The Minnesota Frost have a lot of expectations on their shoulders this season as the only team to ever win the Walter Cup not once but twice, and now they’re trying for a three-peat, once again a first in the league. Some may say the pressure shouldn’t be as high since they know what it takes to win not just once but twice, but the stakes are different this time.
Over those two seasons, their team didn’t change too much, but now, after the league has added two more teams, they had some growing pains in terms of an expansion draft. The Frost had to give up both forwards and defenders, and while they are still a strong team, it’s not going to be easy. However, their first two Walter Cups weren’t easy either, so they know how to fight adversity. In this article, we’ll look at some bold predictions for the defending champs, starting with how they can do it again
Frost Can 3-Peat
In their first season, the Frost were considered one of the hot teams to beat until they struggled towards the end, and it looked like they would have an early postseason exit. However, they turned it around, and although they still had their struggles, they won their first Walter Cup. The second season went about the same way; they started out fairly strong and then had some issues before rising to the occasion once again and winning their second Walter Cup.
Some may think after winning two, it should be easy to win a third, but they’ll have a big mountain to climb after losing some of their best in the expansion draft and free agency. Overall, they lost Sophie Jacques, Claire Thompson, Brooke McQuigge, Mellissa Channell-Watkins, Maggie Flaherty, Liz Schepers, Michela Cava, and Denisa Křížová; however, Křížová returned to the team on Wednesday, Nov. 19, in a trade with the Vancouver Goldeneyes that sent Anna Segedi north. Those players left behind some big holes to fill, so why believe they can win again?
The main answer is they still have their core scorers such as Taylor Heise and Kendall Coyne-Schofield, a strong defender that can lead the others in Lee Stecklein, and both goaltenders that were their tandem in both Walter Cup wins. They also have some younger players who’ve really stepped into their roles and have a lot of room to grow, like Dominque Petire and Mae Batherson, as well as a few others. The main group knows what it takes to win and face adversity; this will be different, but they know the efforts required.
Heise Reaches 35 Points in Regular Season
This may not seem like a lot of points, but remember the Frost only play 30 games in a season, and it’s hard to be a point per game player in any professional league. If Heise were to reach this number, that would set a new league record as well for most points. So far, the highest point total was Hilary Knight’s last season with 29 points in 30 games played.
Last season, Heise played 29 games as she missed one due to illness, and she contributed 22 points. In her first season, she played in 19 of the Frost’s 24 games, and she had 13 points. She’s a strong scorer, but also isn’t afraid to make the pass when it works. She was a force to be reckoned with in the first half of this season’s Rivalry Series, as she already has five points in two games played.
While the Rivalry Series is different than a PWHL game, Heise already has the scoring touch going, so hopefully she can transition it to the Frost’s game when they hit the ice. She has a way of getting her team going and making everyone else on her line better, so if anyone can hit a point record, it’s her.
Rooney & Hensley Combine For Over 700 Saves
Like Heise, this may not seem like a big number, but last season Maddie Rooney and Nicole Hensley combined for 622 saves over a combined 29 games. Hensley did have an injury last season that led to Rooney getting more icetime, but they both had strong seasons once again. Of course, there were struggles, but they figured it out the same way they did the first season.
While the Frost will still see 30 games this season, there are two new teams, which means new names have been added to the rosters, and that means more talent in the league for more shots to stop. Rooney and Hensley are a strong tandem, and the Frost were lucky enough to be able to keep them both, especially after both Walter Cups were won with them in net.
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They’re an interesting pair, when one isn’t doing their best, the other usually steps up and fills the role until they start to struggle, and the other takes over. It’s a never-ending circle that has gotten the Frost through a lot of hard times and a lot of good. It’ll be interesting to see how they step up this season and if they can not only combine for 700 saves but also win a third Walter Cup.
These may seem like lofty predictions, but the Frost have proven many wrong over their first two seasons, and they could do it a third time. With this team, you never know what could happen, and while a three-peat is a very hard thing to do, it wouldn’t be surprising to see them pull it off.
