Weekly Roundup: Another weekend off for UConn

COVID issues continue to plague the conference and affect the Huskies.

Welcome to the UConn Hockey Hub newsletter, which will catch you up on all the stories, trends, and anything else you might have missed, along with some quick takes and leftover notes from the weekend.

Subscriber News

A couple of notes for UConn Hockey Hub subscribers:

  • I said we’d have extra stories last week since UConn’s game was canceled, but the flurry of news on Monday threw a wrench in those plans. Fingers crossed we’ll actually have a game to cover on Friday and Saturday.

  • We’ll be operating this week as if the Huskies are actually playing this weekend. That means we’ll have this newsletter along with the podcast and preview ahead of Friday night.

UConn’s matchup with BU falls through

For the third week in a row, UConn’s scheduled games got axed because of COVID-19. Looking back, the UMass series was huge because otherwise, the Huskies wouldn’t have played a game yet.

To recap: On Monday, Hockey East announced a single game between UConn and BU on Saturday at Freitas Ice Forum. However, by Thursday a member of the Terriers’ program tested positive and the matchup was canceled.

BU became the sixth Hockey East team to pause activities in some capacity due to COVID-19, leaving just five active programs at the moment: UConn, BC, Merrimack, UMass, and Providence. Since the other four teams were scheduled to play each other, that left the Huskies without a dance partner after the cancellation. The only way UConn would’ve played last weekend was if one of those other four teams had a positive test and needed to shut down.

UConn is scheduled to play a two-game series with BC this upcoming weekend. But with the way things have gone so far, we know that nothing is guaranteed until the puck drops.

The Huskies will be desperate for that game to happen for a handful of reasons, though. First, these are the team’s last scheduled games before finals and the Christmas break. If UConn doesn’t play this weekend, its next action won’t be until New Year’s Day — seven weeks after the UMass series.

Second, UConn is catching BC at the perfect time. The Eagles are ranked No. 2 in the nation after sweeping UMass in their opener and then destroying Providence by a combined score of 12-0 in two games this past weekend. They’re a juggernaut — one that will probably run away with the Hockey East regular-season championship and contend for the national title.

However, BC will be without some key players thanks to World Juniors. Star goaltender Spencer Knight, top scorer Matt Boldy, and defenseman Drew Helleson will all be away at the US’ World Juniors Camp. Meanwhile, forward Liam Izyk and defenseman Tim Lovell are both out with injuries.

Though UConn itself will be without Vladislav Firstov and Yan Kuznetsov due to Russia’s World Juniors camp, those losses aren’t as great as what BC is dealing with. The Huskies are still facing a tall task, but it’ll be far less monumental given who the Eagles are missing.

Links

UConn Hockey Hub Podcast: Episode 2 (Note: We recorded this before the BU game was canceled.

Last week’s newsletter: The Hockey East season is off to a disastrous start (and it’s only gotten worse since this was published!)

Scoreboard

Friday, Dec. 4

Men’s:Boston College 3, Providence 0

Women’s:BC 5, UConn 3Providence 2, Holy Cross 0BU 2, UNH 1

Saturday, Dec. 5

Men’s:Boston College 9, Providence 0UMass 3, Merrimack 1

Women’s:BC 3, UConn 1Providence 4, Holy Cross 1UNH 4, BU 3

Sunday, Dec. 6

Men’s:Merrimack 3, UMass 2

Parting Thoughts

  • Six different men’s Hockey East programs were shut down in some capacity this weekend. I’ll say it again: I don’t know how the league expects to get through the season with the way things are going.

  • For example: Three weeks into the season and Hockey East still hasn’t played an official men’s conference game. The standings remain empty.

  • Based on the above, I would be surprised if UConn ends up playing BC this weekend. I don’t have any inside info on that, just a gut feeling.

  • BC’s 9-0 win over Providence was stunning, especially considering the Friars were ranked No. 12 in the country. I’m not sure whether that margin of victory says more about BC or Providence, or a random occurrence that we can chalk up to the lack of preparation for everyone this season. Either way, the Eagles now have a +16 goal differential… four games into the season.