{"id":62819,"date":"2015-02-26T13:00:19","date_gmt":"2015-02-26T19:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.uscho.com\/?p=62819"},"modified":"2020-08-24T18:53:14","modified_gmt":"2020-08-24T23:53:14","slug":"playoff-preview-wcha-women","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uscho.com\/2015\/02\/26\/playoff-preview-wcha-women\/","title":{"rendered":"Playoff preview: WCHA women"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"ps_captionIns\" aria-describedby=\"caption-ps-captionIns\" style=\"width: 500px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"http:\/\/uscho.photoshelter.com\/img-show\/I0000ec8IjcCr5kI\"><img decoding=\"async\" title=\"26  Jan. 13  St. Cloud State University hosts The University of North Dakota in a WCHA  match-up at the National Hockey and Event Center in St. Cloud,MN.\" alt=\"(Shelby\u00a0Amsley-Benzie-1 North Dakota).26  Jan. 13  St. Cloud State University hosts The University of North Dakota in a WCHA  match-up at the National Hockey and Event Center in St. Cloud,MN (BRADLEY K. OLSON)\" src=\"https:\/\/www.uscho.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/1D3L1730.jpg\" width=\"500\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-ps-captionIns\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">North Dakota will be home for the entirety of the WCHA playoffs should it advance, but still needs a big performance from Shelby Amsley-Benzie. \u00a0(BRADLEY K. OLSON)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"line-height: 1.5em;\">It&#8217;s conference tournament time.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Two weeks, three rounds, and four conference champions will be determined. More so than any previous year, a wide variety of narratives could unfold in most of the leagues. Let&#8217;s scratch the surface of what a few of those might be.<\/p>\n<p><strong>No. 1 Minnesota versus Minnesota State<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Postseason history:<\/strong> When the two teams met in the 2010 quarterfinals, MSU extended Minnesota to the third overtime in the second game.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Minnesota Gophers<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Record:<\/strong> 29-2-4<br \/>\n<strong>Impact players:<\/strong> Hannah Brandt is second in the NCAA with 62 points; linemate Dani Cameranesi has had a breakout sophomore season with 55 points to rank fourth in the country, and her 34 assists are third.<br \/>\n<strong>Hurdles to overcome:<\/strong> Minnesota lacks the offensive balance through its lines that it enjoyed last year.<br \/>\n<strong>Why they will advance:<\/strong> The Gophers are the only team to reach the semifinals in all 15 seasons.<br \/>\n<strong>Why the Gophers will win the WCHA tournament:<\/strong> Their seniors won their first three years.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Minnesota State Mavericks<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Record:<\/strong> 3-30-1<br \/>\n<strong>Impact players:<\/strong> Freshman forward Nicole Schammel leads the team in all three categories with 11 goals, 10 assists, and 21 points; senior Kathleen Rogan is third in team scoring despite missing 13 games.<br \/>\n<strong>Hurdles to overcome:<\/strong> MSU ranks dead last in both scoring offense and scoring defense.<br \/>\n<strong>Why they will advance:<\/strong> Returning Mavericks can be encouraged by the memory of pushing Wisconsin to three games last year when nobody gave them a chance.<br \/>\n<strong>Why the Mavericks will win the WCHA tournament:<\/strong> Though it would take more wins in nine days than the Mavericks have had all season to date, there&#8217;s always a chance.<\/p>\n<p><strong>No. 2 Wisconsin versus St. Cloud State<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Postseason history:<\/strong> The Huskies were swept at Wisconsin in 2013 and are 0-6 all time against the Badgers in the postseason.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Wisconsin Badgers<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Record:<\/strong> 24-6-4<br \/>\n<strong>Impact players:<\/strong> Although much of the impact comes from the team&#8217;s balance, goaltender Ann-Ren\u00e9e Desbiens and freshman Annie Pankowski have stood out.<br \/>\n<strong>Hurdles to overcome:<\/strong> There have been days during the second half where the only place to see Wisconsin&#8217;s offense was on a milk carton.<br \/>\n<strong>Why they will advance:<\/strong> The Badgers&#8217; penalty kill has allowed only four goals all season.