Claire Thompson Returned To the Ice As One Of the PWHL's Top Rookies

If Claire Thompson was at all rusty entering her rookie PWHL season in 2024-25 as a defenseman for the Minnesota Frost, she didn’t show many signs of it. Veteran Minnesota defenseman Lee Stecklein didn’t notice anything either.

“I think it probably takes a really special player to take a year off and jump in at the level like this,” Stecklein said. “I don’t know if she would say that there was any adjustment period, because I didn’t see one. I felt like she was ready to go right from the start. And that speaks to what she was doing in that last year and just the elite player that she is physically and mentally.”

Thompson has three goals and 11 assists through 16 games of the PWHL season, one of the best rookies in the league.

While at medical school in New York last year, Thompson continued working on a strength and conditioning program with Dan Noble, her coach from home. She used the gym and a nearby track to stay in shape. On the ice, Thompson practiced with the NYU men’s club hockey team, typically skating two nights a week with them in the city. She’d also go out for skill skates when she found available ice.

“The New York City hockey community is pretty tight,” Thompson said. “So, I definitely found different opportunities through that just here and there to get some extra touches in.”

With PWHL training camp not starting until November, Thompson had more time to build up her skills and training last fall after she finished her second year of school in August. She spent three-and-a-half months at home in Toronto working with her training group, which left her feeling like she had “a pretty normal offseason, despite the year without games.”

Still, nothing can replicate game action. Thompson has viewed that part in hindsight.

“Definitely, there are some things you can’t practice and some situational awareness in games that I’ve definitely found myself feeling more comfortable and just what I want to do when I have the puck,” Thompson said. “But I was pretty pleased with the level that I started at this season.”

Showing off her skills early and often

Through 16 games, Thompson has points in half of them, recording three goals and 11 assists for 14 points this season. Her first big night came on Dec. 19 at Xcel Energy Center when she scored a goal and three assists for a four-point night in a 5-2 win over Ottawa. As of Feb. 12, she’s the league leader in assists.

Thompson is fast, a great skater, and “quite deceptive,” Stecklein said.

“She can be zones away, but if that puck’s on her stick, she can skate it in, she makes great passes,” Stecklein added. “She just really can do it all.”

Going from the Canadian National Team to playing on the Frost roster has turned many of her previous opponents into teammates, which is common among the six PWHL teams, with players facing each other in the Olympics, world championships, or Rivalry Series. So, instead of defending players like Kendall Coyne Schofield, Kelly Pannek, or Taylor Heise, Thompson is playing with them and getting to know them off the ice.

“It’s so fun to finally see them on the other side,” Thompson said. “I find that with any player, you begin to appreciate the nuances of their game so much more, and you realize just how amazing these players are.”

The same goes for Stecklein, who the Frost has paired with Thompson as defensive partners multiple times this season. Thompson said she’s looked up to Stecklein for many years.

“Unfortunately, I had to play against her for quite a few years,” Stecklein quipped about Thompson in a Jan. 28 postgame press conference. “So, to finally get to play with her just on the same team and now as D partners has been awesome.”

‘Probably the best birthday yet’

Born on Jan. 28, 1998, Thompson has played hockey games on her birthday before. She’s probably even scored goals as birthday presents to herself and her teams. But in front of the crowd in St. Paul, scoring two goals and an assist, plus a goal in the shootout as part of a 4-3 victory over her hometown Toronto team?  

“That was probably the best birthday yet,” Thompson said. “I don’t think that that performance was any different. I think just things were working out for me that night, and I was happy to contribute.”

Stecklein could tell Thompson was feeling good and playing good, which was contagious for the rest of the team.

“Definitely fun to watch and be a part of and see the crowd get really into it,” Stecklein said. “You don’t always get to play on your birthday, let alone score two goals and a shootout goal, too.”

With the goals and a shootout goal, it wasn’t technically a hat trick, but Thompson received a “birthday puck” for her efforts. As Steckline put it: “When you score goals like that, you get the game puck just for having an awesome day.”

There were no “Happy Birthday” renditions during the postgame press conference that night, but Frost coach Ken Klee still sang Thompson’s praises.

“She’s been outstanding,” Klee said. “She’s obviously a tremendous puck mover, great skater, sees the ice well. She’s a phenomenal person. I think we had a good idea bringing her in when we talked to people. She’s fit in well. She’s fit in great with our group.”

He added that the Frost want to be a puck possession team that wants to make plays, which he thinks dovetails with Thompson’s style.

“She’s been an awesome add for us,” Klee said.

Thompson has enjoyed her first season playing in the PWHL, stats aside. Although she’s played in front of sold-out crowds before with the national team, seeing the crowds come out for PWHL games “night in, night out,” she recognizes how special it is to be a part of the league's growth and excitement across North America.

She’s also happy with her decision to put school on hold and play professional hockey. She said her goal was always to keep playing hockey through this Olympic cycle, so it was unfortunate that she couldn’t make it happen last season.

Hockey is Thompson’s focus right now. Whenever she decides to return to medical school, she’ll have more schooling to finish before applying for an orthopedics residency. She’s taking things one day at a time, knowing she has two great options – professional hockey and med school – in front of her.

“I think when the time is right and I feel like I want to go back to school fully, I’ll make that decision,” Thompson said. “But I haven’t decided when that will be or anything yet.”