Women’s Hockey: New Look to an Old Rivalry
By: Max Wolpoff
BOSTON — With the graduations of Sarah Lefort and Kendall Coyne, the Boston-rivalry of Boston University and Northeastern will take on a different complexion than the previous four years. Both teams are without their program-leading scorers, but also have no shortage of young talent to replace them.
GAME INFORMATION
Boston University @ Northeastern
Time: 7 p.m., Matthews Arena
Stream: http://mixlr.com/wtbusports/
Commentators: Max Wolpoff and Jake Reiser
NORTHEASTERN HUSKIES — 3-2-1 (0-0-0 Hockey East), 1-2-1 Home, Streak W1
The Huskies did not have thier offense to open the season. St. Lawrence white-washed them 5-0 to open the year, then held on for a 6-5 win in the rematch the next day. Northeastern responded by routing Lindenwood by a combined 9-1 score in two games. In their last two contests, Syracuse tied them 2-2, then the Red and the Black won 1-0 in the rematch.
Even after giving up five goals in the season opener, head coach Dave Flint has stuck with Brittany Bugalski as his primary starter. The Hockey East All-Rookie team member from last season conceded three goals total in her next four starts. Her save percentage in five games is at .938, with a goals against average down to 1.58.
Junior Denisa Krizova leads the Huskies with four goals and four assists, adding a goal in the first game of the Syracuse series last weekend. Senior Heather Mottau leads all defenders with five points, including the one and only goal needed to beat Syracuse on Saturday.
Hayley Scamurra, a draft pick of the National Women’s Hockey League’s Buffalo Beauts, took 47 faceoffs out of the team’s 81 draws against the Orange for two games. She had a combined 26 wins to 21 losses.
Paige Savage, the other NWHL draft pick on the roster (Connecticut Whale), is quiet through six games, only registering one goal and two assists.
Freshmen Codie Cross (four assists), Matti Hartman (two goals, one assist), and Kendall’s sister Bailey Coyne (two assists) lead the five-member class in scoring.
These teams will rematch on the following Tuesday from Walter Brown Arena, but the Huskies will play Dartmouth in between the two contests.
BOSTON UNIVERSITY TERRIERS — 3-1-1 (2-1-0 Hockey East), 1-1-1 Road, Streak W1
Three games was enough for senior Samantha Sutherland to carry the team’s offensive load. The Fernie, British Columbia native got one assist in the 7-2 rout of the Penn State Nittany lions while her teammates picked up the slack.
With six points on the weekend (four goals, two assists), graduate student Mary Parker catapulted herself to third on the team’s scoring list behind Sutherland and Sammy Davis. Her hat-trick against PSU Saturday powered the offense for their first win in over a week (New Hampshire, Oct. 7). Parker stands at 99 collegiate points entering Tuesday’s game; the closest Terrier to her is Victoria Bach at 88.
The Terrier power play combined to go four-for-seven at Pegula Ice Arena, breaking a streak of seven power play opportutnities without a goal. On the other side, the penalty kill unit killed off nine out of ten penalties against the Nittany Lions, allowing 12 shots.
Maddie Elia quietly had a good weekend. She got an assist and the tying goal in the 3-3 draw on Friday night, followed by a goal and three helpers the next afternoon. In addition, the Beauts draft pick won 14 of 27 faceoffs, and helped to draw three penalties from Nittany Lion players to put BU one to the good.
Erin O’Neil and Vicotria Hanson each started a game, and faced widely differing teams. O’Neil saw a steady diet of shots above her chest, two of those going for goals while the other was scored through traffic, and made 32 saves to preserve the tie. Hanson witnessed a lot of outside chances, conceding two goals and making 21 saves for the win.
Through five games, the Terriers have three players — Deziray De Sousa, Brenna Scarpaci, and Natalie Flynn — without a point.