We are only 11 days away from crowning a women’s collegiate hockey national champion. Only 11 teams remain in contention for this title.
Ohio State, Wisconsin and Minnesota all hail from the WCHA and make up three of the nation’s top four teams. The conference final saw Ohio State take down Wisconsin to claim the one seed in the tournament.
Wisconsin and OSU have been the only finalists for the last three years and the only national champions in the last six, with 16 of 24 total champions coming from them or Minnesota.
The AHA tournament stakes involved more than just those playing. Due to the system that college hockey uses to decide NCAA berths, Mercyhurst could only make the tournament with a conference title win over Penn State. With a loss, Minnesota Duluth would instead qualify.
Though the Lakers fought well, the Nittany Lions were too much to handle, and Mercyhurst fell, letting Duluth in.
Coming into the ECAC semifinals, Quinnipiac, Princeton and Yale had already clinched NCAA appearances. In the conference final, Quinnipiac took down Yale.
Hockey East’s title game featured both the Northeastern and UConn Huskies. Though Northeastern was the one seed, the closure of Northeastern’s 115-year-old Matthews Arena forced the game to instead be played at UConn’s Toscano Family Ice Forum.
It was a goaltending duel between Tia Chan and Lisa Jonsson that could not be decided in regulation time.
In the second overtime frame, Kyla Josifovic capitalized on a rebound off a Claire Murdoch shot to score and win the title for UConn.
The NPI gap between the two was too large for UConn to overcome with one game, so despite the win Northeastern still earned the final bye.
The NEWHA does not have a ranked team, meaning the winner between Franklin Pierce and St Anslem would bid steal from the 11th team in the NPI. Franklin Pierce claimed this title and punched their first ever tournament bid and the final overall bid to set the field.
Three first round games will be played tomorrow on the sites of the highest seeded team in each regional. Due to avoiding intra-conference matchups, some of the seeding doesn’t match NPI.
Even though it doesn’t matter because games are played elsewhere, all three “home teams” of the first round hail from Connecticut.
Yale and Minnesota Duluth kick off the action at 6 p.m. for the Ohio State regional in a battle between two Bulldogs. These two teams have never played one another.
Eve Gascon of Duluth and Samson Frey of Yale ranked seventh and tenth in the nation in save percentage, with Yale forwards Jordan Ray and Carina DiAntonio ranking eighth and ninth in points per game.
Duluth’s offense is middle-of-the-pack nationally, an anomaly compared to their fellow tournament goers. Their defense does not rank in the top ten, and their comparative lack in both metrics lines them up for struggle.
The second game kicks off an hour later between UConn and Princeton for the Penn State regional. The two hadn’t played in ten years before UConn swept a two-game set this past October. Now, they meet again with their seasons on the line.
The two rank fourth and fifth in defense nationally, setting up a game where every goal counts. Chan was the only goalie to finish in the top ten for the Patty Kazmaier award and is undoubtedly the best goalie in the country, meaning that she could steal any given game.
A UConn-Penn State hockey rivalry could be on the horizon if UConn advances, as the schools’ men’s teams met in the playoffs last year and could do so again.
The Wisconsin regional begins with Franklin Pierce and Quinnipiac at 8 p.m. in yet another first ever matchup.
Franklin Pierce did not play a game against a ranked opponent this season, and as such they head into the tournament as heavy underdogs. Goaltender Jill Hertl’s .955 save percentage was the best in the country, making her a potential game changer and the largest source of hope for the Ravens’ upset dreams.
Minnesota hosts Northeastern in the only regional with no first round matchup, as these two play in the second round.
Minnesota’s Abbey Murphy finished with the best points-per-game nationally, a reflection of Minnesota’s second-best offense. With an offense like that, it makes sense that the reason for them only being fourth overall is due to a weaker defense.
Northeastern is more balanced, with the twelfth best offense and seventh best defense. The matchup will be dependent on the ability of Minnesota to score regardless of the brick wall in the opposing net.
The winner of the Minnesota regional plays the winner of the Ohio State regional, while the winner of the Wisconsin regional plays that of the Penn State regional.
The national title game is on March 22. Seven teams look to become first-time champions, while four seek an additional title.