UMD women's hockey ready to dive, not wade, into 2024-25
DULUTH — When Minnesota Duluth head coach Laura Schuler — new to the position, but not the Bulldogs or Duluth — goes for a swim in Lake Superior, she's not one to run in.
Schuler said she prefers to wade into the often chilly waters. The same goes for one of her captains, fifth-year senior defenseman Nina Jobst-Smith, unless it's one of those rare days that Lake Superior is actually warm.
When it comes to hockey, however, both prefer to dive into a season, and that's exactly what the Bulldogs are doing in 2024-25 with a conference road trip to defending NCAA and WCHA champion Ohio State at 2 p.m. Saturday and noon Sunday in Columbus.
"Pressure is power," Schuler said. "There's no time to second-guess."
Sept. 21 is the earliest UMD has ever started its season. It also marks the first time in 26 seasons the Bulldogs open against a No. 1-ranked team, or the defending NCAA champions, having started 2016-17 against No. 3 Boston College (1-0-1) and No. 2 Wisconsin (1-1) in 2005-06.
Jobst-Smith said everything is new at the start of the season, so why not dive in?
"I don't think you ever have an opportunity to wade into something when it's your first game of the season," said Jobst-Smith, who will captain UMD alongside fifth-year senior forward Clara Van Wieren. Senior defenseman Hanna Baskin and junior forward Mary Kate O'Brien are alternate captains. "I think regardless of whoever you're playing, you're diving into that."
UMD is starting the 2024-25 season exactly where the 2023-24 season ended, at the OSU Ice Rink in Columbus, Ohio, against the same Buckeyes program that ousted the Bulldogs from the NCAA tournament via a 9-0 rout in a regional final.
It was UMD's seventh consecutive loss to Ohio State and ninth defeat in 10 games against the Buckeyes. UMD got outscored by OSU 14-0 in the NCAA and WCHA tournaments.
Despite the history, Jobst-Smith said she's excited to return to the OSU campus.
"You have months and months to process what went on there and understand that's never going to happen again," Jobst-Smith said. "There was a lot of reflection that went on for myself, personally, and just our entire group. But at this point in time, it's been six months. I don't think there's anything else left to look back on and we're just all guns blazing. We're ready to go this weekend and we're all just super excited."
Both rosters have undergone significant changes since that game.
UMD has eight new players — four freshmen and four transfers — including former Buckeye Olivia Mobley. A Minnesota Ms. Hockey winner in 2019-20 from Breck School, the St. Louis Park native played three seasons for Quinnipiac from 2020-23 before winning an NCAA title with the Buckeyes last year.
"Mobley played her role well for us on the fourth line and we thought she did what she was asked of her," OSU head coach Nadine Muzerall said when asked about Mobley during WCHA Media Day. "She had strength and some offensive skill. We wish her luck in Duluth."
The 22-year-old Mobley should help a Bulldogs team that was shut out in five of its six games against OSU last season. Mobley scored nine goals and 18 assists last season at OSU. Her 27 points are more than any of UMD's returning scorers — and would have ranked third at UMD last season — though Van Wieren, with 13, brings more goals.
"Olivia Mobley, wow. This kid's got eyes on the back of her head," Schuler said. "In some of our small-area games, I'm just like, 'Did you guys see the pass she just made?'"
Mobley — who had 32 goals and 45 assists as a sophomore and junior at Quinnipiac — said it wasn't her plan to transfer schools once, let alone twice in a college career that began with the COVID-19 season of 2020-21. She went to OSU a year ago thinking that would be her home for her final two seasons of NCAA eligibility.
She said transferring twice is not ideal, but she's happy to be in Duluth and reunited with another former Bobcat classmate, Nina Steigauf, who also transferred to UMD this summer.
"It's interesting," Mobley said of facing the Buckeyes to begin the season. "I'm excited to face them. We have a good group of gals here at Duluth. Why not take on a No. 1 team right out of the gate? I'm excited."
Just as UMD brought in a Buckeye this summer, OSU sniped a Bulldog from the transfer portal.
Former UMD goaltender Hailey MacLeod is now at Ohio State as a junior after splitting the starting duties with Eve Gascon — now a sophomore — a year ago. MacLeod is one of 11 newcomers, including five transfers, that Muzerall has this year.
MacLeod's .946 save percentage and 1.32 goals against average in 27 games are both UMD career records, while her .948 save percentage in 2023-24 is tied with Kim Martin for best in a single season at UMD.
"She's very mature, we're fortunate to have her," said Muzerall, who also has Amanda Thiele back for a fifth year. "She's going to be pushing and fighting with Thiele, as we knew (Raygan) Kirk was leaving. We needed a strong competitor with some experience in that position. We obviously played against her, known her for a couple years. She had a good showing at the international level. She's a (British Columbia) kid and we have a lot of BC kids on this team that can vouch for her character and how she would fit into the mold of our culture. They backed up who she was as a person."
UMD also brought in a goalie from the transfer portal this season to compete with Gascon. That's Swedish national team goalie Tindra Holm, who was the starter at Long Island University the previous three years.
The 2024 preseason All-WCHA goaltender, Gascon set a UMD rookie record for shutouts last year with seven when she made 33 saves in a double-overtime NCAA tournament win over UConn. Her .946 save percentage with fifth-best in the NCAA.
Gascon — the Bulldogs' go-to goalie in the postseason last year, not MacLeod — said she's been thinking about possibly facing off with MacLeod this weekend. Gascon said the two are still good friends, and she wishes MacLeod the best at OSU, though maybe not this weekend.
"Sorry, Hailey," Gascon said.
The Bulldogs' scoring struggles weren't limited to games against Ohio State a year ago. UMD was held below its 2.28 goals per game average (fifth in WCHA) in 24 of its 39 games and was shutout seven times. UMD scored just 15 goals in 14 games against the WCHA's top three teams — OSU, Wisconsin and Minnesota.
Despite losing their leading scores from 2023-24 — fifth-year senior forwards Mannon McMahon (14 goals, 31 points) and Reece Hunt (18 goals, 34 points) — the Bulldogs on paper should be a better team offensively in 2024-25.
Adding a couple of players like Mobley (43 career goals, 112 career points) and Steigauf (41 career goals, 83 career points after scoring 16 goals and 16 assists last year) should provide a boost.
As should the addition of freshman forward Caitlin Kraemer of Waterloo, Ontario. The 18-year-old — who Harvard coach Laura Bellamy called "a generational talent" this summer — is the all-time leading scorer for Canada's Under-18 national team, and has already received her first call-up to Canada's senior national team, joining Gascon this month at an evaluation camp for the 2024-25 Rivalry Series with the United States.
Gascon said Kraumer is not only a good player, but good person.
"She's awesome," Gascon said. "She fits right in our school and our team. On the ice she's physical, she's fast, she has a good shot. I think she's going to have a big impact on our team this season."
UMD's freshman class also includes forwards Zoey Krock and Reese Logan, as well as defenseman Kamdyn Davis.
Schuler said Kraemer will be thrown right into the fire this season, and she has no worries about how the young forward will handle it. Kraemer is used to being in the limelight and handles the spotlight very well, said the Bulldogs' coach.
"She is an absolute beast on the ice," Schuler said of Kraemer. "Wow — big, strong, powerful, physical. She can one-arm anybody and hold onto that puck. She continues to have a presence every single time she steps on the ice."
