Caitlin Kraemer

Caitlin Kraemer
Born (2006-05-29) May 29, 2006 (age 18)
Kitchener, Ontario, Canada
Height 5 ft 9 in (175 cm)
Position Forward
Shoots Left
NCAA team University of Minnesota Duluth

Caitlin Kraemer (born May 29, 2006) is a Canadian ice hockey forward for the University of Minnesota Duluth of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). At the 2023 and 2024 IIHF World Women's U18 Championships, she broke multiple records, including Canadian goal-scoring records previously held by Marie-Philip Poulin.

Playing career

Kraemer played junior hockey for the Kitchener-Waterloo Jr. Rangers of the Ontario Women's Hockey League, beginning in the 2020–21 season. She served as alternate captain in the 2021–22 season, and captain beginning in the 2022–23 season.[1][2] Entering the 2023–24 season, the Rangers were rebranded as the Waterloo Ravens.[3] In November 2023, Kraemer committed to play college ice hockey for the University of Minnesota Duluth.[4]

Kraemer recorded her first collegiate points in the second game of her Bulldogs career, a 4–3 victory over Ohio State University on September 22, 2024, in which she posted two goals and an assist for a game-leading three points, including the game-winning goal.[5]

International play

Medal record
Representing  Canada
Women's ice hockey
World U18 Championship
Gold medal – first place 2023 Sweden
Bronze medal – third place 2024 Switzerland

Kraemer made her international debut representing Canada at the 2023 IIHF World Women's U18 Championship. She finished the tournament with 10 goals and 11 points, one point behind tournament leader Nela Lopušanová,[6] and was named to the tournament's all-star team by attending media.[7]

Her third of four goals in the 10–0 gold medal victory over Sweden broke multiple tournament records, including fastest hat-trick from the start of a game, completed at 12:00 of the first period; fastest three goals, scoring three in 6:44 to beat the previous record held by American Kendall Coyne Schofield by just seven seconds; and most goals scored by a Canadian in a single tournament, surpassing previous record holder Marie-Philip Poulin, who scored eight goals at the 2008 championship.[6][8] She fell one goal short of the single-tournament goals record, held by American Haley Skarupa.[9]

Returning for the 2024 U18 Championship, Kraemer was named alternate captain of the Canadian team.[10] Winning the bronze medal, she finished with 10 goals for the second straight year, setting the Canadian record for career goals at the championship with 20 and ending her under-18 career just shy of Coyne Schofield's record of 22 goals, accomplished over three years.[9] She also became Canada's all-time under-18 points leader.[11]

Personal life

Kraemer is the daughter of Chris and Connie Kraemer. She has three sisters, Kayla, Abby, and Ashley. She attended Resurrection Catholic Secondary School, graduating in 2024.[12] In addition to ice hockey, she has played varsity field hockey and competitive soccer.[1]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2021–22 Kitchener-Waterloo Jr. Rangers OWHL 27 14 8 22 31
2022–23 Kitchener-Waterloo Jr. Rangers OWHL 16 16 12 28 42
2023–24 Waterloo Ravens OWHL 31 23 31 54 94
OWHL totals 74 53 51 104 167

International

Year Team Event Result   GP G A Pts PIM
2023 Canada U18 1st place, gold medalist(s) 5 10 1 11 6
2024 Canada U18 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 6 10 0 10 2
Junior totals 11 20 1 21 8

Awards and honours

Award Year Ref
International
World U18 Championship – Media All-Star Team 2023 [7]
Other
Kitchener-Waterloo Athlete of the Year 2023 [13]

References

  1. ^ a b "Caitlin Kraemer". waterloorangers.com. Waterloo Rangers. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  2. ^ Pare, Mark (February 22, 2023). "Caitlin Kraemer getting used to attention after world championship win". citynews.ca. CityNews Everywhere. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  3. ^ "Local U22 women's elite hockey team set to unveil their rebranding at home opener". CityNews Kitchener. September 24, 2023. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  4. ^ "UMD Women's Hockey Inks Four on National Signing Day". umdbulldogs.org. University of Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs. November 7, 2023. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  5. ^ "No. 7 Bulldogs Bounce the No. 1/2 Buckeyes 4-3 to Earn Series Sweep". University of Minnesota Duluth. September 22, 2024. Retrieved September 22, 2024.
  6. ^ a b Brown, Erin (January 15, 2023). "Still golden". iihf.com. International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  7. ^ a b Pakarinen, Risto (January 15, 2023). "Nela Lopusanova MVP". iihf.com. International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  8. ^ "Caitlin Kraemer's four-goal effort leads Canada past Sweden for women's under-18 gold". theglobeandmail.com. The Globe and Mail. January 15, 2023. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  9. ^ a b Aykroyd, Lucas (January 14, 2024). "Canada thrashes Finns for bronze". International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
  10. ^ @HockeyCanada (January 4, 2024). "Meet the captains! / Voici nos capitaines! 🇨🇦 C: Emma Venusio ( @owhahockey ) A: Caitlin Kraemer ( @owhahockey ) A: Avery Pickering ( @hockeymanitoba ) #U18WomensWorlds" (Tweet). Retrieved January 6, 2024 – via Twitter.
  11. ^ Kennedy, Ian (January 15, 2024). "Top 15 Performers From The 2024 U-18 World Championships". thehockeynews.com. The Hockey News. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  12. ^ "Caitlin Kraemer - Women's Hockey". University of Minnesota Duluth. Retrieved September 22, 2024.
  13. ^ Clark, Christine (May 30, 2024). "Waterloo's Caitlin Kraemer named 2023 Athlete of the Year". CityNews Kitchener. Retrieved June 7, 2024.