The 2025 PWHL Draft has its share of star players who will see their names on the scoresheet regularly. The draft also has a group of players who impact the game in other ways. Some of those ways can be measured through statistics like blocked shots, pre-shot passes, controlled zone entries, and penalties drawn.
While penalties drawn and blocked shots are obvious, the others may not be to novice hockey fans, but are explained below.
2025 PWHL Draft: Final Rankings
The 2025 PWHL Draft is scheduled for June 24 in Ottawa. It will feature another incoming wave of talent across six rounds and 48 picks. Last year the Draft had 42 picks and seven rounds, but with the addition of two expansion teams, the league has altered the numbers for 2025.
Here's a look at the PWHL's top draft prospects coming from the NCAA where in depth statistics through InStat were available.
Blocked Shots
- Haley Winn, D, Clarkson – 133
- Nicole Gosling, D, Clarkson – 105
- Dayle Ross, D, St. Cloud State – 76
- Lyndie Lobdell, D, Penn State – 75
- Brianna Brooks, F, Penn State – 71
- Clara Van Wieren, F, Minnesota-Duluth – 69
- Julia Shaunessy, D, Boston University – 68
- Kendall Cooper, D, Quinnipiac – 65
- Brooke Becker, D, Providence – 64
- Maya Labad, F, Quinnipiac – 64
- Vanessa Upson, F, Mercyhurst – 64
- Abby Hustler, F, St. Lawrence – 62
- Ava Rinker, D, Connecticut – 62
- Morgan Neitzke, F, Lindenwood – 62
- Nina Jobst-Smith, D, Minnesota-Duluth – 61
- Kristyna Kaltounkova, F, Colgate – 60
- Tamara Gianquinto, D, Boston University -60
- Olivia Muhn, D, Yale – 60
- Emma Gentry, F, St. Cloud State – 59
- Natalie Mlynkova, F, Minnesota – 58
- Brynn Saarela, F, Syracuse – 54
- Jada Habisch, F, Connecticut – 54
- Cameron Sikich, D, Brown - 54
- Anne Cherkowski, F, Clarkson - 52
- Olivia Mobley, F, Minnesota-Duluth - 52
Pre-Shot Passes and Pre-Shot Pass Conversions
In short, a pre-shot pass is the number of passes a player delivers that leads directly to a shot. It means these players are more frequently able to get passes to teammates in dangerous areas that result in chances. The measure below is the average number of pre-shot passes per game.
We also looked at pre-shot pass conversions, which is the number of pre-shot passes that led directly to a goal resulting in a primary assist per game.
- Kylie Aquaro, F, RIT – 2.56 (0.119 PSP Conversions)
- Casey O’Brien, F, Wisconsin – 2.05 (0.450 PSP Conversions)
- Anne Cherkowski, F, Clarkson – 1.95 (0.205 PSP Conversions)
- Jenna Bulgioni, F, Ohio State – 1.76 (0.169 PSP Conversions)
- Makenna Webster, F, Ohio State – 1.70 (0.314 PSP Conversions)
- Laura Fuoco, F, Dartmouth – 1.61 (0.088 PSP Conversions)
- Clara Van Wieren, F, Minnesota-Duluth – 1.57 (0.172 PSP Conversions)
- Vanessa Upson, F, Mercyhurst – 1.57 (0.379 PSP Conversions)
- Sarah Marchand, F, St. Lawrence – 1.56 (0.164 PSP Conversions)
- Morgan Neitzke, F, Lindenwood – 1.55 (0.146 PSP Conversions)
- Laura Fuoco, F, Dartmouth - 1.55 (0.177 PSP Converstions)
- Olivia Wallin, F, Minnesota-Duluth – 1.51 (0.320 PSP Conversions)
- Nicole Gosling, D, Clarkson – 1.48 (0.305 PSP Conversions)
- Abby Hustler, F, St. Lawrence – 1.41 (0.254 PSP Conversions)
- Anna Segedi, F, Colgate – 1.41 (0.200 PSP Conversions)
- Kiara Zanon, F, Ohio State – 1.36 (0.226 PSP Conversions)
- Maddi Wheeler, F, Ohio State – 1.33 (0.154 PSP Conversions)
- Haley Winn, D, Clarkson – 1.26 (0.354 PSP Conversions)
- Brianna Brooks, F, Penn State – 1.22 (0.244 PSP Conversions)
- Aly McLeod, F, St. Lawrence - 1.18 (0.152 PSP Conversions)
Controlled Zone Entries
Dump and chase hockey is a recipe for possession changes and needless turnovers. It can be effective, but whenever possible teams prefer to enter the offensive zone under full control. A controlled zone entry indicates a player carried the puck across the blueline, a stat proven to increase scoring chances and zone time. Here's a look at the PWHL Draft prospects with the most controlled zone entries per game.
- Morgan Neitzke, F, Lindenwood – 5.3
- Skylar Irving, F, Northeastern – 4.9
- Anne Cherkowski, F, Clarkson – 4.85
- Abby Newhook, F, Boston College – 4.44
- Casey O’Brien, F, Wisconsin – 4.38
- Natalie Mlynkova, F, Minnesota – 4.18
- Clara Van Wieren, F, Minnesota-Duluth – 3.97
- Makenna Webster, F, Ohio State – 3.97
- Kira Juodikis, F, New Hampshire – 3.93
- Kiara Zanon, F, Ohio State – 3.90
- Vanessa Upson, F, Mercyhurst – 3.81
- Jada Habisch, F, Connecticut – 3.72
- Emma Gentry, F, St. Cloud State – 3.69
- Kristyna Kaltounkova, F, Colgate – 3.68
- Sarah Machand, F, St. Lawrence – 3.59
- Olivia Mobley, F, Minnesota-Duluth – 3.46
- Anna Segedi, F, Colgate – 3.46
- Lauren Messier, F, Dartmouth – 3.43
- Brianna Brooks, F, Penn State - 3.31
- Maya Labad, F, Quinnipiac - 3.23
Penalties Drawn
Let’s call this the pest factor, which makes it unsurprising that Minnesota’s Abbey Murphy draws the most penalties per game, by a landslide, of any PWHL draft eligible player in the NCAA. While drawing penalties is beneficial, and can show a measure not only of the “pest factor,” but also generally indicates that a player is more difficult to contain. Players who can separate with their skating, who take pucks into dangerous zones, and can protect pucks more effectively, often face actions resulting in penalties to stop them. Here’s the top PWHL Draft eligible NCAA players in penalties drawn per game.
- Kristyna Kaltounkova, F, Colgae – 0.50
- Kylie Aquaro, F, RIT – 0.44
- Makenna Webster, F, Ohio State – 0.40
- Jenna Buglioni, F, Ohio State – 0.38
- Tammy Gianquinto, D, Boston University – 0.35
- Emma Gentry, F, St. Cloud State – 0.34
- Jada Habisch, F, Connecticut – 0.34
- Natalie Mlynkova, F, Minnesota – 0.33
- Morgan Neitzke, F, Lindenwood – 0.32
- Kira Juodikis, F, New Hampshire – 0.31
- Jenna Goodwin, F, Clarkson - 0.30
- Madison Mashuga, F, Minnesota State - 0.29
- Anna Bargmann, F, Yale – 0.29
- Alyssa Machado, F, Penn State - 0.28
- Anne Cherkowski, F, Clarkson – 0.28
- Kiara Zanon, F, Ohio State – 0.28
- Brynn Saarela, F, Syracuse – 0.28