Over the weekend, UConn women’s ice hockey took on the No. 13 St. Cloud State University Huskies at Toscano Family Ice Forum in two tight games that put both teams to the test. The UConn Huskies split their weekend series; St. Cloud took the first game 2-1 on Friday, while UConn closed out the weekend on Saturday with their own 2-1 win. Although UConn’s incomplete passes condemned them in game one, their clean playing in the second game secured their win. As the first games of UConn’s season, they now have a standing record of 1-1.
Friday’s game started in UConn’s favor but turned south halfway through the second period. Our Huskies took the first breakaway, and the first point was scored by Megan Woodworth in the first period. Following this, the senior from Nova Scotia spent most of the night dodging penalties from every direction. The second point was scored by Raili Mustonen in the same period. St. Cloud scored their second goal in the beginning of the third period.
St. Cloud’s aggressive playing tactics — with Grace Wolfe as a key offender — shook UConn and they simply couldn’t regroup. UConn held heavy possession on their half of the rink for most of the game but was ultimately doomed by a great deal of incomplete passes and lack of puck control throughout this night. The fight to tie the game went on until the very end; a 1.2-second clock reset back to three seconds remaining gave UConn one last frantic opportunity for a point that they ultimately did not shoot for. They did, however, lead the night 35-27 for SOG.
Less than 24 hours later, UConn bounced back with a 2-1 win, defeating the St. Cloud Huskies. UConn once again took the first goal — this time in a powerplay. Brooke Campbell scored halfway through the first period — thanks to St. Cloud’s Sidney Jackel’s minor penalty for hooking. St. Cloud’s Sydney Bryant took the second goal on a penalty shot for interference just over three minutes into the second period. The winning point was scored by UConn’s own Livvy Dewar, with five minutes remaining in the second period.
St. Cloud just couldn’t get past UConn’s wall of a goaltender, Tia Chan. Although this game started off with the same passing issues as the night before, the Connecticut Huskies quickly composed themselves and played like the unit we remember from last season. Powerplays would become the team’s best friend tonight — UConn played 5-on-3 for almost two full minutes after St. Cloud was called for having too many players on the ice and hooking under three seconds apart. St. Cloud took a second penalty for hooking shortly after being released from the box. Although no points were scored, this set a precedent for strong powerplays for the remainder of the game. St. Cloud pulled their goalie with 1 minutes and 40 seconds on the clock with the hope of a last-minute goal — but not even Wolfe could score against Captain Chan tonight. Contrary to the night before, St. Cloud led in SOG tonight, 37-31.
This weekend was also the host to the first annual “Hockey Night” in Storrs. The student section on Friday night was one to remember for our Women’s Ice Hockey team — nearly the entire student section was filled with cheering fans. Attendance was boosted with several freebie opportunities — the first 50 people in line were given free chicken sandwiches from Jefferson Fry, and the first 250 students were given free “Hockey Night” T-shirts.
With the weekend split, the UConn Huskies showed both their weaknesses and strengths. However, if the team wants any chance against No. 7 Clarkson this Friday, they must improve their consistency, convert more shots into goals and take more advantage of their powerplays. Still, as long as they keep up with strong goaltending and resilience, this season is looking bright for our Huskies.
This weekend’s dogfight lived up to all expectations: a true clash between dueling Huskies from puck drop to the final horn.
Great work with this article Addison. I like how you covered the first-ever “Hockey Night in Storrs” in addition to the game itself.
Rule of thumb: Try not to refer to the Huskies in the first person (i.e., “our Huskies”; though I can give a mini-pass this time because UConn played St. Cloud State). People who cover UConn athletic programs for a newspaper such as the Daily Campus are technically not associated with the team.