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2016 Top-10 Patty Kazmaier Award Finalists Announced

2015 award winner Alex Carptenter is among the finalists. She'd be the first repeat winner in Patty Kazmaier Award history.

By Nathan Wells
BC's Alex Carpenter following being named the 2015 Patty Kazmaier Award winner.
BC's Alex Carpenter following being named the 2015 Patty Kazmaier Award winner.
Chris Dilks/SBN College Hockey

Led by 2015 Patty Kazmaier Award winner Alex Carpenter, three players from Boston College are among the ten finalists announced Thursday for the 2016 version of the award given annually to the top player in NCAA Division 1 women's ice hockey.

The award is named in honor of Patty Kazmaier-Sandt, who passed away in 1990 at the age of 28.

Carpenter, who leads all of college hockey with 76 points (38G-38A) this season as a redshirt senior, is joined by sophomore defender Megan Keller and senior forward Haley Skarupa. She has the opportunity to become the first player to win the award in back-to-back years. Only Harvard's Jennifer Botterill (2001, 2003) has won the award twice.

The Eagles (34-0-0, 24-0-0 Hockey East) became the second team to finish the regular season undefeated with a 9-1 win over Providence last weekend.

Two players from both Wisconsin and Minnesota are also among the ten finalists. The WCHA regular season champion Badgers are represented by junior goaltender Ann-Renee Desbiens, who has a .956 save percentage and is one shutout short of tying Noora Raty (17 in 2012-13) for the most in one season and sophomore forward Annie Pankowski.

Minnesota, finishing a point behind Wisconsin, is represented by senior forward Hannah Brandt and junior forward Dani Cameranesi. It's the fourth time Brandt, the NCAA's active leader in points with 275, has been a top-10 finalist. She was among the top-3 each of the past 2 seasons.

Other finalists are Northeastern senior forward Kendall Coyne, whose 2.27 points per game are the most in college hockey, Princeton junior defender Kelsey Koelzer, and North Dakota senior goalie Shelby Amsley-Benzie.

The top-3 finalists will be named on Thursday March 3rd.

The 2016 Patty Kazmaier Award will be unveiled at a brunch ceremony at Wentworth By The Sea in New Castle, New Hampshire, on Saturday March 19 as part of the Frozen Four weekend.

Finalists (in alphabetical order):

  • Shelby Amsley-Benzie (Warroad, Minn./University of North Dakota)
  • Hannah Brandt (Vadnais Heights, Minn./University of Minnesota)
  • Dani Cameranesi (Plymouth, Minn./University of Minnesota)
  • Alex Carpenter (North Reading, Mass./Boston College)
  • Kendall Coyne (Palos Height, Ill./Northeastern University)
  • Ann-Renee Desbiens (La Malbaie, Que./University of Wisconsin)
  • Megan Keller (Farmington, Mich./Boston College)
  • Kelsey Koelzer (Horsham, Pa./Princeton University)
  • Annie Pankowski (Laguna Hills, Calif./University of Wisconsin)
  • Haley Skarupa (Rockville, Md./Boston College).