In what will be the final two games of the regular season, the Connecticut Huskies will try to end their season on a high note against the Holy Cross Crusaders.
As of late, Connecticut has hit a rough patch. In their last six games, the Huskies are 0-4-2 with their last win coming against Boston College just over a month ago. Despite their recent struggles, UConn has remained in fifth in the Hockey East standings and are poised to finish well against this weekend’s opponent.
The Holy Cross Crusaders (7-23-1) have pieced together some solid wins towards the end of their season, but an abysmal start hurt their record. Holy Cross won just two of their first 21 games which has led to their ninth-place rank in the Hockey East standings. Currently, Merrimack is the lone team below Holy Cross. Senior Mary Edmonds is the offensive leader for the Crusaders, leading the team with 10 goals on the season. Junior Madison Beck is the team’s starting goaltender and has secured the goalkeeping duties in all seven of the teams wins this season.
These teams met for the first time this season last weekend, with Holy Cross narrowly escaping with a 2-1 victory on the road. UConn won 31 of 45 faceoffs and had 10 more shots on goal but couldn’t get it done, resulting in the loss.
Coryn Tormala scored her eighth goal of the season to bring her point total up to 19 on the year. She currently leads the Huskies in that category with the team’s goal-leader Jada Habisch behind her with 17 points (11 goals).
UConn and Holy Cross will play two games, the first being in Storrs followed by the second in Worcester, Massachusetts. Before the loss last weekend, UConn had beaten Holy Cross in 11 straight games. The Huskies will come into this weekend with an all-time record of 11-3 versus Holy Cross and hope to start yet another streak of dominance against their opponent.
After the regular season has ended, both teams will turn their attention to bringing home the Bertagna Trophy. For just the second year in a row, all 10 of the Hockey East teams will participate in the postseason tournament, looking to secure the automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament. Northeastern looks to extend their streak to six straight Hockey East Tournament championships while UConn hopes to win their first. The opening rounds will start on Feb. 22 and will continue until the championship game on March 4.
Friday’s game will be Senior Day for the Huskies, where they will recognize nine of their players. Camryn Wong, Kaitlyn Yearwood, Coryn Tormala, Claire Peterson, Kate Thurman, Ainsley Svetek, Amy Landry, Carlie Magier and Mackenzie Nicholas will all be recognized in the ceremony. Come support the Huskies this Friday at the Toscano Family Ice Forum. The game will start at 6 p.m. but can also be streamed on ESPN+.
Saturday’s regular season finale will also be played at 6 p.m. in Worcester, Massachusetts and can also be found on ESPN+.
