Just weeks after being named the HCA 2025 Julie Chu Rookie of the Year, University of Minnesota Duluth women's hockey freshman center Caitlin Kraemer was named the USCHO Rookie of the Year.


The Waterloo, Ontario native is the first UMD freshman to land the honor, and she led all freshman nationally with 18 goals, two shorthanded tallies -- both rookie-highs in the NCAA, and was second with seven power play goals and four game-winning goals. In all, Kraemer had 13 assists to pair with her 18 goals for 31 points, tying her for the 16th most by a freshman in UMD program history. The center also becomes just the 13th rookie to log 18 or more goals, and is the first freshman since Gabbie Hughes in 2018-19 to clear the 30 point in her first collegiate season as a Bulldog.


Kraemer was third in scoring for UMD this season, and was named UMD's third-ever Western Collegiate Hockey Association Rookie the Year two weeks ago after posting the ninth-most goals in the WCHA this season. Kraemer ranked third in the WCHA for power play goals and fifth in the NCAA. Three times the WCHA's Rookie of the Month (February, November, September), the rookie center was the WCHA Rookie of the Week a whopping four times. Eight times this season, Kraemer rung up two or more points in a game, including two assists in her first NCAA Tournament game one week ago and her first collegiate hat trick on Nov. 30 against Vermont.


Kraemer, who at the time, left Canada's National Women's Under-18 Team its all-time leading scorer, compiled 37 goals in 32 games played for a total of 53 points as a U-18 national team member. She helped Canada's U-18 squads to a bronze medal in the 2024 IIHF World Championship, where she scored a tournament-high 10 goals for a second-consecutive season after leading the tournament in scoring and Canada to a gold medal in the 2023 U18 Canada IIHF World Championship.