# 2020–21 Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs women's ice hockey season

The Bulldogs qualified for the 2021 NCAA National Collegiate Women's Ice Hockey Tournament, ranked as the #5 seed. Defeating the Colgate Raiders in the opening round, the Bulldogs were defeated 3-2 by the #1 ranked Northeastern Huskies in the Frozen Four.
Emma Soderberg captured the WCHA 2020-21 Goaltending Championship. Statistically, she topped all conference goaltenders with both a 1.34 GAA and .951 save percentage. In addition, she tied for the league lead with five shutouts, while ranking second overall in wins with 11.
In the USCHO.com final season rankings, the Bulldogs claimed the number four spot, its highest spot since 2010, when it placed first overall in the rankings.

## Offseason
### Recruiting

| Player | Position | Nationality | Notes |
| Jojo Chobak | Goaltender | United States | Was a participant in the USA Under-18 Top 66 Camp in the summer of 2018 |
| Katie Davis | Forward | United States | Won a gold medal at the 2020 IIHF World Women's U18 Championship |
| Nina Jobst-Smith | Defense | Canada | Attended Okanagan Hockey Academy Born in North Vancouver, she has skated for the German National Team |
| Brieja Parent | Forward | United States | Member of the USA Hockey Girls' 16/17 Players Development Camp |

## Regular season
### Standings

2020–21 Western Collegiate Hockey Association standingsvte :
| | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall |
| | GP | W | L | T | SW | PTS | GF | GA | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA |
| #1 Wisconsin † * | 16 | 12 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 36 | 62 | 25 | 21 | 17 | 3 | 1 | 79 | 33 |
| #4 Minnesota Duluth | 16 | 11 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 50 | 23 | 23 | 12 | 7 | 0 | 55 | 33 |
| #3 Ohio State | 16 | 11 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 42 | 32 | 20 | 13 | 7 | 0 | 56 | 42 |
| #6 Minnesota | 19 | 11 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 36 | 62 | 40 | 20 | 11 | 8 | 1 | 65 | 45 |
| Minnesota State | 20 | 7 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 20 | 38 | 56 | 20 | 7 | 12 | 1 | 38 | 56 |
| St. Cloud State | 19 | 6 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 18.5 | 32 | 62 | 19 | 6 | 12 | 1 | 32 | 62 |
| Bemidji State | 20 | 2 | 16 | 2 | 1 | 12.5 | 24 | 72 | 20 | 2 | 16 | 2 | 24 | 72 |
| Championship: March 8, 2021 † indicates conference regular season champion; * indicates conference tournament champion Rankings: USCHO.com; updated March 25, 2021 ||||||||||||||||

### Schedule

| Date | Opponent$^#$ | Site | Decision | Result | Record |
| Regular Season |||||||
| November 20 | at MSU-Mankato Mavericks | Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center • Mankato, MN | W 5-0 | 1-0-0 (1-0-0) |
| November 21 | at MSU-Mankato Mavericks | Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center • Mankato, MN | W 7-3 | 2-0-0 (2-0-0) |
| November 27 | Minnesota Golden Gophers | Amsoil Arena • Duluth, MN | L 2-4 | 2-1-0 (2-1-0) |
| November 28 | Minnesota Golden Gophers | Amsoil Arena • Duluth, MN | L 1-2 | 2-2-0 (2-2-0) |
| December 4 | St. Cloud State Huskies | Amsoil Arena • Duluth, MN | W 4-0 | 3-2-0 (3-2-0) |
| December 5 | St. Cloud State Huskies | Amsoil Arena • Duluth, MN | W 5-1 | 4-2-0 (4-2-0) |
| January 15 | Ohio State Buckeyes | Amsoil Arena • Duluth, MN | W 2-0 | 5-2-0 (5-2-0) |
| January 16 | Ohio State Buckeyes | Amsoil Arena • Duluth, MN | L 0-1 | 5-3-0 (5-3-0) |
| January 22 | at Bemidji State Beavers | Bemidji, MN | L 0-1 | 5-4-0 (5-4-0) |
| January 23 | at Bemidji State Beavers | Bemidji, MN | W 1-0 | 6-4-0 (6-4-0) |
| January 29 | St. Cloud State Huskies | Amsoil Arena • Duluth, MN | W 4-1 | 7-4-0 (7-4-0) |
| January 30 | St. Cloud State Huskies | Amsoil Arena • Duluth, MN | W 6-0 | 8-4-0 (8-4-0) |
| February 20 | MSU-Mankato Mavericks | Amsoil Arena • Duluth, MN | W 2-1 | |
| February 21 | MSU-Mankato Mavericks | Amsoil Arena • Duluth, MN | W 4-3 | |
| February 26 | Wisconsin Badgers | Amsoil Arena • Duluth, MN | W 4-2 | |
| February 27 | Wisconsin Badgers | Amsoil Arena • Duluth, MN | L 3-4 | |
| NCAA Tournament |||||||
| March 6 | Ohio State Buckeyes | Ridder Arena • Minneapolis, MN | L 2-7 | |
| WCHA Final Faceoff |||||||
| March 15 | vs. Colgate Raiders | Erie Insurance Arena • Erie, PA | Emma Soderberg | W 1-0 $^{OT}$ | 12-6-0 |
| March 18 | vs. Northeastern Huskies | Erie Insurance Arena • Erie, PA | Aerin Frankel (NU) | L 3-2 $^{OT}$ | 12-7-0 |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. |||||||

## Awards and honors

* Ashton Bell, 2020-21 WCHA Defenseman of the Year
* Ashton Bell, 2020-21 WCHA First Team All-Star
* Emma Soderberg, 2020-21 WCHA Goaltender of the Year
* Emma Soderberg, 2020-21 WCHA First Team All-Star
* Gabbie Hughes, 2020-21 WCHA Second Team All-Star
* Anna Klein, 2020-21 WCHA Second Team All-Star
* Anna Klein, All-USCHO.com Third Team

### All-America honors

* Emma Soderberg, 2020-21 Second Team CCM/AHCA All-American
* Ashton Bell, 2020-21 Second Team CCM/AHCA All-American