PWHL Minnesota drafts defender Thompson with No. 3 pick
Minnesota's PWHL team, which won the league's inaugural championship May 29 only to see General Manager and Minnesota hockey icon Natalie Darwitz forced out a week later, on Monday night got back to the team-building business of the draft.
With a raucous crowd cheering on every mention of Minnesota's Walter Cup triumph, the team selected defender Claire Thompson with the third overall pick during the draft at Roy Wilkins Auditorium. Making the pick was coach Ken Klee, who took over the GM role for the draft. It was a rift between Klee and Darwitz that led to Darwitz being forced out, league sources told the Star Tribune.
Thompson, 26, was on the reserve list for New York's PWHL team this season while she attended medical school. She's putting those aspirations on hold for now.
"It was a really difficult decision," she said in a video news conference. "I love medical school, and it's been a longtime dream of mine to become a doctor. But my sights have been set on continuing to play professional hockey during this period of my life. My goal had been to be able to do both, but obviously that wasn't possible this past year."
Thompson, a Toronto native, played four years at Princeton, collecting 31 goals and 56 assists. She had two goals and 11 assists in seven games for Canada's 2022 Olympic gold medalists.
In the second round, Minnesota selected Wisconsin forward Britta Curl. The Bismarck, N.D., native helped the Badgers win the 2023 NCAA championship and finish runner-up this year. She had 41 goals and 63 assists over the past two seasons and is known as a strong two-way player.
"I think of this as my home team, being from North Dakota," Curl said. "This league suits my style really well. I'm a physical player and can play a 200-foot game."
Other Minnesota picks
In the third round, Minnesota selected St. Cloud State forward Klára Hymlárová, a native of the Czech Republic. The 2022 Olympian led the Huskies in scoring with eight goals and 16 assists last season.
Minnesota's fourth-round pick was Clarkson forward Brooke McQuigge, who had 13 goals and 20 assists last season.
Fillier, Serdachny selected 1-2
New York selected Princeton center Sarah Fillier with the first overall pick of the draft. Fillier helped Canada win the Olympic gold medal in 2022, scoring eight goals in the tournament. She had 30 goals and 13 assists in 29 games for Princeton last season.
Ottawa followed at No. 2 overall by picking Colgate forward Danielle Serdachny, who had 22 goals and 39 assists in 40 games as a fifth-year in 2023-24.
Ohio State left winger Hannah Bilka went fourth overall to Boston, Buckeyes defender Cayla Barnes went fifth overall to Montreal and Toronto picked St. Lawrence forward Julia Gosling with the final pick of the first round.
Minnesotans are popular
Former Gopher Abigail Boreen, who played 14 games for PWHL Minnesota this season on a waiver while attending pharmacy school, was selected by Montreal with the fifth pick of the third round. Boreen, a former Hill-Murray standout, received a rousing ovation when introduced.
One pick later, Toronto selected Cornell forward Izzy Daniel, a Minneapolis native who won the 2024 Patty Kazmaier Award after collecting 21 goals and 38 assists in 34 games for the Big Red.
With the first pick of the fourth round, New York took Ohio State forward Gabby Rosenthal, a former Blaine standout.
