The Minnesota Frost, formerly PWHL Minnesota, took a revolutionary step in women’s sports history when they came home with the Walter Cup last season, winning the first ever PWHL championship.

It was only right that the “state of hockey” had four former UMD Women’s hockey players on their roster, ranging from 2014-2023.

Three Bulldogs came back to AMSOIL Arena to share the Walter Cup with some Frost and Bulldogs fans, and coming back to the community means a lot to those that stood in line.

“It’s nice to see that and it’s also nice to see that the players remember where they came from and share that with the community that helped build them,” said Robyn Cody, a fan of the Bulldogs and the Frost.

One of the biggest takeaways is how the league has expanded options for youth players, who may not have otherwise had many options to play after the youth level.

“I think it definitely helps that they get to see that they can do more with it,” said Cody. “I know when I was growing up, there wasn’t really anywhere to go. Sometimes you could play college hockey, sometimes you couldn’t. Not a lot of programs had it. Luckily, UMD here has it, but not everybody did. Then you were just kind of like, ‘oh, now I’m done. Now what?’ So now they get to see that there is an option afterwards.”

“It was very cool. Now instead of just the Olympics, you can play in the PWHL,” said Haley, a youth hockey player for the Mirage. “Yeah, we both got to see a game in person and it was really fun to see,” added Bryn, a teammate and friend.

Former UMD captain Sydney Brodt, Olympian Maddie Rooney, and Maggie Flaherty all were in the building, taking pictures and signing autographs for fans of all ages.

A league wide rebarand to more specific team names has fans excited for whats to come this year, and in the near future.

“I think it’s kind of fun, I like that they kept some things very original and I’m looking forward to it,” said Cody.

“I hope they get more franchises and more teams and it becomes way bigger than it is now,” added Bryn.

The Frost drop the puck with intentions of defending their Walter Cup title on December 1st against the New York Sirens.