By Mark Fraenkel
After a challenging second half of the season, the Boston University women’s ice hockey team (12-14-6, 11-9-5 Hockey East) is set to travel to Storrs, Connecticut on Saturday to face the University of Connecticut Huskies (22-8-4, 16-7-4 HE) in the first round of the Hockey East playoffs.
The two teams have met three times so far this season. The Terriers have yet to win any of the matchups in regulation or in overtime against the Huskies. In the Nov. 5 game, senior forward Courtney Correia’s goal was not enough, as UConn beat BU, 2-1.
The next day, UConn’s senior goaltender Samantha Carpentier-Yelle made 15 saves in a shutout win. Finally, in early February, powered by a second period goal from senior forward Mackenna Parker, the Terriers won in a shootout against the Huskies.
UConn enters the Hockey East playoffs as the third seed, while BU enters the playoffs as the sixth seed. The Huskies finished the regular season with 11 points more than the Terriers.
Chris MacKenzie’s team also averages more goals per game than BU, as UConn averages 2.7 goals per game while BU averages 2.2 goals per game. Similarly, the Huskies allow fewer goals on average than the Terrier. Currently, BU allows on average 2.5 goals per game, while UConn only allows 1.7.
Graduate student Natalie Snodgrass and fellow graduate student forward Summer-Rae Dobson lead UConn with goals scored this season. They each scored 12 goals in 34 regular season games. Senior forward Viki Harkness and sophomore forward Jada Habisch each added 11 goals. Graduate Student Morgan Wabick and senior Danielle Fox both netted 10 goals over the course of the season.
For the Terriers, senior forward Courtney Correia scored 12 goals in 28 games for Head Coach Brian Durocher’s team. Senior forward Mackenna Parker has scored nine goals in 29 games. Currently tied in for number three in scoring for BU is an emerging underclassman who has been very impressive over the past few weeks.
Sophomore forward Lacey Martin scored five goals in the regular season. The Minnetonka, Minnesota native scored big goals in the Beanpot against Harvard and against the University of Maine. She shares the three spot with senior forward Emma Wuthrich and freshman forward Christina Vote.
Saturday afternoon’s game will take place at 3:00pm in Storrs, Connecticut. The loser of the game will most likely end their season, as BU is ranked 23rd in the Pairwise Rankings and UConn is ranked 12th. The winner of Saturday’s game will play in the Hockey East semifinals on Wednesday at either 3:00pm or 6:30pm. The Hockey East Championship will be held on Saturday Mar. 5 at 7:00pm.
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