The 10 finalists for the 2025 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award have been announced by the USA Hockey Foundation.
The honor, which was first presented in 1998, is awarded annually to the top player in NCAA Division I women’s hockey by the USA Hockey Foundation.
The finalists, in alphabetical order, are as follows:
Joy Dunne, Forward, Sophomore, Ohio State
Laila Edwards, Forward, Junior, Wisconsin
Caroline Harvey, Defender, Junior, Wisconsin
Tessa Janecke, Forward, Junior, Penn State
Kristýna Kaltounková, Forward, Fifth Year, Colgate
Abbey Murphy, Forward, Redshirt Senior, Minnesota
Casey O’Brien, Forward, Fifth Year, Wisconsin
Kirsten Simms, Forward, Junior, Wisconsin
Haley Winn, Defender, Senior, Clarkson
Issy Wunder, Forward, Junior, Princeton
The top-three finalists are expected to be announced on Wednesday, March 12, with the winner being revealed on March 22 as the highlight of Saturday at the NCAA Women’s Frozen Four in Minneapolis.
SELECTION PROCESS
The selection process commenced in early February when NCAA Division I women’s hockey coaches were asked to nominate players for the award. Players who were nominated by multiple coaches were then placed on an official ballot, which was returned to the coaches to vote for the ten finalists. The three finalists, including the recipient of the 2025 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, will be chosen by a 13-person selection committee made up of NCAA Division I women’s ice hockey coaches, representatives of print and broadcast media, and an at-large member and representative of USA Hockey, the national governing body for the sport of ice hockey in the United States.
SATURDAY AT THE NCAA WOMEN’S FROZEN FOUR
The 2025 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award Show will be broadcast live from the McNamara Alumni Center, on the campus of the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, as part of Saturday at the NCAA Women’s Frozen Four. The event is free of charge and fans can enter the facility at 11 a.m. CT with all guests seated at 11:20 a.m. and the live 30-minute television show beginning promptly at 11:30 a.m. The three finalists will be on hand, in addition to the Frozen Four teams, as the 28th winner of the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award will be revealed. Following the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award Show, fans will have a chance to get autographs from previous Patty Kazmier Memorial Award winners Krissy Wendell-Pohl, AJ Mleczko, Kendall Coyne Schofield and Taylor Heise.
ABOUT THE PATTY KAZMAIER MEMORIAL AWARD
An award of The USA Hockey Foundation, the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award is annually presented to the top player in NCAA Division I women’s ice hockey. Selection criteria 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. For a full list of previous honorees, click HERE.
ABOUT PATTY KAZMAIER
The Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award is named in honor of the late Patty Kazmaier, who was a four-year varsity letter-winner and All-Ivy League defenseman at Princeton University from 1981-86. An accomplished athlete who helped lead the Tigers to the Ivy League Championship in three consecutive seasons (1981-84), Patty Kazmaier-Sandt died Feb. 15, 1990, at the age of 28 following a long struggle with a rare blood disease.
