Minnesota Frost Loads Each Position In 2026 PWHL Entry Draft – Hockey Writers – Minnesota Frost

The 2026 PWHL Entry Draft took place in Detroit, Michigan, on Wednesday night, June 17, and all 12 teams made their picks in six rounds. 72 players were selected out of 235 players, and Caroline Harvey went to the Vancouver Goldeneyes first. Minnesota Frost’s picks were 9th, 21st, 33rd, 45th, 57th, and 69th, and they made solid picks.

They had a few holes on their roster after the expansion process began, and they were looking to fill those holes in the draft. They covered all their bases with three forwards, two defenders, and a goalkeeper. In this article, we’ll take a look at each pick and see how they’ll help Frost in their quest for a third Walter Cup, starting with the first two rounds.

Frost’s High Requirements Solved

Frost didn’t have the first or second choice, but they still chose in the top ten with the ninth pick, and used it on defender Sara Swiderski from Ohio State University, where she spent the last two seasons of her college career, while the first two were at Clarkson University. He hails from Canada, and will look to utilize his defensive talents on Frost’s blue line.

His final season at Ohio State was very impressive; played in 33 games, scored eight goals, assisted on 19 others for 27 points. Frost lost some offensive-minded defensemen, but hopefully, they got one in drafting Swiderski.

“Yeah, I think there’s a lot to be excited about. I mean I got here less than 24 hours ago, but from the minute I arrived like the setup they have is amazing, even meeting the staff and messaging other girls, I have Kelly (Pannek) on the show, like their culture is amazing so I’m very happy to be a part of the media,” said Swedi. his first discovery as a member of Frost when asked what he enjoys most.

In the second round, Frost moved up, and with their overall 21st pick, they selected Vivii Vainikka. They went overseas for their second round as Vainikka is from Espoo, Finland. However, she will join Frost after playing for Brynäs IF in the Swedish Women’s Hockey League (SDHL).

He can score and assist, as he played in 36 games and had 11 goals and 29 assists for 40 points. One of Frost’s struggles in the postseason has been scoring opponents, and now that they’ve added Vainikka, they’ll have the scoring power forward they need and someone to play with Taylor Heise and Grace Zumwinkle.

Frost Address Requirements

While their top two picks will get a lot of attention, the players they selected in the third and fourth rounds are talented. The first was Minnesota native Madelyn Christian, who was from Penn State University. He was there for four seasons and was co-captain in his final season where he played 39 games and tallied 35 points, 19 of which were goals.

As mentioned above, Frost needed more goals in the postseason, and although they have players who can score, it was difficult to do so. Having multiple players who can score at different times will be very important, especially if it takes the pressure off the top scorers.

While they added scorers, they didn’t forget about their defense either, as their fourth round pick was linebacker Tova Henderson. Another player with a connection to Minnesota, but this was because of college hockey, as he played for the University of Minnesota Duluth. Although Frost has added a linebacker, he has an offensive group as well. They knew very well that they need more goals, even on the defensive side, but hopefully he can defend like he is scoring.

Frost’s Final Decisions

The last two players were defensive and offensive as they added a goaltender in the fifth round, and a forward was their last pick. After Nicole Hensley signed with PWHL Las Vegas, Frost knew they had to find another forward to help out Maddie Rooney. That’s why they chose Daria Gredzen, a goalkeeper from Novosibirsk, Russia who was playing for Biryusa Krasnoyarsk.

Last season, he played in 30 games and had a solid .928 save percentage and a decent goals against average of 2.22. With Hensley on a new team, Rooney will have the starting gig, but Gredzen could be a good backup if they don’t sign a third goalkeeper. There was another option behind Gredzen, and Frost went back to the case.

In their sixth round, the final pick of the draft, they went with Lara Beecher, from Buffalo, New York. He spent the first three seasons of his college career at the University of Vermont, where he put up decent numbers, but when he jumped to Clarkson University for his final season, he took his career to the next level.

In that final season, he played in 35 games and scored 12 goals and 13 assists for 25 points. He’s a player who might end up on the third or fourth line, but he could add some points to a team that also needs all the points it can get from everyone on its roster.

The Frosts clearly wanted to add at every position they could with young, rising talent, and they did. They also went after players who can collect points in all areas but the goalkeeper. It will be interesting to see how these players fit into Frost going forward, but hopefully they can help them secure another Walter Cup.

Statistics courtesy of Eliteprospects.com