Maddy Christian comes home

Happy Friday! It’s Reid Lemker here from The Ice Garden with this week’s Hockey Insider.

This week, I have an exclusive interview with 2026 Minnesota Frost draftee Maddy Christian. I spoke to Christian earlier this week about her decorated career at Penn State University, being drafted by her hometown Minnesota Frost and how she’s preparing for her first PWHL season. I hope you enjoy!

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Before the PWHL draft, Elk River, Minn. native Maddy Christian had no idea where she’d end up.

“I had no idea who I was going to be drafted by,” Christian told The Ice Garden. “I had somewhat of an idea who was interested. So that’s kind of where I was going with my mindset. It’s one of those things where you put in all the work beforehand, and you kind of just go. Everything else is in other people’s hands. Whatever the outcome is, you just have to roll with it and see what you can do next.”

When the dust settled on the draft, Christian was returning home with the opportunity to fulfill the dream of countless young Minnesota hockey players.

Making her mark at Penn State

After a decorated career at Elk River High School, Christian began her college career at Penn State. Like so many players, Christian’s transition to the college game took time. In her first two seasons at Penn State, she scored six goals and 16 points across 76 games. But Christian kept working.

“At the end of my sophomore year, I was trying to do skills every single day just to learn how to score from different angles and different opportunities,” Christian told The Ice Garden. “I feel like that really helps me in games with my confidence in scoring because [in the past] I was able to be put in scenarios where I could score, but I could never bury the puck, or I could never get points. So I think that was kind of the big difference: doing the little work, like skills and shooting pucks in the shooting room behind the scenes, that allowed me to produce more.”

The off-ice work paid off significantly. Christian broke out in her junior season, scoring 21 goals and 33 points in 38 games. Seeing her work in practice translate to games helped Christian build confidence.

“There were a couple of times when my coaches and I had been working on a specific skill or specific skills. I ended up doing it in a game, and I’d be like, oh my gosh, it’s translating over. I’ve got to keep doing this,” Christian said. “I feel like that was the reward to see the hard work put in and then translate to a game.”

Coming home to Minnesota

Christian cemented her status as a PWHL draft prospect with a strong senior year, scoring 19 goals and 35 points in 39 games. She also helped Penn State reach the program’s first Frozen Four.

On draft night, Christian was one of seven Nittany Lions selected. Watching her teammates get selected made her dreams feel closer to reality.

“After Leah Stecker went in the third round to Boston, that’s when I was like, oh my gosh, any of us could go at any second from my [Penn State] class,” she said. “I think that was the turning point where I was like, okay, any of us could go at any time.”

Six picks later, Christian heard her name called by the Minnesota Frost. 

“You get drafted, and you’re like, this is so surreal,” Christian said. “You take that in for a couple of days, obviously. I was fortunate enough to be around my whole family the next couple of days, so that was super, super fun. And then after that, it’s kind of like, okay, I got to get back to work again. I can’t let this get to my head. I’m now drafted, and [I] just have to keep working to be the best player I can possibly be.”

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Preparing for the PWHL

With the draft in the rear-view mirror, Christian’s focus quickly shifted towards training camp and her first PWHL season.

“I would say [my offseason work is] pretty similar, besides the fact that I have been focusing more on specific things that are going to benefit me the most in the PWHL,” Christian said.

One of those elements she’s focused on is getting accustomed to the speed of the PWHL. Luckily for Christian, calling Minnesota home has many perks.

“I’ve been skating with some of the PWHL players from the Frost and other people who are from Minnesota and need a good skate. It has really helped me with the speed because that’s the one thing that I want to nail down before camp: the speed of the game and thinking ahead. It helps skating with those girls beforehand,” she explained.

The difference in speed has been noticeable for Christian. “They think and skate very fast. So it is awesome to be around that environment and get better before camp.”

Giving Back

Christian’s ties to youth hockey in Elk River remain strong. She hopes her story will inspire the kids she coaches in her hometown to continue to follow their dreams.

“I think it’s cool that I get to coach all these girls and allow them to learn from what I wish I would have known at their age or at the different ages that I coach,” Christian said. “I think it’s cool that they’ll be able to come to my games and support me, along with just knowing that if you work hard enough and if you put in the dirty work behind the scenes, these things can come true.”

It’s safe to say that many young fans in Elk River will have a new favorite Minnesota Frost player when the PWHL season begins.

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More from the world of women’s hockey:

SDHL 2026 Offseason Recap: Part One by Natalia Rachman

Manon Rhéaume’s new challenge in Detroit by Melissa Burgess

Summer shuffling in Hockey East by Emma Sullivan

Team USA Sweeps Final Games of Select Series Against Canada by USA Hockey

Luisa and Lilli Welcke and Their Pursuit of the Professional Dream by Rinkside Rundown

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