Minnesota won the first Professional Women’s Hockey League championship relying on staunch team defense. Monday night at Roy Wilkins Auditorium in St. Paul it used its first pick in the PWHL draft to add to that strength.

Former Princeton defender Claire Thompson, a standout two-way defender with international experience, joined Minnesota as the third-overall pick.

Minnesota used its second pick on Wisconsin forward Britta Curl, a native of Bismarck, N.D. St. Cloud State forward Klara Hymlarova, a Czechia native, was taken in the third round.

Forward Brook McQuigge, who played at Clarkson, was selected by Minnesota in the fourth round. Forward Dominique Petrie, who played at Clarkson, was taken in the fifth round. Mae Batherson, a defender from St. Lawrence, was Minnesota’s sixth-round pick.

Thompson, a 26-year-old Toronto native, was a reserve player for PWHL New York this season but did not see any action due to being a full-time medical school student. She originally had planned to focus on medical school in 2024 but had a change of heart.

“It was a really difficult decision,” Thompson said. “It’s been a long-time dream of mine to become a doctor, and my sights have been set on continuing to play hockey at this point in my life. It was a pretty clear decision (this year) when talking with my family that this was something I still wanted to be a part of.”

Thompson said she was an interested observer throughout the PWHL season and the playoffs, and will be coming to Minnesota with some valuable knowledge of her new professional home.

“I’m fortunate to be surrounded by many Minnesotans in my life,” Thompson said. “Two of my best friends from college are from Minnesota. One of my current roommates in medical school is a Minnesotan, as well.

“I’m excited to finally join the great ‘State of Hockey.’ I’ve heard so much about it. The fans in Minnesota have been so exciting this year. And I’m so excited to be a part of such a successful team. Coming off the most recent championship, I couldn’t think of a better place to begin my pro career.”

The 5-foot-8 Thompson played for Team Canada in the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing and won a gold medal. She set an Olympic record for points by a defender, with two goals and 13 assists.

The PWHL Hockey Operations scouting report had this to say about Thompson, who played at Princeton from 2016-20: “A generational offensive talent from the back end with the entire package of skating, puck skills, shot, game sense and size.”

Curl said she considers Minnesota to be her hometown PWHL, but made light of the fact that she will have to get used to being teammates with “Minnesotans” after her career with the Badgers.

“The hard part with Minnesota, obviously with the changes in the organization, I didn’t have a lot of contact with them,” Curl said. “But in the back of my mind it was one of the teams I would be picked by, so I’m super excited.”

Abby Boreen, who entered the draft after being a reserve player, was taken by Montreal in the third round. She was followed by another Minnesota, Patty Kazmaier Award winner Izzy Daniel was selected by Toronto to finish the third round.

Blaine’s Gabby Rosenthal, who played at Ohio State, was selected by New York in the fourth round. Maple Grove’s Mannon McMahon, who played at Minnesota Duluth, was selected by Ottawa in the fifth round.

Montreal selected Hudson native Anna Wilgren in the fifth round.

New York selected Princeton forward Sarah Fillier with the first overall pick. Danielle Serdachny, a physical and skilled forward from Colgate, was chosen second by Ottawa.

Ohio State forward Hannah Bilka was taken fourth by Boston, with her teammate, defender Cayla Barnes, going to Montreal at No. 5. Forward Julia Gosling of St. Lawrence was the final pick of the first round, going to Toronto.

Boston acquired the first pick of the second round from New York and selected defender Daniela Pejsova from Czechia.

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The results may not have been there in his last start — he gave up seven runs to the New York Yankees — but Chris Paddack was adamant that his stuff was.

His velocity had crept up after working on some mechanical tweaks, particularly with his lower half, and Paddack was excited about the changes.

Monday, the stuff was up once again, and this time, the results followed. Paddack took a scoreless outing into the seventh inning in the Twins’ 5-0 win over the Colorado Rockies in the series opener at Target Field.

Paddack’s velocity touched 97.6 mph on a first-inning strikeout of Ryan McMahon, a good indicator of what was to come. His fastball velocity averaged 95.2, nearly two mph harder than his average this season.

And the Rockies (23-43) could do little against him all night.

Though his night started by allowing a pair of hits, a double play helped him emerge from the first inning unscored upon. He allowed four more hits — six total — but no baserunner advanced past first base after the first inning.

Paddack was curveball heavy, throwing the pitch that is normally his fourth-most used pitch, more than his slider and changeup. He got five of his 13 swinging strikes on it.

Paddack threw 6⅓ innings before making way for Steven Okert, who retired the final two batters of the seventh. Griffin Jax followed with a dominant, three-strikeout eighth before Minnesota, which had been playing with a lead for much of the night, broke the game open.

The Twins, who scored earlier on Christian Vázquez’s sacrifice fly that followed a Manuel Margot double, and a Carlos Correa RBI double, put up three runs in the eighth.

Vázquez led off with a double and eventually came around to score on a Trevor Larnach sacrifice fly. Just a few batters later, Royce Lewis, in his Target  Field season debut, crushed a curveball left over the heart of the plate to push the game out of reach.

Minnesota Twins’ Royce Lewis gestures while running the bases after hitting a two-run home run during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Colorado Rockies, Monday, June 10, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Minnesota Twins’ Manuel Margot slides into third base after hitting a double during the third inning of a baseball game against the Colorado Rockies, Monday, June 10, 2024, in Minneapolis. Margot advanced to third base after a throwing error by Rockies right fielder Hunter Goodman. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

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Former state Sen. Ray Vandeveer, a Minnesota lawmaker from Forest Lake who served nearly 15 years in the state Legislature, has died at 70.

Vandeveer, a Republican who represented a northeast metro district that included Washington and parts of Anoka counties and cities including Forest Lake and Stillwater, served in the House and Senate from 1998 to 2012. He died on May 11 surrounded by family, according to an obituary posted online.

State Sen. Ray Vandeveer, R-Forest Lake, in his Senate photo for his second term, which started in Jan. 2011. (Courtesy of the Minnesota Senate Photographer’s Office)

“Ray’s legacy of public service and community involvement will be fondly remembered,” the obituary said.

Outside the Legislature, Vandeveer had a real estate appraisal business for more than 30 years. He was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2000, according to an Associated Press report, and decided not to run for reelection in 2012 due to health concerns.

In his final year in office, Vandeveer said he was proud of his efforts with fellow Republicans to cut state spending. His party took the majority in the Senate in 2011 and reduced a $5 billion deficit.

“I worked very hard to protect our personal freedoms and slow down the expansion of government,” he told the Pioneer Press at the time.

When Vandeveer announced his plan to leave the Legislature, now-Sen. Karin Housley filed to run for his seat, one she has served in ever since.

Vandeveer was first elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives in a 1998 special election. He served in that chamber for nearly nine years, eventually becoming the chairman of the Subcommittee on Property and Local Tax Division.

He was elected to the Senate in 2006, and served as chairman of the Local Government and Elections Committee when Republicans took the majority in 2011.

Besides serving as a legislator, Vandeveer was on the Forest Lake Planning Commission, the Mounds View Charter Commission, and as a volunteer probation officer for Anoka County, according to the Minnesota Legislative Reference Library.

Vandeveer is survived by his wife, Camille, four children, a grandchild and four siblings.

A memorial event is scheduled for Sunday, June 23.

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