Two University of Minnesota Duluth women's hockey players were taken in the second-ever PWHL Draft Monday, with 2023-24 team captain Mannon McMahon taken in round five with the 26th pick overall by Ottawa, and 2023 graduate Anneke Linser taken in the sixth round with the 36th pick overall by Toronto.

Recently graduated with her MBA after spending five years with the Bulldogs, McMahon set the program record with 173 consecutive games played after never missing a game over her entire collegiate career. While her career games played total also tied her for the fourth most games played by any WCHA player in league history, McMahon – part of all four of UMD's latest NCAA Tournament berths – scored the double overtime game-winner to send her team to the NCAA Regional Final this past season. The center also played in back-to-back Frozen Fours in 2021 and 2022, including a national championship runner-up finish in 2022, and finished her Bulldog career with 87 career points. In April, the Maple Grove, Minn. native was named the UMD Athletic Department's Outstanding Senior Female Athlete of the Year for 2023-24, and will join former Bulldog teammates forward Gabbie Hughes and defenseman Ashton Bell, as well as former UMD alum forward Katerina Mrazova in Ottawa.

Linser played in Sweden last season for Djurgardens IF of the SDHL, and had a phenomenal  year that had her on almost every pre-draft board prior to Monday's draft. Named the 2023 All-American Athlete Strength and Conditioning Athlete of the Year Award recipient, Linser was a four-time WCHA Scholar Athlete and two-time American Hockey Coaches Association 2020-21 Division I Krampade All-American Scholar with the Bulldogs, and turned in her most offensive season over her fifth season. The Lino Lakes, Minn. native recorded 30 points on 17 goals and 13 assists, and led UMD with five game-winning goals and was +18 overall. She left UMD having skated in the third most games in program history -- 165, and compiled 42 goals and 51 assists for 93 points, and helped the Bulldog to two NCAA Frozen Fours and three-straight NCAA Tournaments. Linser will join former Bulldog All-American defenseman Jocelyne Larocque in Toronto.

McMahon and Linser now stretch UMD's total number of PWHL draft picks to 13 in just two drafts after the program saw an NCAA-most 11 players taken in last September's first-ever draft.. In all, 13 former Bulldogs landed on PWHL rosters during the inaugural season of 2023-24.


For more on the UMD players taken in the first-ever PWHL Draft last September, click here.