Minnesota girls notebook: Records broken, Ms. Hockey speculation, top goalie talk

It's almost that time of year again - the time for the Minnesota high school hockey state tournament. With the postseason looming in the distance, multiple players have started to break records and make a name for themselves as possible Ms. Hockey frontrunners.

Find out what's been happening in Minnesota girl's high school hockey and names to look out for as section tournaments grow closer.

Uma Corniea , a Princeton commit, broke multiple records in January. Not only did she become the winningest goalie in Minnesota high school girls hockey history with 96 career wins (she now has 100 and counting), she has also now set the state's all-time shutout record with 42 (and counting).

Corniea is likely the heavy favorite for the Senior Goaltender of the Year award this season as she continues to set records and stay strong in net.

The Edina native has played six varsity seasons of hockey and has been to the state tournament every year of her high school career (at Breck and Edina). She has three state titles to her name, and finished in second and third place the other two years.

Corniea currently has a .958 save percentage over 24 games this season for the Hornets and has a 0.90 goals against average. She has nine shutouts in 2022-23. Edina has allowed only four goals in their last 11 games.

Even though Corniea is likely the heavy favorite to win the Senior Goaltender of the Year award, other goalies will be on the ballot as well. Who could make the top three finalists?

Courtney Stagman of Andover would be a name to watch. Stagman has played the majority of the past three seasons in net for the Huskies, and helped the team to a state title last year in 2022 and a second place finish in 2021. The St. Anselm commit currently has a .935 save percentage over 25 games and has 11 shutouts in 2022-23. She leads the state in wins with 22.

Sedona Blair of Holy Family could also easily be in the conversation. Blair has been on varsity for six years and has played a majority of the past four seasons in goal for the Fire. She has consistently posted around a .940 save percentage and typically has around five shutouts a season. She is a New Hampshire commit and was also a part of the Team USA U18 squad for a while.

Who else could make the list? Anna Rader of Mankato East has been a huge asset for the Cougars over the past two years. Rader has a .942 save percentage this season and helped backstop Mankato East to the state tournament last year. She is committed to play for Wisconsin-River Falls at the Division III level in the fall.

Delaney Norman of South St. Paul could very well in be in the conversation. The Packers have been good this year and Norman has a .934 save percentage so far in 2022-23 with six shutouts. Norman, uncommitted to college, helped push the Packers to the state tournament last season.

Celia Dahl of Orono could be on the watch list as well. Dahl has been the starter the past three seasons for Orono and earned third place in state tournament in 2022. Dahl, committed to play Division III hockey at Endicott College, currently has nine shutouts in 2022-23 and has a 1.32 goals-against-average.

Hailey Hansen of Blaine is the other goaltender that has a good shot of making the top list. Hansen, a Minnesota State commit, has started in goal for five whole seasons and typically sits around a .925 save percentage and has seven shutouts this season. Even though Blaine's record hasn't been the best this year, Hansen keeps things calm in net.

As the playoffs near closer and closer, it's time to take a look at who may be in the conversation for the prestigious Ms. Hockey award.

It seems like a no-brainer that Luverne's Kamryn Van Batavia will be on the list. Van Batavia has played six seasons of varsity hockey and currently has 439 total points and counting. She had a massive season last year with 127 points (83 goals) and currently has 69 points in 2022-23.

Van Batavia is a Minnesota State commit. She currently leads the entire state in goals scored in 2022-23 with 52.

Andover has multiple players that could be on the Ms. Hockey watch list. The one that seems to stand out the most would be Ella Boerger . Boerger, a St. Thomas commit, leads the Huskies in points this season with 56. She also led Andover in points last year when the team won the Class AA state title.

Isa Goettl (Minnesota) of Andover could be in the mix as well, as she is a top skater in the state, along with possibly a handful of other Huskies.

Warroad has multiple skaters that could be finalists for the award. Rylee Bartz (St. Thomas) currently leads the state in points with 85, but she played for Fargo North/South the past few years, so many are unsure of whether or not she would be voted for Minnesota Ms. Hockey since she's only played one season in the state.

Warroad's top contenders would likely be captain's Kate Johnson and Talya Hendrickson . The dynamic duo skate on the same line together and both are committed to Bemidji State.

Hendrickson has a slight edge in point totals over her varsity career, with 293 over five seasons. Johnson posted 55 points with East Grand Forks in eighth and ninth grade before heading to Warroad and netting 207 points over her three seasons there.

Minnetonka has many players at the top of the list.

The top Skippers who will be considered for the award are likely Ava Lindsay (Minnesota), Grace Sadura (Minnesota Duluth), and defenders Josie Hemp (Minnesota) and Elly Klepinger (Minnesota). Sadura and Lindsay have been top scorers for Minnetonka while Hemp and Klepinger have been top defenders.

Gentry Academy has multiple players in the mix. Cara Sajevic (St. Thomas) has been the squad's leading scorer since they became a high school team. Sajevic played a season with Minnehaha United before Gentry Academy become a program and she has close to 190 points over her four years of varsity hockey.

Twins Jenessa and JuliAnna Gazdik of Gentry Academy could be in the conversation as some of the top defenders in the state. Both are committed to Minnesota State.

Suzy Higuchi and Sam Broz of Blake could be top contenders. Higuchi (Yale) has 66 points over 25 games this season, while Broz (Brown) has 62. Both have played five varsity seasons for the Bears.

Ezra Oien (Vermont) of Owatonna is a five-year varsity player and two-time captain who has more than 200 career points.

Ellah Hause (St. Thomas) is a top defender in the state and has played with Team USA. The Hill-Murray skater is a two-time captain and currently has 42 points in 19 games in 2022-23.

Marie Moran (St. Cloud State) is also a five-year player and two-time captain. Moran has over 150-points for Apple Valley.

Sydney Leonard (New Hampshire) is a captain and five-year varsity forward. Leonard has over 180 career points so far for Mound Westonka.

Stella Retrum (Penn State) led Maple Grove to their state tournament appearance last season and currently leads the team with 55 points. Retrum is a two-time captain of the Crimson and has over 175 points over five seasons (one season with Breck).

Lauren O'Hara (Minnesota) is a two-time captain and five year varsity skater with Centennial/SLP. She has been a top-three scorer on the team the past four seasons.

There are plenty of other skaters in the mix, let us know who your picks are for the Minnesota Ms. Hockey award in 2023 and if there's any skaters we should have on our lists.