WCHA Monthly Recap: September 2025

We are back!

The WCHA kicked off its season on September 19 with some nonconference games from the likes of St. Cloud State, St. Thomas, and Minnesota Duluth. In this monthly recap we'll talk about a game that was fun to watch, I'll hand out a couple of awards, we'll check in on something you may have missed, and I tell you which series in October is the one to watch.

Let's get started with a scare that was a little too early for everyone's liking.

Featured Game: The opening game between Minnesota Duluth and Mercyhurst

Minnesota Duluth opened their season on the road at Mercyhurst. The sixth-ranked Bulldogs were ready to kick off another season with hopes of sticking around the top of the WCHA standings and surpassing their short playoff run in the NCAA tournament from last season. But game one was already a wake up call.

Duluth fired off 18 shots on goal in the first period, while the Lakers only had two, but the period still ended with no goals for either team. The second period was a much different story. The Bulldogs took a 1-0 lead but then allowed three unanswered goals by Mercyhurst, including giving up the third goal to the Lakers just five seconds after surrendering the go-ahead goal.

Trailing 3-1, Duluth didn’t falter as they scored a goal towards the end of the second period to trail by one goal heading into the final frame.

But even then, the equalizer wasn’t easy to come by. Mercyhurst held on to their one-goal lead even after the Bulldogs kept at it. The Bulldogs power play stepped up as head coach Laura Schuler pulled Gascon for a 6-on-4 advantage that worked. Transfer forward Josie St. Martin netted the tying goal after a great set up by Caitlin Kramer to create a play.

Less than three minutes into overtime, St. Martin found Kraemer for the game-winning goal. This game was a great way to remind the rest of college hockey how fierce the Bulldogs can be. They had a solid two periods out of Gascon when they needed it most, they had contributions from a player in St. Martin who arrived in Duluth for a fresh start after transferring, and had the reliability of Kraemer as well.

Kraemer stands out the most because she’s only starting her sophomore campaign but plays like a veteran. She’s the reigning WCHA Rookie of the Year and put together a nice freshman season with 18 goals and 13 assists. She’s been a standout at the U18 level as well while playing with Canada. This summer, Kraemer was only one of two women’s college hockey players who were invited to Canada's National Team Orientation Camp in August. That’s no small feat. Kraemer’s sophomore season is already off to the expected offensive-heavy start everyone expected, and it will be delightful to see how much her game will grow and how many points she’ll finish this season with. Duluth is in good hands with talent like hers on the ice.

Awards Season🏆:

Best Player of September - Caitlin Kraemer

I have to hand the best player award to Kraemer. In four games, she recorded six points off four goals and two assists. She also added 30 shots on goal in those four games. Duluth is off to a strong 4-0 start, and Kraemer has looked incredible on the ice and has been showing off her flashy goal scoring skills too.

Best Team of September - Minnesota

The Gophers had a fantastic opening series. They swept Boston College and had a shutout from rookie netminder Layla Hemp. Abbey Murphy was dominant on the ice, recording nine points in two games. And rookie Bella Fanale made her presence known, with six points in two games, including a four point performance in game two against the Eagles. The entire offense made themselves known as a team by scoring 18 goals in two games. 18! Talk about starting the season off with a bang!

Interesting Storyline:

When Wisconsin opened their season against Bemidji State on Sept. 26, Laila Edwards was listed as a defender. Now if you’re not aware, Edwards plays defense when on the national USA team, including at Worlds. And with this being an Olympic year, it makes sense to have her there. But in college, Edwards has usually been a forward, though she played defense a few times last year.

Last season, Edwards led the country with 35 goals and recorded a career high 71 points in 41 games. But head coach Mark Johnson said Edwards will slot into defense in the first four games of the season to give her some reps, though he added he’s “not sold on it completely.” Edwards returned as a forward the following afternoon.

It's an interesting test for the sensational player and we'll see how this helps her game develop over the rest of the season before the Olympics.

Notable Milestones/Moments From the First Weeks:

• The WCHA preseason Rookie of the Year Adéla Šapovalivová scored her first goal for the Badgers! The 19-year-old started the season on the top line, which is huge for someone just starting her collegiate career.

• Bemidji State scored two goals against Wisconsin, which they have not done against them since 2021.

• Abbey Murphy reached 200 career points as a Gopher in the second game against Boston College. Murphy recorded five points off a hat trick and two assists in Minnesota's 11-0 win. Murphy is now ninth overall on Minnesota's all-time scoring list.

• Speaking of the Gophers, they have another rookie who had an incredible debut. Bella Fanale scored two goals in her collegiate debut then followed that up with a four point performance the following game. In the faceoff dot, the WCHA Rookie of the Month won 71% of her faceoffs.

• Layla Hemp made quite the debut for Minnesota. The third Hemp sister to attend the school recorded a shutout in her first ever start. She made 25 saves behind an explosive offense that beat Boston College 11-0.

• Ève Gascon recorded back-to-back shutouts in Duluth’s sweep of Syracuse. That’s it. That’s the moment.

• St. Cloud State had a slew of new players (freshmen/transfers) score their first goals over the past two weeks. Of their four games so far, they had five new players score at least one goal.

• In the Huskies series against Lindenwood, they posted the first ever back-to-back shutouts to open a season.

• Minnesota Duluth got exactly what they wanted with the addition of former Ohio State forward Josie St. Martin. The sophomore has four points in four games already and has fit in seamlessly with the Bulldogs.

• The WCHA as a conference currently has two coaching staffs—Bemidji State and St. Cloud State—that are completely made up of women. You can read about St. Cloud's first ever all-women staff here.

Something You May Have Missed:

• There were two hat tricks in the WCHA last week. The Badgers' Maggie Scannell tallied her first career hat trick in Wisconsin's 9-2 win over Bemidji State.

• Minnesota's Abbey Murphy also had a hat trick on the night she reached 200 career points. What a way to reach that milestone!

Looking Ahead:

There are a lot of great series on the schedule for each team this month, but my series of the month is the 2025 Ice Breaker Tournament happening Oct. 17-18. The tournament includes four teams from around college hockey who battle it out to win the tournament. Union is hosting this year’s event, with Vermont and St. Anselm also taking part. Every Ice Breaker tournament that included a WCHA team resulted in that team winning the tournament, so I expect Wisconsin to add their name to that short but sweet list of WCHA dominance.

You can check out the full WCHA schedule here.

Thanks for reading! See you all for the October recap!