The UConn men’s hockey team is set for their first two-game Hockey East series of the season with home and home games against UMass. The Huskies will start off with traveling to Amherst on Friday, Oct. 25, and then will travel back home to Storrs to welcome the Minutemen to Toscano Family Ice Forum on Saturday, Oct. 26. Both game’s puck drops are set for 7 p.m.
Through the fourth weekend of the season, the Huskies offense has continued to produce. In the first five-game span, UConn has scored a total of 18 goals. Last weekend, the Huskies started Hockey East action as they faced off against No. 3 Boston University on Friday, Oct. 18. The Huskies fell to BU by a final of 4-2 in their only game of the weekend, but they look to bounce back this weekend.
Against BU, freshman Thomas Heaney made his first career start and finished the game with 25 total saves. Junior Jake Percival and sophomore Jake Richard have made their presence known early this season. Both of them are leading the team with four goals and two assists, which totals six points each. They have both been anchors for the Huskies offensively and have continued to do damage game after game thus far.
The Huskies have received a single point from 19 total skaters. Of the 19, seven of them are new players for the Ice Bus. Whether it’s freshman or transfer players, they have all started to make an impact on the ice. In his first college appearance against Holy Cross two weekends ago, Trey Scott scored the game winning goal.
Another element that has been a strong suit for the Huskies is their five-on-five hockey. They have scored 13 of their 18 goals this way to start the season. Even though the newcomers have contributed numbers to this Huskies team so far, their returning players like Richard, graduate student Hudson Schandor, graduate student John Spetz, junior Thomas Messineo and sophomore Joey Muldowney have also maintained their impact.
In injury news, defensemen Spetz is day-to-day after dislocating his shoulder against BU last weekend. He received a five-minute major and a game misconduct after colliding with a Terriers player along the boards. Another questionable Husky is Tyler Muszelik after he missed the contest against BU with a lower body industry. Coach Mike Cavanaugh explained that Muszelik returned to practice on Tuesday, but the team is still waiting to see how his body responds to being back in action on the ice. Cavanaugh is hopeful for his return against UMass this weekend.
If Muszelik is unavailable, Heaney will get the nod to start at goaltender, as he is the only available goalie left on the roster. Heaney started against BU last Friday and was able to hold the fort down against the Terriers. He stopped 25 of 29 shots that came his way and was able to keep the Huskies in the game.