Prior to the girls hockey season, we highlighted 15 players to watch in a stacked Dream Team, and those standouts have, to little surprise, been major contributors to their programs.

That list includes the state’s current leading scorer, Marshall junior forward Brooklyn Mauch (79 points, including 52 goals), and nine players currently competing at the U18 IIHF Women’s World Championships in Nova Scotia.

But the talent in Minnesota girls hockey runs far deeper than one list of a dozen-plus players, and the first half of this season has made that apparent. Meet 18 more players turning heads as the season heads into its back stretch.

Olivia Anthony

Warroad • freshman • forward

With a high hockey IQ and a hard shot, Anthony has had a breakout freshman season, with 13 goals — including four game winners — and 19 assists, playing a major role in the five-time state champ’s quest back to the top of Class 1A after finishing runner-up last year.

Sydney Burnevik

River Cities • senior • forward

Assumption-bound Burnevik and junior June Semling, a Minnesota State Mankato commit, make a high-scoring pair for River Cities. Burnevik, now at 37 points this season, became the program’s all-time points leader at the turn of the new year.

Lizzy Callahan

Westonka/Southwest Christian • senior • forward

Callahan, a strong two-way skater who will play at Minnesota Duluth next year, has racked up a team-high 31 points (16 goals, 15 assists) for the Whitehawks.

Jaycee Chatleain

Hill-Murray • junior • forward

Chatleain, who committed to the Gophers in late November, was an integral part of Hill-Murray’s Class 2A state title run last season. This year, the speedy, high-pressing forward has 15 goals and 25 assists for the Pioneers so far.

Audrey Davis

Edina • junior • forward

The Hornets’ roster is overflowing with talent, and Davis — a strong, powerful skater headed to Wisconsin — has racked up 26 points, tied for a team-best, with 12 goals and 14 assists.

Morgan Goskeson

Albert Lea • junior • forward

Goskeson was named MVP of Warroad’s Holiday Tournament after scoring all five of Albert Lea’s goals across two games. Goskeson, who has played varsity for the Tigers since seventh grade, has been on a tear all season and now has 29 goals.

Sarah Johnson

Mounds View/Irondale • junior • forward

Johnson’s stellar junior season has helped Mounds View/Irondale flip from just four wins last season to 11 wins this year, with seven games still left to play. A frequent creator of strong scoring chances through tight spaces, she has 32 goals and 20 assists.

Millie Knott

Bemidji • junior • defender

Knott is calm and mobile under pressure and brings a sharp shot to the Lumberjacks blue line. She picked up her 100th career point at the end of December, second on the team in scoring behind junior forward Bailey Rupp.

Jemma McAlexander

Minnetonka • junior • defender

On a Skippers roster loaded with high-scoring freshmen and sophomores, upperclassmen have held down the blue line, including the consistency of Harvard-bound McAlexander, who has three goals and nine assists this year.

Avery Milbridge

Proctor/Hermantown • junior • forward

The Mirage tasked Milbridge with moving from the blue line to play center this year, and she’s been strong up top for the Class 1A squad with a team-high 15 goals, plus 10 assists.

Clara Milinkovich

Breck • freshman • goaltender

Milinkovich has established herself as one of the state’s best young goaltenders in her second season starting for the Mustangs. With a 0.70 goals-against average and save percentage of 96.9% in 12 wins, she’s only gotten sharper this season.

Julia Ostapeic

Wayzata • senior • forward

The Trojans were 6-20 in Ostapeic’s freshman season. Now, Ostapeic captains a 14-3-1 Wayzata team that’s climbed to No. 12 in the state rankings. Ostapeic has a team-best 20 goals and 18 assists this winter.

Laina Peterson

Mankato East • sophomore • forward

Peterson knows how to score on every surface. Playing soccer last fall, she finished sixth in the state in goals scored, with 32. Now, on the ice, Peterson’s 27 goals are good for eighth on the state leaderboard and are the most among underclassmen.

Anna Pohl

Hill-Murray • freshman • forward

Anna is the middle of the Pohl sisters, playing alongside junior Wisconsin commit Emily and eighth-grader Lucy. Anna has taken a major leap since her 17-point eighth-grade season with the Pioneers. Now she’s up to a team-high 42 points (25 goals, 17 assists).

Alyssa Polaski

Woodbury • junior • goaltender

The Royals are the only remaining undefeated team in the state, and junior goaltender Polaski has been steady and stellar, earning 18 wins with a 0.99 goals-against average and stopping 95.5% of shots she’s faced.

Maisy Tomlinson

Maple Grove • junior • defender

Outside of facing the top four teams in the state, the Crimson haven’t given up more than two goals in a game. Helping in that is elusive defender Tomlinson, a St. Thomas commit with two goals and 13 assists this season.

Alexa Van Straaten

Dodge County • senior • defender

The Assumption commit’s poise and decision-making helped Dodge County to its first Class 1A title last year and, since then she’s helped keep the Wildcats among 1A’s best. She’s chipped in 10 goals and 15 assists from the blue line.

Katie Zakrajsheck

Benilde-St. Margaret’s • junior • forward

Committed to St. Cloud State, Zakrajsheck is quick and dynamic, slipping through traffic to pack a punch — and tally 26 points — alongside a talented crew of Red Knights forwards.