Rooth returns to UMD women’s lineup with same speed, flair
Maria Rooth is scoring less this season, and sheÂ’s happier than ever. For the previous three seasons, Rooth established herself as one of the top players and an inspirational leader for the University of Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs, who continue to carve out a reputation as the greatest success story in any sport.
“Our team has improved a lot every year,†said Rooth. “Our first year, we had some walk-ons and some players from the club team, but we had a good team. We’ve gotten better each year, and this year we have more depth, and this is the best club team I’ve ever played on.
“ItÂ’s funny, but that first year seems such a long time ago in some ways, but in other ways the four years has gone by so fast. I canÂ’t believe itÂ’s almost over. ItÂ’s too sad to even talk about.Ââ€
Rooth is a coachÂ’s dream come true. Not only is she a supremely skilled, swift-skating and highly competitive star player, but she has the kind of humility that sets apart the truly great players from those who think theyÂ’re great. For example, every coach would love to have players who arenÂ’t consumed by their own point totals, and most players will insist they donÂ’t pay attention to their individual startistics. Rooth, however, proved it decisively when her University of Minnesota-Duluth womenÂ’s hockey team was playing Dartmouth a couple of weeks ago.
Rooth got an assist when Joanne Eustace knocked in her rebound in the first period, and she got another to help break a 2-2 tie when Erika Holst scored in the second period. When the second period ended, each team was given a penalty after the buzzer, and UMD coach Shannon Miller sent Rooth, UMDÂ’s captain, out to get a clarification from the referee.
“When I went over there, the linesman gave me the puck,†said Rooth. “He said, ‘Give this to the player on your team who just scored her 200th point. I said, ‘OK,Â’ and brought it to the dressing room. I asked [assistant coach] Shawna Davidson who on our team had gotten her 200th point, and Shawna said, ‘I think YOU did.Â’ Ââ€
Sure enough, Maria Rooth, whose scoring tally is lagging behind her pace of her first three years this season, was the first player in UMD women’s hockey to have reached 200 points. Although she’s in her fourth year, there is still some confusion about pronouncing her name. Some, including the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center public-address announcer, pronounce it “Roth,†as though that’s the English translation of Rooth. She laughs, and points out that it’s pronounced the same as “RUTH,†although more like “ROOT,†with a tight little “th†sound at the end. Whatever she’s called, Shannon Miller knows what she should be called.
“She can be the best player on the ice without ever scoring a point,†said Miller. “If we need some speed or a big play to ignite the team, itÂ’s either Maria, or Shmiggy [Jenny Potter] who I send out there to do it. Shmiggy is leading the nation in points, and we can always depend on her, but often Maria is our most effective player at both ends of the rink.Ââ€
When Miller was brought to Duluth to start the UMD program, she found a lot of homestate players were looking beyond UMD to larger and more established colleges. Miller, the highly competitive coach of the 1998 Canadian women’s Olympic team, had two choices – she could recruit second-tier Minnesota girls just to get the program established, or she could use her international connections, bring in some world-class players, and see that the program hit the ice flying. Knowing Miller, there really was no choice in the matter.
She went to Sweden to get Rooth and Erika Holst, young National team members, and to Finland to get forward Hanne Sikio and goaltender Tuula Puputti. When Potter, then Jenny Schmidgall, before her married and mom days, transferred to UMD from the University of Minnesota, the Bulldogs had the nucleus for a team that won the very first championship in the womenÂ’s WCHA first season. UMD also went off to what served as a national tournament that year, but it wasnÂ’t until their second season that the NCAA decided to start a national tournament in womenÂ’s hockey.
Rooth and Schmidgall were both named to the WCHA first team all-stars after that 1999-2000 season, as Schmidgall led the nation with 41 goals, 52 assists for 93 points, while Rooth had 37-31—68 in 32 games. Both were finalists for the Patty Kazmaier Award as the top college player in women’s hockey.
With Schmidgall out of school the next two years, having a baby and playing for the U.S. Olympic team, Rooth took on the role of inspirational leader. She led the Bulldogs with 41-31—72 in 35 games, was all-WCHA first team, All-America, and again was a finalist for the Kazmaier Award, but her most prized accomplishment was that UMD won the first-ever NCAA women’s championship. Rooth scored three goals and one assist in the third period to lead a 5-goal barrage that buried Harvard 6-3 in the semifinals, and she added another goal and assist in the 4-2 title game victory over St. Lawrence.
