Surging UConn women's hockey hosting Northeastern in Hockey East final

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UConn women’s hockey heads into the Hockey East Tournament finals with a 26-8-2 record and a No. 6 ranking in the USCHO poll. The Huskies will host No. 5 Northeastern, a team they lost to three times this season, at the Toscano Family Ice Forum at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday.

Two seasons ago, UConn made its first NCAA Tournament appearance, losing in double overtime to Minnesota Duluth. They beat Northeastern in the Hockey East tournament final that year, and are looking for a repeat of that result with a better outcome in NCAAs, where they’re likely to be joined by in-state rivals Quinnipiac and Yale as well.

“It’s a testament to the support of the institutions that are doing well,” UConn head coach Chris MacKenzie told reporters on Thursday. “It’s a good thing for the future of women’s hockey everywhere, but particularly in Connecticut.”

In three previous meetings with the NU Huskies, UConn has gone 0-3-0, though the last two contests have been tight. Most recently, MacKenzie’s squad lost in overtime. Before that, they allowed a goal with 15 seconds left after playing to a scoreless tie for 59 minutes.

“We played well enough to win the games,” Mackenzie said. “I just want us to play well and see what happens.”

Goaltender Tia Chan was recently named Hockey East Goaltender of the Year and first-team all-league. On Thursday, she was also named a finalist for the Patty Kazmaier Award, given to the top player in Division I Hockey.

“She’s been unstoppable,” Kyla Josifovic said, calling her a “brick wall,” before adding that Chan “has been a backbone of this program all five years she’s been here.”

Chan was the only Husky on the All-Hockey East First Team, though three earned second-team honors, and Josifovic was named to the third team. The senior captain is the team’s points leader with 37 (13 goals and 24 assists).

“Since day one, [Kyla has] been a steady player for us, all roles, PK, power play,” MacKenzie said. “Really happy to see her have a breakout offensive year this year.”

Josifovic has played 34 or more games in each of the last three seasons, posting 27 points in her last two seasons combined before reaching 37 already this season.

“It’s been awesome to see how much she’s grown,” co-captain Emma Eryou said.

The Huskies have nine players with 20 or more points this season — a big jump compared to their recent history. They had four last year and a pair in the previous two seasons prior to that.

“This is the most offensive team we’ve had, and we don’t have one player that we’re relying on,” MacKenzie said.

“Our depth is a really good thing that can take us far,” Josifovic said.

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The Huskies are the 2-seed going up against a one-seed on Saturday, hosting because Northeastern doesn’t have a home rink following the demolition of Matthews Arena.

MacKenzie said they were ready to travel if Hockey East decided to hold the game at a different rink in Massachusetts — Merrimack was rumored to be the destination — to give the top seed some advantage.

The team’s captains and coach agreed that playing in an Olympic year always adds some extra juice around their competitions and more publicity to the sport as a whole. They noted the growth of women’s college hockey and the US pro leagues as well.

“We all kinda know most of the players in the Olympic field,” MacKenzie said. “It generates a lot of energy, a lot of excitement.”

Other key contributors on the ice include Claire Murdoch, who led the Huskies in points last year as a freshman and is second on the team this year, earning second-team All Hockey East honors. She was also named Hockey East Player of the Month for February.

“She’s been a solid contributor offensively, just a really smart player that makes everyone around her better,” MacKenzie said.

The team’s third-leading point-getter thus far is Julia Pellerin, a Boston College transfer who MacKenzie said “added a lot of speed” to the lineup.

Ahead of this crucial matchup, the Huskies are focused on playing mistake-free hockey.

“You really have to work hard to create turnovers and take care of the puck,” MacKenzie said.

The Huskies reached the final on the strength of consecutive 6-1 wins in the quarterfinals and semis. But a white whale, their chief rival over the last three seasons, stands in the way.

“We’ve been having a lot of fun getting after it this week,” Eryou said. “Should be a good game.”

Northeastern boasts two of the three top scorers in Hockey East and the most goals scored in league play.

“Lockdown defense is something that we need to focus on against them,” Josifovic said. “They have so much talent on their offensive end.”

The Huskies are expecting a strong showing of fan support, which they’ve enjoyed throughout the season at Toscano. Eryou noted the crowds in Storrs have grown over time, with students now showing up in force.

Seniors like Eryou, Josefovic, and the fifth-year Chan have been part of a breakthrough stretch for the program. They were contributors on the team that won the Huskies’ first Hockey East titles and also made the NCAA Tournament. This year, they have the potential to do more than just make an appearance in the field of 11.

“They’ve really risen the standard, helped our program get better every year,” MacKenzie said. “It’ll be their last game at Toscano, I think that’s a great opportunity to go out on a winning note.”