Grace Zumwinkle Bio
Grace Zumwinkle (born April 23, 1999) is an American professional ice hockey player for the Minnesota Frost of the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL). A right-shooting forward, she has represented the United States women’s national ice hockey team at the 2022 and 2026 Winter Olympics, winning a silver medal in Beijing. At the international level, she has collected five IIHF World Championship medals, including gold with Team USA in 2025.
Zumwinkle is a two-time Walter Cup champion with the Minnesota Frost, winning back-to-back titles in 2024 and 2025. She was the league’s inaugural Rookie of the Year and scored the first hat-trick in PWHL history during her debut professional season. She attended the University of Minnesota, where she was a two-time Patty Kazmaier Award finalist and served as captain of the Golden Gophers.
Early Life and Background
Grace Zumwinkle was born in Excelsior, Minnesota, to Lori (Bodensteiner) and Mike Zumwinkle. She grew up alongside two sisters, Anna and Emily, in a household with a strong athletic background. Her father played college football at St. John’s University from 1982 to 1986, and her mother played tennis for the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University from 1983 to 1987. From a young age, Grace asked her parents for skates and soon began playing hockey, developing her game with the Minnesota Jr. Whitecaps on the club circuit.
Zumwinkle attended Breck School in Golden Valley, Minnesota, where she was a standout three-sport athlete in ice hockey, tennis, and golf. During her senior year in 2016–17, she served as team captain and was a four-time team MVP. She recorded 58 points (42 goals, 16 assists) in 23 games, leading Breck to a 19–6–3 record and a section runner-up finish. She was named the 2017 Star Tribune Metro Player of the Year, received the Athena Award, and was a five-time all-conference, three-time all-metro, and three-time all-state selection. In 2017, she was also named Minnesota Ms. Hockey as the top female high school player in the state.
Beyond hockey, Zumwinkle was a talented multi-sport competitor. In tennis, she earned two state doubles titles and two state runner-up finishes in doubles and was part of Breck’s state champion tennis team in 2013. In golf, she placed eighth as an individual at the state tournament in 2016 and was part of three top-eight state tournament teams. Her athletic versatility helped her develop the hand-eye coordination and competitive edge that would later define her hockey career.
Path to Hockey
Zumwinkle’s path to elite-level hockey began in earnest with the Minnesota Jr. Whitecaps, where she competed against the top female youth players in the country. Her performance on the club circuit, combined with her dominant high school career at Breck, established her as one of the most highly recruited players in her class. She earned an invitation to represent the United States at the IIHF World Women’s U18 Championships in 2016 and 2017, winning gold at both tournaments. These international appearances served as a key proving ground for her transition to the collegiate ranks.
Her achievements at Breck, including the Ms. Hockey award and multiple all-state honors, drew the attention of top NCAA programs. Ultimately, she chose to remain in her home state and committed to the University of Minnesota, joining a Golden Gophers program with a rich tradition of women’s hockey excellence. Her multi-sport background gave her a strong foundation in conditioning and competitive focus as she prepared to make the jump to college hockey.
Zumwinkle’s time with the U.S. U18 national team and her prolific high school scoring totals signaled to college recruiters and national team scouts that she was ready for the next level. The combination of her scoring touch, leadership qualities, and ability to perform in big games made her an ideal candidate to step directly into a top-six forward role with the Golden Gophers.
Grace Zumwinkle Career
Early Career (2017–2019)
Zumwinkle joined the Minnesota Golden Gophers in 2017 and immediately made an impact at the collegiate level. During her freshman season, she recorded 17 goals and 21 assists in 38 games to lead the team in scoring. She was named the WCHA Rookie of the Week, WCHA Offensive Player of the Month for December 2017, and became the first freshman to be named WCHA Scoring Champion since 2010. Her All-WCHA First Team and WCHA All-Rookie Team selections underscored her immediate impact on the conference.
As a sophomore in 2018–19, she continued her ascent, ranking second on the team with 41 points in 39 games while leading Minnesota with 25 goals. On November 30, 2018, she recorded a career-high five points with her first career hat-trick and two assists against Yale, earning WCHA Forward of the Week and NCAA Second Star of the Week honors. She was a multiple-time WCHA Forward of the Month award winner during the season, cementing her reputation as one of the top young forwards in college hockey.
NCAA Golden Gophers Career (2019–2022)
During the 2019–20 season, Zumwinkle posted a career-high 45 points and led the team with 25 goals, ranking third in the WCHA in goals and second in the conference with a +37 plus-minus rating. She recorded her 50th career goal as a Gopher and her 100th career point on November 16, 2019, becoming the 35th player in program history to reach the milestone. She was named to the All-WCHA Second Team following the season, capping another strong individual campaign.
As a senior in 2020–21, Zumwinkle was named team captain on July 14, 2021, and led the Golden Gophers with 24 points and 17 goals, ranking third and second in the WCHA, respectively. She recorded her third career hat-trick on February 19, 2021, against Bemidji State, earning her ninth WCHA weekly award. She was named All-WCHA First Team, AHCA All-America Second Team, All-USCHO Second Team, and was a top-three finalist for the Patty Kazmaier Award, finishing her collegiate career as one of the most decorated players in program history.
