| Sport | Ice hockey |
|---|---|
| Awarded for | Outstanding American women’s ice hockey player. |
| History | |
| First award | 1994 |
| First winner | Erin Whitten-Hamlen |
| Most wins | Multiple (2) |
| Most recent | Laila Edwards |
The Bob Allen Women's Player of the Year Award is given annually by USA Hockey to an outstanding American-born female ice hockey player. It was first presented in 1994. [1]
In 2007, the name of the award was changed to honor the late Bob Allen, who was president of the New York State Amateur Hockey Association from 1954 to 1979 and served in high-ranking positions at USA Hockey from 1974 to 1999, including chairman of the women's national team for its gold medal victory at the 1998 Winter Olympics. Considered the godfather of American women's hockey, he played a major role in the development of girls' and women's hockey in the United States. [2] [3]
| Position | Winners |
|---|---|
| Forward | 20 |
| Defenseman | 5 |
| Goaltender | 6 |
| State | Winners |
|---|---|
 Wisconsin | 6 |
 Massachusetts | 4 |
 Minnesota | 4 |
 Michigan | 3 |
 Connecticut | 2 |
 Idaho | 2 |
 Illinois | 2 |
 New York | 2 |
 Ohio | 2 |
 Rhode Island | 2 |
 New Hampshire | 1 |
 North Dakota | 1 |
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and one in Canada. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges and helps over 500,000 college student athletes who compete annually in college sports. The organization is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana.
The New York Athletic Club is a private social club and athletic club in New York state. Founded in 1868, the club has approximately 8,600 members and two facilities: the City House, located at 180 Central Park South in Manhattan, and Travers Island, located in Westchester County. Membership in the club is by invitation only.
The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It has more than 900,000 members nationwide, including more than 100,000 volunteers. The philosophy of the AAU is "Sports for All, Forever."
Catherine Michelle Granato is an American former ice hockey player and one of the first women to be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in November 2010. She currently works as an assistant general manager for the Vancouver Canucks organization. Granato was the captain of the U.S. women's hockey team that won a gold medal in the 1998 Winter Olympics. She is the younger sister of former NHL player Tony Granato and former Buffalo Sabres head coach Don Granato, and a graduate of Providence College. Granato played hockey for Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
USA Hockey is the national ice hockey organization in the United States. It is recognized by the International Olympic Committee and the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee as the governing body for organized ice hockey in the United States and is a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation. Before June 1991, the organization was known as the Amateur Hockey Association of the United States (AHAUS).
Kristin Elizabeth "Krissy" Wendell-Pohl is an American former women's ice hockey player and current amateur scout for the Pittsburgh Penguins of the NHL. During the 2004–05 season, Wendell set an NCAA record for most short-handed goals in one season, with seven. At the conclusion of her college career, she held the record for most career short-handed goals, with 16. Both marks have since been equaled by Meghan Agosta. Wendell is currently in the Top 10 for all-time NCAA scoring, with 237 career points.
James Murray Costello was a Canadian ice hockey player, executive, and administrator. He played four seasons in the National Hockey League and was the younger brother of Les Costello. He was a lawyer by trade and president of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) from 1979 to 1994. After facilitating the CAHA merger with Hockey Canada, he continued as president until 1998.
Natalie Rose Darwitz is an American ice hockey executive, coach, and retired player, most recently serving as general manager of PWHL Minnesota in the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL).
Thomas Finan Lockhart was an American ice hockey administrator, business manager, and events promoter. He was president of the Eastern Hockey League from 1933 to 1972, and was the founding president of the Amateur Hockey Association of the United States (AHAUS) in 1937, which later became USA Hockey. He led AHAUS into the International Ice Hockey Association in 1940, then into the Ligue Internationale de Hockey sur Glace in 1947. He managed operations at Old Madison Square Garden, introduced fans to innovative on-ice promotions which made amateur hockey a profitable event. He was the business manager of the New York Rangers for six years, and was inducted into both the Hockey Hall of Fame and the United States Hockey Hall of Fame, and is a recipient of the Lester Patrick Trophy for building the game in the United States.
