple at home for the Frost or representing Minnesota pride across the PWHL, these players carry the spirit of the State of Hockey with them. And for fans, it’s a chance to cheer for familiar names in new colors — and celebrate the programs that helped shape them.