Minnesota Frost Era (2023–Present)
On September 18, 2023, Zumwinkle was drafted in the third round, 13th overall, by PWHL Minnesota in the 2023 PWHL Draft. She made an immediate impact in her professional debut, scoring the PWHL’s first-ever hat-trick on January 6, 2024, in a 3–0 victory over Montreal at Xcel Energy Center before a record-setting crowd of 13,316 fans. She finished her rookie season with 11 goals and eight assists in 24 games, leading the league in shots with 98 and tying for first in shootout goals with three. She was named PWHL Rookie of the Year, PWHL All-Star Second Team, and All-Rookie Team.
In the 2024 playoffs, Minnesota pulled off a dramatic reverse sweep against top-seeded Toronto, losing the first two games before winning three straight to advance to the Walter Cup Finals. The Frost defeated Boston in five games to capture the inaugural Walter Cup championship on May 29, 2024. Zumwinkle’s second professional season was impacted by a shoulder injury in January 2025, but she returned to contribute as Minnesota once again reached the Walter Cup Finals. The Frost won their second consecutive Walter Cup championship on May 26, 2025, with a 2–1 overtime victory over Ottawa in Game 4, where Zumwinkle recorded a career-high 10 shots on goal.
Driving Style and Strengths
Zumwinkle is recognized for her elite shot volume, scoring touch, and ability to deliver in high-leverage moments. She leads with a high shot count and is comfortable scoring from the power play, in the shootout, and at even strength. Her combination of speed, hockey sense, and finishing ability has made her a top scoring threat in the PWHL and a fixture on the U.S. national team power play.
Notable Events and Milestones
Zumwinkle scored the first hat-trick in PWHL history on January 6, 2024, and was part of back-to-back Walter Cup championships in 2024 and 2025. Internationally, she won a silver medal at the 2022 Winter Olympics and gold at the 2025 IIHF World Championship, capping a five-medal run at the senior worlds. She was also named to the 2026 Winter Olympics roster in Milano Cortina as part of Team USA.
Grace Zumwinkle Career Wins
Across her professional and international career, Grace Zumwinkle has compiled a strong resume of championships and individual accolades. She is a two-time Walter Cup champion with the Minnesota Frost and a five-time IIHF World Championship medalist, including one gold medal and three silver medals. She also won two IIHF World Women’s U18 gold medals with the United States in 2016 and 2017.
PWHL Highlights
Zumwinkle has won back-to-back Walter Cup championships with the Minnesota Frost in 2024 and 2025, making her one of nine players to win consecutive titles in PWHL history. She scored the first hat-trick in league history on January 6, 2024, and was named the PWHL’s inaugural Rookie of the Year that same season. She has been a consistent top-six contributor for the Frost, leading the team in scoring for much of her rookie campaign and producing key goals in both playoff runs.
International Wins & Performances
Zumwinkle has represented the United States at two Olympic Games (2022 and 2026), winning a silver medal in Beijing. She has also competed in four senior IIHF World Women’s Championships (2021, 2022, 2024, 2025), winning gold in 2025 and silver in 2021, 2022, and 2024. At the junior level, she won gold at the IIHF World Women’s U18 Championships in 2016 and 2017.
Grace Zumwinkle Family
Family Background and Hockey Lineage
Grace Zumwinkle was raised in Excelsior, Minnesota, by her parents, Mike and Lori (Bodensteiner) Zumwinkle. Her father played college football at St. John’s University, and her mother played college tennis at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University. She has two sisters, Anna and Emily, both of whom played college hockey, with Emily also playing for the Seattle Torrent of the PWHL.
Personal Life
Zumwinkle comes from a deeply athletic family and credits her parents and sisters with supporting her hockey career from an early age. According to her USA Hockey profile, her favorite postgame meal is chicken, and she has expressed an interest in pursuing a career in finance after her playing days. She remains active on social media and continues to be one of the prominent faces of the Minnesota Frost and the U.S. women’s national team program.
2025 Season Performance
Grace Zumwinkle’s 2025 season with the Minnesota Frost was defined by a second consecutive Walter Cup championship run. Despite missing approximately three weeks in January 2025 due to a shoulder injury, she returned to action and posted four goals and six assists during the regular season as Minnesota finished with a 10–5–4–11 record (44 points), clinching the fourth and final playoff spot on the final day of the regular season. Her veteran presence and shot-generation remained central to the Frost’s offensive identity.
In the 2025 playoffs, Minnesota again faced Toronto in the semifinals as the second seed and won the series 3–1 after dropping Game 1. The Walter Cup Finals against Ottawa became an all-time classic, with all four games decided by 2–1 overtime scores. After losing Game 1, the Frost won the next three, including a triple-overtime thriller in Game 3, to clinch the championship with a 2–1 overtime victory at home on May 26, 2025. Zumwinkle tallied three assists in eight playoff games and recorded a career-high 10 shots on goal in the championship-clinching Game 4.
Entering the 2025–26 season, Zumwinkle returned to the Frost as one of nine back-to-back Walter Cup champions, with Minnesota aiming to become the first team in PWHL history to win three consecutive championships. She opened the season with a multi-goal game on December 19, 2024, scoring twice in a 5–2 win over Ottawa, and added another power-play goal on December 30, 2025, in a 5–1 road victory over Toronto. Her early power-play production tied her for the league lead among all PWHL skaters in late December, signaling another strong individual campaign.
