PWHL Vancouver gutted the Minnesota Frost during the Exclusive Signing Window and the Expansion Draft. The PWHL’s new expansion teams, PWHL Vancouver and PWHL Seattle, were allowed to take unprotected players from all existing teams. Vancouver chose Claire Thompson, Sophie Jaques, Brooke McQuigge, and Denisa Křížová. Meanwhile, Seattle did not select any players from the Frost.
The Frost protected Taylor Heise, Kendall Coyne (C), Lee Stecklein (A), and Britta Curl-Salemme, meaning Kelly Pannek (A) was the only captain they left unprotected, who was not chosen. Minnesota still has the captains who lead the team to the Walter Cup and can help integrate the new, young draft picks into the team. The Frost also kept their goalie duo, Nicole Hensley and Maddie Rooney.
Vancouver picked wisely and left large gaps in Minnesota’s roster, especially at the blue line. Thompson was the 3rd overall draft pick in the 2024 PWHL draft. The defenseman had 18 regular-season points and 6 during the playoffs.
Jacques scored 172 goals during her career at Ohio State, making her the second-highest-scoring Buckeyes defender all-time. In the 2024-25 season, she had 22 points in the regular season and another 7 in the playoffs for Minnesota. Forwards McQuigge and Křížová had 18 and 11 points, respectively, in the regular season and playoffs combined.
The original 6 teams could only protect their top 4 players, so expansion teams could pick the top 8 players, giving them depth. However, expansion teams have no team chemistry, a meaningful disadvantage. Therefore, Vancouver was smart to take 4 players from one team. Thompson, Jaques, McQuigge, and Křížová already know each other’s playstyles and tendencies.
The 2025 Draft allowed The Frost to fill out their roster again. The six-round draft included 192 eligible players. Each team had 5 minutes to choose in the first round, 3 minutes for every round thereafter, and one 5-minute timeout. The PWHL gave the original 6 the first 6 picks for each draft, and Minnesota had the 6th pick of each round because they won the Walter Cup.
Round 1, Pick 6: Kendall Cooper (D)
Cooper is a Burlington, Ont. native who finished the 2024-25 season with 7 goals and 19 assists over 37 games at Quinnipiac. She has 116 points in 158 career games and captained Team Canada’s U18 team in 2020. Last season, the Frost ranked 3rd in power play at 17.9%. Cooper’s knack for finding shooting lanes, as she does in these clips, will be a key addition to the power play and in even-strength situations.
Round 2, Pick 14: Abby Hustler (F)
Hustler is the first PWHL player from Prince Edward Island. The St. Louis, PEI native scored 19 goals and gained 20 assists in 39 games for St. Lawrence University in the 2024-25 season. Hustler has 158 points in 154 games and has been an alternate captain for the past 2 seasons. She was also a 2024 Patty Kazmaier top 10 finalist.
Hustler is one of the taller defenseman on the team at 5’9 and is good at using her body to shield the puck. She’ll also be able to add a more physical aspect to the Frost.
Round 3, Pick 22: Anna Segedi (F)
Segedi also played for St. Lawrence University, scored 10 goals, and gained 14 assists in 39 games during the 2024-25 season. The Commerce Twp, Mich. native has 119 points in 165 games and captained the team in her final season. Segedi also represented Team China in the 2022 Olympics and the 2022 and 2023 World Championships.
Segedi and Hustler likely already have chemistry and will bring that to Minnesota.
Round 4, Pick 30: Ava Rinker (D)
Rinker is from Eleverson, PA, and had 32 points in 90 games for the University of Connecticut. She had 3 goals and 11 assists in the 2024-25 season for the UConn Huskies.
Round 5, Pick 38: Vanessa Upson (F)
Upson captained the Mercyhurst University Lakers in the 2024-25 season, scoring 13 goals and gaining 30 assists over 38 games. She has 147 points in 148 career games and led Mercyhurst in points last season. She is originally from Stoney Creek, Ont.
Round 6, Pick 46: Brooke Becker (D)
Becker is from Buffalo, NY, and served as an alternate captain for Providence College in the 2024-25 season. She scored 5 goals and 13 assists over 35 games this past season, and has 76 points in 163 games overall. She was also named a 2025 Hockey East 2nd team All-Star.
The Frost kept their leadership and goaltending intact through the expansion team signing window and draft. Still, Vancouver picked key players from Minnesota’s roster. The Frost selected 6 solid additions during the PWHL draft to fill the gap. The PWHL’s expansion process gave Vancouver and Seattle an advantage. However, Minnesota’s strong leadership, coaching, and draft picks will keep them competitive going into the 2025-26 season.