Allison Jaime "A. J." Mleczko Griswold is an American ice hockey player and analyst. She won a gold medal at the 1998 Winter Olympics and a silver medal at the 2002 Winter Olympics.
Meghan Duggan is an American former ice hockey forward and director of player development for the New Jersey Devils of the National Hockey League. She played for the United States at the 2010 Winter Olympics and 2014 Winter Olympics, winning two silver medals; she was the captain of the U.S. team at the 2018 Winter Olympics, where she won a gold medal. She also represented the United States at eight Women's World Championships, capturing seven gold medals and one silver medal. Duggan played collegiate hockey with the Wisconsin Badgers between 2006 and 2011. After her senior season (2010–11), Duggan was named the winner of the Patty Kazmaier Award, presented annually to the top women's ice hockey player in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). After her career at Wisconsin, Duggan was the team's all-time leading scorer. She was drafted 8th overall by the Boston Blades in the 2011 CWHL Draft.
Hilary Atwood Knight is an American ice hockey forward and captain of Boston of the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL). She is also a member of the United States women's national ice hockey team. She previously played for the Les Canadiennes de Montréal of the CWHL and the Boston Pride of the NWHL, with whom she won the inaugural Isobel Cup.
The history of women's ice hockey in the United States can be traced back to the early 20th century. In the 1920s, the Seattle Vamps competed in various hockey tournaments. In 1916, the United States hosted an international hockey tournament in Cleveland, Ohio, that featured Canadian and American women's hockey teams.
Amanda Kessel is an American ice hockey executive and professional player, currently serving as manager of minor league operations for the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League and assistant general manager for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey League.
Kendall Coyne Schofield is an American professional ice hockey player and captain for PWHL Minnesota and the United States national team. With the national team, she has won six gold medals at the IIHF World Women's Championships and the gold medal at the 2018 Winter Olympics. In 2016, she was the winner of the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award. In January 2017, Coyne was recognized as the recipient of the NCAA Today's Top 10 Award.
Brianna Decker is an American former professional ice hockey forward who played for the Wisconsin Badgers, Boston Blades, Boston Pride, Calgary Inferno, Professional Women's Hockey Players Association, and United States women's national ice hockey team. She won the 2012 Patty Kazmaier Award while playing for the University of Wisconsin, recognizing the best female ice hockey player in NCAA Division I play. With the Boston Pride, Decker would score the first hat trick in NWHL history on October 25, 2015.
Jacob Ryan Trouba is an American professional ice hockey defenseman and visual artist. He currently serves as captain of the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Trouba was drafted by the Winnipeg Jets in the first round, ninth overall, of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. Trouba played the first six years of his career in Winnipeg before he was traded to the Rangers in 2019.
Lee Ethel Stecklein is an American professional ice hockey defenseman for PWHL Minnesota of the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) and a former member of the United States women's national ice hockey team. Stecklein first represented the United States at the 2011 IIHF World Women's U18 Championship, and went on to play at the Winter Olympics in 2014, 2018 and 2022. She played college ice hockey at Minnesota. Stecklein is the only player to win both the NCAA national championship and the IIHF World Women's Championship three times.
Ice hockey, simply referred to as "hockey" in both English and French in Canada, dates back to the 19th century. The sport is very popular and played year-round and at every level in the country. Born of various influences from stick-and-ball games brought from the United Kingdom and indigenous games, the contemporary sport of ice hockey originated in Montreal. It is the official national winter sport of Canada. Hockey is widely considered Canada's national pastime, with high levels of participation by children, men, and women at various levels of competition.
Ice hockey, referred to in the US simply as "hockey", is a popular sport in the United States. Hockey in the US began in 1894 when the first artificial ice rink was built in Baltimore, Maryland. Now hockey is most popular in regions of the US with cold winter climates, such as the northeast and the upper Midwest. However, since the 1990s, ice hockey has become increasingly popular in the Sun Belt due in large part to the expansion of the National Hockey League to the southeast and southwest US, coupled with the mass relocation of many residents from northern cities with strong hockey support to these Sun Belt locations.