<br \/>\n<strong>Why the Badgers will win the WCHA tournament:<\/strong> Just reaching the final would be a good step, something they haven&#8217;t done since 2011.<\/p>\n<p><strong>St. Cloud State Huskies<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Record<\/strong>: 8-26-1<br \/>\n<strong>Impact players:<\/strong> Although the numbers may not always show it, the strength of St. Cloud State is its goaltending.<br \/>\n<strong>Hurdles to overcome:<\/strong> Already offensively challenged, the Huskies&#8217; scoring is down from last year.<br \/>\n<strong>Why they will advance:<\/strong> Julie Friend will need to repeat her performance from Friday when she made 52 saves to bump off the Badgers.<br \/>\n<strong>Why the Huskies will win the WCHA tournament:<\/strong> First-year coach Eric Rud has been holding some top-secret tactics in reserve.<\/p>\n<p><strong>No. 3 North Dakota versus Ohio State<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Postseason history:<\/strong> This is the first postseason meeting.<\/p>\n<p><strong>North Dakota<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Record:<\/strong> 20-11-3<br \/>\n<strong>Impact players:<\/strong> Goaltender Shelby Amsley-Benzie has the top save percentage in the country, and junior Becca Kohler is having a career year to lead the scoring.<br \/>\n<strong>Hurdles to overcome:<\/strong> At times the offense provides little margin for error.<br \/>\n<strong>Why it will advance:<\/strong> It displayed a knack for getting by the Buckeyes in tight games.<br \/>\n<strong>Why North Dakota will win the WCHA tournament:<\/strong> UND will be playing on home ice the whole way and is as hot as any team in the country, going 10-1-1 over its last dozen games.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Ohio State Buckeyes<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Record:<\/strong> 17-14-3<br \/>\n<strong>Impact players:<\/strong> Four of the team&#8217;s top five scorers are seniors.<br \/>\n<strong>Hurdles to overcome:<\/strong> North Dakota does many of the same things, and it does them a little better.<br \/>\n<strong>Why they will advance:<\/strong> It&#8217;s due to get a few bounces at UND&#8217;s expense.<br \/>\n<strong>Why the Buckeyes will win the WCHA tournament:<\/strong> They can ride the scarlet and gray wave started by the football team.<\/p>\n<p><strong>No. 4 Minnesota-Duluth versus Bemidji State<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Postseason history:<\/strong> UMD defeated the Beavers 7-3 in the semifinals in 2010, the only time they&#8217;ve advanced beyond the first round.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Record:<\/strong> 19-10-5<br \/>\n<strong>Impact players:<\/strong> Six players have at least 20 points, but only Zoe Hickel tops 30.<br \/>\n<strong>Hurdles to overcome:<\/strong> It&#8217;s looking likely that no Bulldogs player will reach 40 points for the third straight year, after only having one such season through the program&#8217;s first 13 campaigns.<br \/>\n<strong>Why they will advance:<\/strong> I can&#8217;t imagine Shannon Miller losing her final game in Duluth.<br \/>\n<strong>Why the Bulldogs will win the WCHA tournament:<\/strong> It seems like the kind of thing Miller would do for a swan song.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Bemidji State Beavers<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Record:<\/strong> 18-15-1<br \/>\n<strong>Impact players:<\/strong> Goaltender Brittni Mowat, leading scorer Kaitlyn Tougas, and a bunch of kids sporting ice bags from blocking shots.<br \/>\n<strong>Hurdles to overcome:<\/strong> They&#8217;ll almost surely have to win four games versus ranked opponents to win the championship.<br \/>\n<strong>Why they will advance:<\/strong> The Beavers outscored the Bulldogs 9-6 in splitting the season series.<br \/>\n<strong>Why the Beavers will win the WCHA tournament:<\/strong> Determination can go a long way.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The WCHA is as competitive as its ever been, but Minnesota is still the team to beat. Arlan Marttila previews the WCHA tournament. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":43,"featured_media":118135,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"coauthors":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Playoff preview: WCHA women - College Hockey | USCHO.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The WCHA is as competitive as its ever been, but Minnesota is still the team to beat. 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