Manitoba: Where Goalies Are Made

The young lady to the left is Ohio State Buckeyes netminder Raygan Kirk following her team's victory today over Wisconsin at the NCAA Women's Frozen Four tournament. Kirk was named as the 2024 Frozen Four Most Outstanding Player as she helped the Buckeyes to their second title in three years which is remarkable considering her commitment to Robert Morris University to watching that program dissolve to landing at Ohio State where she played behind American Amanda Thiele and Swiss netminder Andrea Brändli. Kirk's emergence as the starter and, now, a champion this season should be a surprise, though, as she's always found her way to the top regardless of circumstances. Congratulations, Raygan!

What is remarkable is the list of goalies from Manitoba who are doing incredible things at the U SPORTS and NCAA levels along with the number of professional and Team Canada netminders who have wowed crowds across the world. Make no mistake that there will likely be another goalie or two moving into the PWHL in the next few drafts who calls the province home.

Kirk finishes her NCAA career with a ridiculous 56-10-10 record in 79 NCAA games while posting a 1.71 GAA and a .930 save percentage backed by 18 shutouts. She was part of the Ohio State win two years ago, and she added a second NCAA championship today while being named as 2024 Frozen Four Most Outstanding Player. She can add those accolades to her IIHF U18 Women's World Championship gold medal and Most Valuable Player award she earned in 2019 along with the MFHL Championship to which she backstopped the Eastman Selects in 2018. In short, she's pretty darn good and will certainly have her name called in the PWHL draft this summer.

Logan Angers had an outstanding season with Quinnipiac this year, and her college career has been equally impressive despite not having the same accolades as Kirk. Angers finishes her career with a 65-28-3 record thanks to a 1.80 GAA and a .928 save percentage backed by 19 shutouts in her 99 NCAA appearances. Angers was a star with the St. Mary's Academy Flames team prior to her attending Quinnipac where she backstopped the Flames to a 2018 Female World Sport School Challenge gold medal over Gentry Academy from Minnesota, so we knew she could win the big games. Angers should be on the radar when the PWHL draft happens this summer.

Alberta Pandas netminder Halle Oswald is no stranger around these parts when it comes to her play on the ice, and she leaves the Pandas with a 55-16-7 record in the 80 appearances she made in Canada West play. She earned that record by turning in a 1.14 GAA and a .943 save percentage that saw her pitch 22 shutouts. She was named as the Most Valuable Player at the 2017 Esso Cup with the Pembina Valley Hawks after helping them win the MFHL championship, and she was the 2023 Canada West Goaltender of the Year after being named a Canada West all-star multiple times. Oswald is one of the best netminders eligible for the draft this summer.

These three goalies will likely follow the path forged by both Kristen Campbell of PWHL Toronto and Corrine Schroeder of PWHL New York who have shown that they can play with the world's best in the professional women's league. As you may have heard, Campbell and her teammates just set the PWHL record and the record for professional hockey teams in Toronto for the longest win streak (eat it, Maple Leafs!) while Schroeder is doing all she can to keep the offensively-anemic New York team in games. Both have played well this season.

Of course, Sami Jo Small's name is well-known throughout the hockey world, but it seems more and more likely that names like Campbell, Schroeder, Kirk, Angers, and Oswald could follow her lead in stopping pucks at the Olympics in Italy. We'll have to wait and see if that happens in 2026, but it seems almost like a lock that a Manitoban will be on the goaltending roster in Milano-Cortina just as Sami Jo Small's was when Canada won the gold medal in 2002 in Salt Lake City.

One name that you likely don't know who seemingly has a golden touch is Julianna Thomson who played for both the St. Mary's Academy Flames and the York Lions in the OUA. Thomson didn't stand out in her time with the Lions as they were rebuilding, but she has found another place where she can use her impressive goaltending skills - ball hockey! Thomson was the backup netminder on the 2019 ISBHF World Championship Canadian team that captured gold before she took over the starter's role in helping Canada win the 2022 ISBHF World Championship gold medal. Julianna will be back between the pipes for Canada this year as they seek the three-peat in Valais, Switzerland from June 21-29!

Will there be more goalies from Manitoba who could have an impact in the future? I'd say yes based on a few early showings. Grace Glover should be another gem for the Alberta Pandas as they recruited the former Westman Wildcats netminder. Jordan Nepinak-Sargent has yet to suit up with the York Lions, but her work with the MFHL's Winnipeg Ice was impressive and she has the opportunity to learn from Emma Wedgewood as she looks to conquer the OUA. Hanna Pagdato may not be familiar to fans in U SPORTS, but the Mount Allison Mounties netminder is a Filipino goalie who has suited up for her team at the Union Women Ice Hockey Tournament! Each of these goalies has a unique story, but they all look to have bright futures!

It's pretty impressive to see all these women succeeding and excelling at various levels of hockey while calling Manitoba their home. Clearly, the province isn't as populous as the likes of Quebec, Ontario, BC, or Alberta, but these women are raising the bar when it comes to stopping pucks for the rest of the country. Raygan Kirk's latest achievements is just move proof that there is no stopping the stoppers that come out of Manitoba.

Congratulations to Raygan Kirk on becoming an NCAA champion for a second time and for being named as the tournament's brightest star. Both are deservedly earned and won, and there's an entire province who will be cheering for you in your next steps in life.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!