On Friday night in Boston, the No. 11 UConn women’s ice hockey team (22-7-5, 19-4-4 Hockey East) made history, winning the program’s first Hockey East regular season title in the first game of a home-and-home series with the Boston University Terriers (14-17-3, 12-14-1 Hockey East).
In the first period in Friday’s game at Walter Brown Arena, UConn got on the board first after a hard-fought first 20 minutes. With less than a minute left in the first period, defenseman Camryn Wong set up a pass to forward Brianna Ware at center ice. After Ware caught up to the puck, the junior from Pointe-Claire, Quebec fired a quick pass to forward Kyla Josifovic. On the left side of the net, the junior from Burlington, Ontario fired a shot at point-blank range, with the puck passing the left shoulder of Boston University goaltender Callie Shanahan. It was Josifovic’s fourth career goal and her first since a 5-2 win against the Terriers on Jan. 13.
Despite the 1-0 advantage for Connecticut after the first period, Boston University outshot the Huskies on goal 9-5.
Josifovic’s last-second goal in the first period proved to bring momentum into the second period. After winning a faceoff in their attacking zone, forward Jada Habisch got the puck on the stick of senior Kathryn Stockdale, who set up a one-timer goal for Ware, who scored her fourth goal of the season and her seventh of her collegiate career. It ended a nine-game drought without a goal, with her last goal coming in a 3-1 win over the University of Maine on Jan. 19.
The Huskies saw a test approach with the Terriers going on the power play following a holding penalty by Stockdale. However, UConn’s penalty-killing unit was effective enough to keep the score 2-0 in favor of Connecticut after 40 minutes of action.
UConn was given back-to-back advantages in the third period due to a slashing penalty by Boston University defenseman Andi Calderone and a cross-checking penalty by forward Christina Vote. However, the Terriers were able to kill both penalties, keeping their deficit at two goals.
With both teams at full strength, Habisch intercepted a pass deep in Boston University’s zone. The senior from Buffalo, Minnesota fired a shot at the net, ricocheting off of Shanahan. However, that set up an opportunity for forward Riley Grimley to get the puck in the back of the net. When she was unsuccessful, forward Brooke Campbell tried herself.
The third time was successful as Habisch snuck the puck past Shanahan’s right-leg guard. It was Habisch’s 12th goal of the season and 30th in her career. It was her first goal since scoring two in a 3-0 win against the University of Vermont on Jan. 26.
Nearly seven minutes later, forward Megan Woodworth scored her sixth goal of the season, giving her nine in her career. The sophomore from Berwick, Nova Scotia found the back of the net three times in February.
UConn clinched the regular season title by a score of 4-0. Ware and Habisch led the way with two points each, while junior goaltender Tia Chan recorded her seventh shutout of the season with 26 saves.
The Huskies hosted the Terriers at Toscano Family Ice Forum on Saturday afternoon to complete his regular season.
With the game scoreless through the first period, UConn took advantage of an interference penalty by Boston University defenseman Maeve Kelly. UConn defenseman Maya Serdachny fed Grimley, who set up a cross-ice pass to Wong. The Vancouver, British Columbia native buried a wrist shot on an open net, scoring her fourth goal of the season.
Chan started in both games, recording 32 saves to cap off a tremendous regular season between her and junior Megan Warrener as a dynamic goalie duo.
In front of a crowd of 1,238 people at the Toscano Family Ice Forum, the Huskies honored their seniors as they played their final regular season game at home. UConn honored Wong, Stockdale, Habisch, forward Coryn Tormala and defensemen Claire Peterson and Ainsley Svetek.
Thanks to Wong’s goal and five penalty kills, Connecticut ended the regular season with a weekend sweep of Boston University, the second game ending in a 1-0 win.
UConn’s record against the Terriers improved to 18-31-9, with a three-game winning streak.
The Huskies clinched the No. 1 seed in the Hockey East Tournament and will host their quarterfinal game on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Toscano Family Ice Forum. It will be available to watch on NESN+. The opponent will be determined after the opening-round games are completed on Wednesday, with Connecticut receiving the lowest remaining seed.
Boston University will play in the opening round against the College of Holy Cross on Wednesday at 6 p.m. on ESPN+.
The other matchup on Wednesday night is Merrimack College at Maine, which will begin at the same time.