The second nugget of NWHL news today, as the Toronto Six bring back one of their goalies from Season 6.
Ridgewell was mostly the backup to Elaine Chuli; however, she did dress for 6 games. In those 6 fames, she poested a 0-0-1 record, she also has a 4.62 GAA and an .800 Save Percentage.
You can check out the full press release here:
TORONTO SIX RE-SIGN GOALTENDER SAMANTHA RIDGEWELL
by Justin Levine
Toronto, ON- The Toronto Six added another member of the 2021 regular season championship squad to the goalie crease on Wednesday by signing their eleventh player, Samantha Ridgewell, who returns for her second NWHL season.
âI’m just glad that I did re-sign,â said the Canadian netminder. âWhen the season was over, I was like I feel like we didnât get to truly experience what this league has to offer, so that was a huge reason why I wanted to re-sign right away, just because we didnât get to experience it to the full extent that we can. Itâs just really cool, Iâm really excited to see whatâs in store for Season 7.â
The Outlook, Saskatchewan native primarily served as the backup goaltender to Elaine Chuli in Season 6, but did make one start in Lake Placid, where she stopped 20 shots in a 6-5 shootout loss to Minnesota on January 24. She also appeared in relief during the Isobel Cup semifinals on March 25, turning aside three of the four shots she faced in just under 16 minutes of play in a 6-2 loss to Boston.
âSamantha Ridgewell is a promising young goaltender whoâs been a high end player at level sheâs played at,â said Digit Murphy, President of the Toronto Six. âAs someone with a lot to offer to the organization, she will be an important piece between the pipes as she continues getting opportunities to play to her strengths. Bringing with her pro experience from Sweden, we feel she can be relied upon and couldnât be happier that sheâs re-signed for Season 7.â
Standing at five-foot-eleven, Ridgewell spent the 2019-20 season with DjurgĂ„rdens IF in the SDHL. There, she posted a 2.03 goals-against-average and a .920 save percentage in 22 appearances, shouldering the load with Buffaloâs top international draft pick Lovisa Berndtsson. Ridgewell also competed overseas against a pair of T6 forwards Brooke Boquist and Emma Woods.
The Health Science graduate spent four seasons at Merrimack College in the Division I hockey program from 2015-19. Throughout 98 collegiate contests, Ridgewell amassed a GAA of 2.66 and .919 save percentage. This included the first two shutouts in Warriors history and three seasons competing alongside MVP Mikyla Grant-Mentis.
Putting up career highs in her Senior year, the 25-year-old was named a WHEA Second Team All-Star. While named on two occasions as WHEA Goaltender of the Week, Ridgewell, in 2018-19, led the conference in save percentage while placing third in goals-against-average. Adding to a list of accolades through her career-best season, Ridgewell finished as a runner-up for the BW Windjammer Goaltender of the Year.
Prior to her NCAA commitment, Ridgewell played two seasons with the Notre Dame Hounds in the Junior Womenâs Hockey League and two seasons with the Saskatchewan Female U18 AAA Hockey League as a member of the Saskatoon Stars.
Looking to make a greater impact with Toronto in Season 7, Ridgewell said sheâs excited to have games on a regular basis.
âGetting to go back and start practicing with the girls, the thoughts of games on a regular basis, and in front of the fans. They really proved they were interested (last season), so that gives me hoping for coming back to Toronto and that weâll get to meet those fans and maybe have some events and get to know them and just hear people in the stands. Itâll be really fun to play in front of people again.â
TXHT will continue to provide NWHL coverage as more signings and news are announced.
Sponsored by:
