New York, NY — Kelsey Koezler (Princeton), Lee Stecklein (Minnesota), Dani Cameranesi (Minnesota), and Ann-Renée Desbiens (Wisconsin) were selected in the first round of the 2016 NWHL Draft.
General Managers Chad Wiseman of the New York Riveters, Ric Seiling of the Buffalo Beauts, Lisa Giovanelli of the Connecticut Whale, and Hayley Moore of the Boston Pride selected the top 20 rising seniors from collegiate hockey beginning at 12PM ET. Teams selected their picks according to their final regular season standing: Riveters, Beauts, Whale, and then Pride.
Koelzer, a defenseman, has collected 69 points (31g, 38a) in 95 games in her NCAA career thus far. She has been named a First Team All-American, a Patty Kazmaier Top 10 candidate, and ECAC Hockey’s Best Defender of the Year.
The full list of 2016 NWHL Draft selections:
Round 1: Kelsey Koelzer (NYR), Lee Stecklein (BUF), Dani Cameranesi (CTW), Ann-Renee Desbiens (BOS)
Round 2: Sydney Daniels (NYR), Cayley Mercer (BUF), Andie Anastos (CTW), Sarah Nurse (BOS).
Round 3: Jenny Ryan (NYR), Hayley Scamurra (BUF), Mellissa Channell (CTW), Ashleigh Brykaliuk (BOS).
Round 4: Sydney McKibbon (NYR), Emma Woods (BUF), Paige Savage (CTW), Halli Krzyzaniak (BOS).
Round 5: Amy Menke (NYR), Maddie Elia (BUF), Sydney Rossman (CTW), Lara Stalder (BOS).
Read more about the 2016 NWHL Draft class on nwhl.zone/draft.
About the National Women’s Hockey League (NWHL)
The NWHL is the first professional women’s hockey league in North America to pay its players. The inaugural season began October 11, 2015 with the Founding Four: Boston Pride, Buffalo Beauts, Connecticut Whale and New York Riveters. The Boston Pride became the first team in NWHL history to raise the Isobel Cup on March 12, 2016.
