Re: 2020 Patty Kazmaier
I think there were a number of factors working against Agosta. One of the things that I learned from serving on the selection committee is that it matters what other coaches in the candidate's league say about her. Agosta played in a CHA that had four teams her first two seasons and five teams the last couple, so there were typically fewer people on the committee from her league that would lobby for her.
In 2007, Julie Chu won. She was a two-time Olympian, had a reputation as a one of the best two-way forwards around, and finished with a higher Points Per Game average. And had Sara Bauer not been injured that year, maybe she goes back to back. It was a big ask to expect a freshman to win over those two seniors.
In 2008, the Kaz went to Sarah Vaillancourt, which IMO, was a bit of a reach, but it shows the clout that being the best player in the ECAC has often had. Agosta wasn't the PPG leader that year. Melissa Boal of Wayne State had more PPG and points overall, and was the only player to average more than two points per game. I think that hurt Agosta's case that year, in that she didn't dominate her league in terms of production. Anyway, had I been voting that year, I would have voted for Kim Martin, but there was a shadow of suspicion over UMD's season.
By the time Agosta led the Lakers to the final in 2009, the voting was long over. If Wisconsin was loaded in 2011, it was even more loaded in 2009. Agosta led the country in PPG, but Hilary Knight wound up with more points. If there was ever a winner based on career, it was Jessie Vetter. She had a great season, leading in both Save % and GAA. But by the time of the voting, she had backed her team to three straight finals. She lost the third, her only NCAA Tournament loss. She won another championship as a senior, shutting out Agosta and the Lakers. In her three championship runs, she only allowed one goal total in the three games each time. I don't think we'll ever see her equal in the NCAA at crunch time.
As for 2011 and Duggan, I think that Agosta has gone on to have the better career post-NCAA. She is similar to Poulin, who didn't have as much success as someone like Carpenter, but has been better internationally. I watched Duggan and Agosta play head-to-head in St. Cloud, of all places, in 2011. Agosta was a great offensive player, but she rarely ventured below the top of the circles in her own zone. Duggan controlled that game all over the ice. They both came away with a goal and an assist, but Duggan was a +2, Agosta was a -2, and I thought that was pretty indicative of how that matchup went. To be fair, Duggan had Knight and Decker, and although that was probably the Lakers' most talented roster, they couldn't match up with that line. Overall, it was similar to a comparison of Roque and Watts today. Watts is the better offensive player, but in an NCAA game, Roque does a lot more.
Agosta could have won a Kaz at some point, but it never worked out for her. The two players who are tied for second behind her in career points, JLam and Brandt, never won a Kaz either, and an argument could be made that they played in tougher leagues. It's always going to be tough to win any award that has one winner every year.
