Frost re-sign defender Natalie Buchbinder to two-year contract
One of the top free-agent defenders in the PWHL is off the market in free agency.
On Monday, Natalie Buchbinder re-signed with the Minnesota Frost on a two-year contract, keeping the right-handed blueliner in the Twin Cities through the 2027 season.
TheScore’s Kyle Cushman was the first to report the signing.
Natalie Buchbinder is re-signing with the Minnesota Frost on a two-year contract.
One of the better right-handed D off the board early and an important signing for Minnesota after losing Jaques and Thompson in expansion. @WD_sportsagency client
The 26-year-old Buchbinder has spent the last two seasons with the Frost, playing a combined 43 games across the league’s inaugural season and 2024-25, scoring two goals and six assists in the regular season.
Additionally, she has played a significant role in the Frost’s back-to-back Walter Cup titles, playing 18 games across the two playoff runs, culminating in titles won against the Boston Fleet in 2024 and the Ottawa Charge in 2025.
Keeping her around became a clear priority for General Manager Melissa Caruso and the Frost, after the team lost top defenders Claire Thompson and Sophie Jaques to PWHL Vancouver during the expansion process, decimating the top-end quality of the Minnesota blueline.
Prior to her time with the Frost, the native of Fairport, New York, was a standout with the University of Wisconsin Badgers, helping the team win three NCAA titles, while scoring five goals and 60 points in 154 games.
Internationally, Buchbinder won the 2017 IIHF U18 Women’s World Championship with Team USA, and also earned a call to the COVID-impacted 2021 IIHF Women’s World Championship, where she captured a silver medal but did not play in a game.
Heading back to the Frost, she sticks with a team looking to maintain its playoff excellence into the eight-team era of the PWHL, with the 2025-26 season set to start in the fall. The full schedule of the original six, as well as Vancouver and Seattle, is set to be released in the coming weeks.
With Buchbinder off the board, expect teams to pivot to target other standout defenders in free agency, including Kali Flanagan, Kati Tabin, Zoe Boyd, Jessica DiGirolamo, and Dominika Laskova.