All-Americans, First Team (1999) Beanpot MVP (2004) Best Female Hockey Player in the World by The Hockey News (2003) Directorate Award as the Top Defenseman at the Winter Olympics, Salt Lake City (2002) ECAC Player of the Year (2004) 2004 ECAC Tournament Most Valuable Player, ECAC All-Academic Team (2003–2004) Four-time NCAA All-American (2001, 2002, 2003, 2004) Four-time NCAA All-ECAC (2001, 2002, 2003, 2004) Harvard Crimson Female Athlete of the Year (2004) Harvard MVP (2001, 2003, 2004) Ivy League Player of the Year (2004) NCAA First Team Academic All-American (2004) NCAA Top VIII award as one of the top 8 student-athletes in the entire NCAA (2004) NCAA National Strength and Conditioning Association Athlete of the Year (2004) New England Sports Writer's Player of the Year (2004) Patty Kazmaier Memorial Trophy winner (2004) Patty Kazmaier Memorial Trophy, Top 3 Finalist (2003) Ranked one of Top 16 Female Athletes in the World by ESPN.com (2004) Ranked #94 on The Hockey News 2011 List of the 100 Most Powerful People in Hockey Ranked #94 for the second consecutive year on The Hockey News 2012 List of the 100 Most Powerful People in Hockey Top Defenseman Award at the Winter Olympics (2002, 2006) Top Defenseman Award at the ESSO Canadian Provincials (2005) Top Defenseman in the World by The Globe and Mail (2003) Other Ruggiero helped the Minnesota Whitecaps to the Western Women's Hockey League championship in 2008–09. She skated part-time for the Whitecaps in 2007-08 and ranked second on the team with 18 points (8-10) in 15 games. She made history on January 28, 2005, when she and her brother, Bill, competed for the Central Hockey League's Tulsa Oilers, becoming the first-ever brother-sister tandem to play in a professional hockey game. She was the first female skater to play in a North American professional hockey game, where she recorded an assist. Ruggiero joined the National Women's Hockey League's Montreal Axion part way through the 2004-05 season. On October 22, 2011, Ruggiero was inducted into the National Italian Sports Hall of Fame. EA Sports officially announced that Ruggiero would be among the first two female hockey players in NHL 13. Along with Hayley Wickenheiser, she has a playable character in the game which can be added to any team of the user's choice. References External links 1980 births American memoirists American people of Italian descent American women's ice hockey defensemen Boston Blades players Choate Rosemary