Last season, with Schmidgall having become Jenny Potter, but still away at the Olympics, Rooth again took charge. She and Holst tied for the team scoring title with 38 points, Rooth with 22-16—38 and Holst 16-22—38. For the third straight time, Rooth was named first team all-WCHA, and Kazmaier Award finalist, and for the second straight year she was named All-America. Once again, however, it was the team-first attitude that prevailed, as UMD won the second NCAA championship.
At Olympic time last February, Rooth and Holst joined SwedenÂ’s team at Salt Lake City, while Puputti and Sikio played for Finland. With Potter back in a UMD uniform this season, and again leading the nation in points, and Holst, Canadian Olympic rookie Caroline Ouellette and junior Tricia Guest scoring in large numbers, Rooth continues to be an inspirational force, but she doesnÂ’t have to score as much. And thatÂ’s just fine with her.
“In Sweden, some people know if theyÂ’ve got a lot of goals or points, but itÂ’s nothing like here,†said Rooth. “WeÂ’re not used to all the stats that people keep over here. On our Swedish Olympic team, I donÂ’t think anyone knew how many points they had. But you know, sometimes you can have a great game and not have a single point.Ââ€
In RoothÂ’s case, she can score in bunches, and she has the capacity to raise her intensity to an unstoppable level, particularly after she might get bodychecked or otherwise frustrated. Or when she just makes up her mind to take charge. When the Bulldogs played their biggest series of the season, at undefeated and No. 1 ranked Minnesota on Nov. 30-Dec. 1, Rooth scored three goals as UMD came from a 3-1 deficit to win 4-3 in the first game.
“No question, Maria was the best player on the ice that game,†said coach Miller.
The next day, Rooth was flying again, but she was checked from behind into the side boards late in the first period, and while the Bulldogs came from behind to win that one, too, with a 6-5 performance, Rooth was KOÂ’d for six weeks with a concussion and separated shoulder. SheÂ’ll miss more games while joining SwedenÂ’s national team in another week, so she may never get her point total up to its normal pace.
But her teammates depend on her for so much more than mere points. Last weekend, Wisconsin beat UMD 2-1 Friday night, for UMDÂ’s first loss in the WCHA this season, as the Badgers did a fantastic job of preventing Rooth and Potter from their usual dominant roles. But in the second game, Rooth scored with a big slapshot off a neat drop pass from Joanne Eustace at 1:24 of the first period. Potter made it 2-0, and when Wisconsin closed to 2-1 in the second period, Rooth scored another goal at 18:11, and assisted Michelle McAteer for what turned out to be a 4-1 victory.
The three-point game boosted Rooth to 11-14—25 for this season. ThatÂ’s a long way from the 24-32—56 of Potter, and also trails HolstÂ’s 39 points, OuelletteÂ’s 33 points, SikioÂ’s 30 points, and freshman Krista McArthurÂ’s 27 points. Still, she seems certain to claim an all-WCHA slot for the fourth consecutive year, and the fourth time could be her lucky year in the Kazmaier Award competition. None of that fazes Rooth, nor does being sixth in team scoring, or moving back in UMDÂ’s offensive-oriented attack from “torpedo†to “halfback.Ââ€
“We moved Shmiggy up from halfback to torpedo and switched Maria to a different line and moved her back from torpedo to halfback,†said Miller. “In our system, our halfbacks have a big defensive responsibility, and Maria is more effective in that role than any of our other forwards.Ââ€
“I think I like halfback better,†said Rooth.
ThatÂ’s no surprise to anyone who has watched Rooth dominate both ends of the ice. Now, with the Bulldogs ranked No. 2 in the country and the third NCAA womenÂ’s tournament scheduled for Duluth in March, there might be just enough time for the P.A. announcer to get her name right.
About the Author
John Gilbert is a lifetime Minnesotan and career journalist, specializing in cars and sports during and since spending 30 years at the Minneapolis Tribune, now the Star Tribune. More recently, he has continued translating the high-tech world of autos and sharing his passionate insights as a freelance writer/photographer/broadcaster. A member of the prestigious North American Car and Truck of the Year jury since 1993. John can be heard Monday-Friday from 9-11am on 610 KDAL(www.kdal610.com) on the "John Gilbert Show," and writes a column in the Duluth Reader.
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