WCHA Powerhouse Programs Continue To Add Skilled Players In Fight For Supremacy

Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Ohio State. They are not only the top three teams right now in the WCHA, they're likely the top three in the nation heading toward the 2024-2025 NCAA women's hockey season.

Part of that has been the ongoing race to add talent not only through traditional recruitment, but by remaining extremely active in the transfer portal.

Ohio State won the national championships this year after adding Cayla Barnes, Hannah Bilka, Raygan Kirk, Lauren Bernard, Hadley Hartmetz, and Stephanie Markowski, all 2024 PWHL Draft picks through the transfer portal. Their only start to finish PWHL pick was Jennifer Gardiner. The transfers went deeper than that as players like Olivia Mobley, Makenna Webster, and Kiara Zanon who were all crucial to Ohio State's dominance were all transfers as well.

This offseason, Ohio State was back at the transfer portal to address the loss of seven players to the PWHL. This year that includes incoming defenders Sara Swiderski,  Brooke Disher, and Emily Zumwinkle, and forwad Maddi Wheeler, and goalie Hailey MacLeod.

In Minnesota, the team worked with phenom defender Chloe Primerano to get her commitment shifted forward a year, meaning the gifted blueliner will join the roster this season. Minnesota then dipped into the transfer portal and pulled out three impact players. Minnesota brought over Vermont captain and World Championship All-Star Natalie Mlynkova to add to their firepower up front. They also added the leading scoring blueliner in the nation in Sydney Morrow and Finnish national team member Krista Parkkonen.

Wisconsin is the lone force in the WCHA who isn't building this season through the transfer portal, but they are adding another wave of top end players including Emma Venusio, Maggie Scannell, and Finley McCarthy, who are all ready for the NCAA and look like future impact players.

Related: Recruiting Class: Wisconsin Adds More Arsenal

Few programs in the nation have seen the year in and year out success of Ohio State, Wisconsin, and Minnesota, and the 2024-2025 season looks like it will be another fight between three loaded lineups for WCHA and national titles.