Minnesota's Wendell Wins 2005 Kazmaier
March 26, 2005
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MADISON, Wis. - More honors were bestowed upon players from the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) as Minnesota's Krissy Wendell was named the recipient of the 2005 Patty Kazmaier Award. The award is presented annually to the top player in NCAA Division I women's ice hockey by the USA Hockey Foundation. Wendell's honor marks the first time in the history of the award that it has been won by a player from the WCHA. This year also marked a first in the history of the league as the top three finalists all hailed from the WCHA. The other two finalists were Minnesota's Natalie Darwitz and Minnesota Duluth's Caroline Ouellette.
The Western Collegiate Hockey Association's top goal-scorer (42), Wendell was named WCHA Player of the Year for the second straight season. Entering tomorrow's NCAA championship game, Wendell is second in the nation in points (102) and points per game (2.62). She also has a nation's best seven shorthanded goals and is tied for second in the country with nine game-winning goals. With her 102 points, Wendell is one of just two women in school history to reach the 100-point plateau.
A two-time All-America selection, Wendell helped lead Minnesota to a 35-2-2 mark as her team spent a record 23 weeks atop the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine women's college hockey poll. She has six hat tricks and 13 multiple-goal performances. A two-time All-WCHA First Team selection, she has recorded four or more points 10 times during the 2004-05 season and has 28 multiple-point games to her credit. A member of the power-play and penalty kill units, she has helped the Gophers to a nation's best 30.9 power-play percentage and the country's fifth-best penalty kill at 89.7 percent.
In last night's NCAA semifinal game against Dartmouth, Wendell had two goals, including the game-winner, and added two assists, leading Minnesota to the national championship game for the second time in as many years. At the WCHA Championship, Wendell was named to the all-tournament team after totaling eight points (3-5) including the game-winning power-play goal in overtime giving the Gophers their second consecutive title.
A 2002 Olympic silver medalist, Wendell has competed in four International Ice Hockey Federation Women's World Championships as a member of the U.S. Women's National Team. She will play for Team USA at the 2005 Women's World Championship in Linkoping and Norrkoping, Sweden, April 2-9.
Wendell and the other top three finalists for the 2005 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award were chosen by a 13-member selection committee comprised of NCAA Division I ice hockey coaches, representatives of the print and broadcast media and a representative of USA Hockey, the National Governing Body for the sport of hockey in the United States. Selection criteria for the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award 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. The award is supported in part by a grant of The National Hockey League Foundation.
Presented annually since 1998, the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award is named in honor of the late Patty Kazmaier, a four-year varsity hockey letter-winner and three-time Ivy League champion with the Princeton University Tigers. Patty Kazmaier-Sandt passed away in 1990 at the age of 28.
Previous winners of the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award include Angela Ruggiero (Harvard University, 2004), Jennifer Botterill (Harvard University, 2003 and 2001), Brooke Whitney (Northeastern University, 2002), Ali Brewer (Brown University, 2000), A.J. Mleczko (Harvard University, 1999) and Brandy Fisher (University of New Hampshire, 1998).
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