Celebrating its 10th anniversary, the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, bestowed annually upon the top player in NCAA Division I women’s ice hockey, will descend upon historic Lake Placid, N.Y., on March 17 for a brunch ceremony to announce the 2007 award recipient.
Held in conjunction with the NCAA Women’s Frozen Four March 16 and 18, the event will take place at the Hilton Lake Placid Resort at 11 a.m. ET.
At the ceremony to help celebrate the momentous 10th anniversary will be five previous winners of the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award: three-time U.S. Olympian Angela Ruggiero (Harvard/2004); two-time Olympian A.J. Mleczko (Harvard/1999); the inaugural award recipient, Brandy Fisher (New Hampshire/1998); last year’s award winner, Sara Bauer (Wisconsin/2006); and the first goaltender to win the award, Ali Brewer (Brown/2000).
Randy Sieminski, who previously served as the vice president of communications for the National Hockey League’s Florida Panthers and currently is SUNY Canton’s director of public relations, will serve as the emcee for the 10th anniversary event.
A 1987 graduate of St. Lawrence, Sieminski also previously worked at St. Lawrence from 1990 to 1992, then as sports director at WPDM radio station in Potsdam from 1993 to 1995. He then worked for three different minor league hockey teams — the South Carolina Stingrays, the Lowell Lock Monsters and the Roanoke Express — before joining the Panthers organization. In addition, Sieminski recently served as a television play-by-play announcer for the ECAC Hockey League women’s championship on Time Warner Sports.
Tickets to the 2007 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award ceremony may be purchased at pattykaz.com or by calling 719-538-1169. Entertainment packages are also available that include tickets to the brunch, along with Frozen Four tickets, ad space, souvenirs, VIP passes, concession coupons, programs and more.
USA Hockey will join with the NCAA in hosting a youth clinic directly after the brunch. Held at the 1980 Rink Herb Brooks Arena, the clinic will be offered to local youth (boys 8-13, girls 8-16) and will feature instruction from the past Kazmaier winners and members of the U.S. Women’s National Team coaching staff.
The top 10 finalists for the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award will be announced on Feb. 19, while the top three selections will be released Feb. 28. The award is named in honor of the late Patty Kazmaier, a four-year varsity letter-winner and All-Ivy League defenseman for Princeton 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 on Feb. 15, 1990, at the age of 28, following a long struggle with a rare blood disease.
In January, USA Hockey launched the Kaz Connection, a monthly e-newsletter dedicated solely to the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award. To sign up, please visit pattykaz.com.
