The Minnesota Whitecaps’ 2019-20 NWHL roster now stands at 22 players total. Two of the most recent signings helped fill up the team’s defense corps. Word was released on the morning of Sept. 18, 2019 that blueliners Rose Alleva and Emma Stauber were brought on board. Both players are proven professionals both in North America and abroad.
Stauber is a re-signing from Minnesota’s 2018-19 Isobel Cup-winning squad, while Alleva will play her first season in the league after two straight seasons in the CWHL. Both are substantial signings for the team, and give further credence to the Whitecaps repeating as champions.
Alleva and Stauber are the fifth and sixth defenders the Whitecaps have inked thus far. That number does not include skaters Brooke White-Lancette and Kelsey Cline, who have both been listed as defender-forwards.
Rose Alleva
Rose Alleva is a product of Princeton University where she played from 2010-11 through 2013-14. The 5-foot-3, 130-pound blueliner was born in China, but was raised in Red Wing, Minnesota.
At the NCAA level, Alleva played 115 career games for the Princeton Tigers. Across her four seasons she generated nine goals and 30 assists for 39 total points. Alleva’s best season for Princeton was her 2013-14 senior campaign when she set career highs for goals (6) and points (16) in 29 games.
Though new to the NWHL, Alleva is very much a proven veteran. She turned 27 years old in June of this year, and has two professional seasons under her belt already. As an inaugural member of the CWHL’s Vanke Rays in 2017-18, Alleva played in all 28 of the team’s regular season games. She tallied a goal and three assists during that time.
Alleva followed that up with 13 games last season for the Shenzhen KRS Vanke Rays – a conglomerate of the CWHL’s two prior Chinese teams, the Vanke Rays and the Kunlun Red Star. She picked up a lone assist within her appearances.
Emma Stauber
Emma Stauber is the 12th player from Minnesota’s 2018-19 championship squad to return to the team for 2019-20. Of the six natural blueliners that the Whitecaps have signed, five of them including Stauber were part of the Isobel Cup-winning team. To have kept their defense corps primarily intact from one season to the other is already a major boost for Minnesota.
The Duluth, Minnesota native played in 15 of her club’s regular season games, plus both of their playoff games on their way to an Isobel Cup victory. Stauber recorded a goal and four assists prior to the postseason getting underway.
At 5-foot-7 and near the 150-pound mark, Stauber will continue to bring good size to the Whitecaps’ defense. She has long been a strong skater, and has very sound positioning – Stauber led the team in blocked shots last season.
Stauber is also a natural leader. During her collegiate career at the University of Minnesota-Duluth, she was an alternate captain during her junior season, followed by being named team captain in 2014-15 as a senior. In 142 NCAA games for the Bulldogs, Stauber went 3-20-23 in scoring while finishing her career as a plus-18.
Additionally, she has a SDHL season to her credit too, as Stauber played 2015-16 in Sweden. She scored six goals and seven assists for 13 points in 19 games with HV71.
Here is a look at how Minnesota’s roster looks as of Sept. 18:
Goaltender: Amanda Leveille, Allie Morse.
Defense: Amanda Boulier, Lisa Martinson, Chelsey Brodt Rosenthal, Winny Brodt Brown, Sydney Baldwin, Kelsey Cline (defender-forward), Rose Alleva, Emma Stauber.
Forward: Allie Thunstrom, Jonna Curtis, Nicole Schammel, Brooke White-Lancette, Haylea Schmid, Meghan Lorence, Audra Richards, Stephanie Anderson, Meaghan Pezon, Kalli Funk, Sam Donovan, Nina Rodgers.
Beginning May 15, NWHL teams can re-sign players from their 2018-19 roster and their draft picks. Additionally, for those players who have completed their college eligibility and want to continue their hockey careers, NWHL Free Agency provides the best opportunity to continue playing at the highest level of professional women’s hockey. The fifth season of the NWHL will begin in October as the Minnesota Whitecaps look to defend their Isobel Cup championship.
My colleague Dan Rice will keep THW readers up-to-date on Metropolitan and Connecticut’s signings throughout the summer, while I post updates on Buffalo and Boston. Together we will be keeping readers informed of all of Minnesota’s signings.
Riveters and Whitecaps Add Experience and Depth