Laaksonen To Represent Finland At IIHF Women’s World Championship – Ohio State Buckeyes
4/2/2001 12:00:00 AM | Women's Ice Hockey
April 2, 2001
COLUMBUS, Ohio–Nearly a month has passed since the Ohio State women’s hockey team ended its season at the WCHA Championship, however one student-athlete is still competing. Emma Laaksonen (Fr., Espoo, Finland/Makelanrinteen) is in Minnesota with the rest of the Finnish National Team to participate in the International Ice Hockey Federation Women’s World Hockey Championship, April 2-8.
The tournament features the best women’s ice hockey players in the world representing eight countries, which are divided into two pools: Pool A (Canada, Sweden, Russia and Kazakstan) and Pool B (United States, Finland, China and Germany). The first three days will consist of pool play and will take place simultaneously in St. Cloud, Rochester, Blaine, Plymouth and Minneapolis, Minn. Playoffs will be held Friday, Saturday and Sunday at sites in Fridley, Blaine and Minneapolis.
Laaksonen had an outstanding rookie season on defense for the Buckeyes. She finished second on the team in scoring, with 38 points from 19 goals and 19 assists and led the league and the nation in power-play goals, with 17. Laaksonen was named WCHA Rookie of the Week March 5 after scoring the first hat trick in Ohio State women’s hockey history against Wayne State March 2 and adding two assists. All three goals came on the power play. Laaksonen finished second in the WCHA in overall power-play points (29), sixth in defenseman scoring, seventh in freshman scoring, 12th in goal scoring and 17th in overall point scoring. She was whistled for only four penalties and finished with a +3 rating.
No stranger to international play, Laaksonen won an Olympic bronze medal at Nagano, Japan, in 1998 as a member of Team Finland. Finland also took home the bronze at the 2000 World Championships and Laaksonen was honored as the best defenseman on the team. She has participated in Team Finland Junior National Camps since 1995 and represented Finland at the Three Nations Cup from 1997-99. Laaksonen also missed two games during the season to join her team in Provo, Utah, at the newly-formed Four Nations Cup. Finland will take on China Monday at 5 p.m. (EDT) at the National Hockey Center in St. Cloud, Minn. before facing Germany at 5 p.m. (EDT) Tuesday, also at St. Cloud, and the U.S. National Team Thursday at 8:35 p.m. (EDT) at Mariucci Arena in Minneapolis.
Complete results, standings and player and team statistics, as well as ticket and venue information are available online at the official site of the Women’s World Championships, www.superrink.com/worlds/index.html.
