Frost place Coyne Schofield on long-term injured reserve

Tough news for the two-time defending Walter Cup champions coming out of the Olympic break.

On Friday, the Minnesota Frost announced that captain Kendall Coyne Schofield has been placed on long-term injured reserve. The veteran center suffered an upper-body injury during the gold medal game of the 2026 Winter Olympics. In response, the team has activated forward Elizabeth Giguere from its reserve list, signing her to a standard player agreement.

Coyne Schofield, alongside veterans Hilary Knight and Kelly Pannek, won a second gold medal at the Winter Games, defeating Canada in a thrilling final in overtime. She scored three goals in seven games, down from her six-point performance during the 2022 Beijing Olympics.

With the Frost, the Palos Heights, Ill. native has been dynamite as the team looks to go on another championship run. In 15 games, she has scored a PWHL-leading 10 goals, with her 16 points placing her tied with second-year forward Britta Curl-Salemme for the league lead in scoring. With Coyne Schofield’s impressive first half of the campaign, the Frost have scored more goals (48) than any other team in the PWHL thus far.

Coyne Schofield’s placement on LTIR is retroactive to Feb. 19, meaning she won’t be eligible to be in the lineup until March 13, when Minnesota takes on the Seattle Torrent.

Giguere had signed a one-year contract with the Ottawa Charge this past offseason, but was cut from training camp. The former Clarkson star has spent the first two seasons of the PWHL with the New York Sirens, having scored just four points in each campaign. The 2020 Patty Kazmaier award winner hasn’t quite found the scoring touch that made her one of the top players in college hockey.

The Frost (7-2-3-3) return to action on Sunday when they visit the Montreal Victoire. Minnesota sits third in the PWHL, two points back of first place, and six in front of the Ottawa Charge for fifth.