NCAA Women's Hockey: What to Watch, October 7-9
Nicole Haase
- 4 min read

NCAA Women's Hockey: What to Watch, October 7-9

NCAA Women's Hockey: What to Watch, October 7-9 by Nicole Haase

Come back each week for a preview of interesting NCAA games coming up and some thoughts on what happened in the previous week's action.

(6) Colgate at (11) Penn State

Friday at 2:30 PM and Saturday at 1:00 PM Eastern

Watch: Paid stream on BTN+.

Penn State is 2-2 through their first four games, three of which were against top 5 opponents. Colgate continues their non-conference tour of CHA opponents when they head to Pegula this weekend.

The Nittany Lions have gotten a ton of early production from newcomers, with grad transfer Courtney Correia and freshman Tessa Janecke lighting up the scoresheet. Janecke was a standout for Team USA at the U18 World Championships in Madison in June. She seemed to take a few games to settle in, but really stood out as the tournament carried on. What's most noticeable so far in her college career is how much of a 200 foot players she is. She is second on the team with 14 shots on goal and leads the team with eight blocks.

Colgate's Kalty Kaltounkova has been one of my favorite players to watch in all of college hockey for a couple of years now. She has consistently refined her game and improved. She's a big, physical player who makes her presence known along the boards and in front of the net – but she's also a good skater with a great shot.

The freshmen that many of us watched in Madison in June have gotten most of the attention to start the college season, but Sara Stewart is a player to keep an eye on with the Raiders. On a pretty stacked and deep roster, she's already scoring goals and making herself noticeable on the ice.

Minnesota State at (5) Minnesota Duluth

Friday at 6:00 PM and Saturday at 3 PM Central

Watch: Paid stream on BTN+.

The Mavericks had a chance to upset reigning national champions Ohio State in each of their games last weekend. The Buckeyes needed three goals in the final ten minutes of the game to eke out the win.

While the focus in the WCHA has been the four teams atop the national rankings, it's clear that Minnesota State isn't intimidated. MSU has long been a team that can play shutdown defense, and they have goalies who can give opposing teams fits. Over the past few seasons, though, they've been able to add a more formidable offense to the equation.

They nearly pulled off last weekend without the help of 2020-21 WCHA Rookie of the Year Jamie Nelson, who missed all of last season with a knee injury and has yet to take the ice this season. That MSU has even more depth than we've seen so far bodes well for their ability to be a team to contend with.

UMD is 4-0 through the first two weeks with wins over LIU, St. Lawrence and Penn State. Most interestingly, their offense has been fueled by fifth year defender Ashton Bell, who spent last year centralized with Canada for the Olympics. She's tied for the team lead with seven points on four goals and three assists. They're also, unsurprisingly, led by Patty Kazmaier Top-3 Finalist Gabbie Hughes, who has seven points on a goal and six assists.

(3) Northeastern vs. (15) Connecticut,
home and home series

Friday at 2:00 PM and Saturday at 3:00 PM Eastern

Watch: Paid stream on ESPN+.

One of the early standout players in Hockey East is UConn's Claire Peterson, who has two power play goals and two assists to begin the season. The Huskies started the season with two wins each over RIT and Stonehill and face a big test against the other Huskies.

In their four meetings last season, UConn managed a one-goal loss and a tie before Northeastern took a 5-0 win to close the regular season and 3-1 win in the Hockey East Tournament championship.

Northeastern was a little slow to start in their first game of the season against LIU, but came back the next day to take a 10-1 win. They have a new goalie, but otherwise return much the same roster that has carried them to the Frozen Four the past two seasons. They'll have some growing pains, particularly on the defensive end, but should still be the team to beat in Hockey East.

Also worth a look:

  • Bemidji State at (2) Minnesota – Friday at 6:00 PM and Saturday at 2:00 PM Central
  • New Hampshire at Maine – Friday at 6:00 PM and Saturday at 2:00 PM Eastern
  • LIU at Sacred Heart – Friday at 2:00 PM Eastern

Stick Taps and Snark

↑ Vermont's Theresa Schafzahl – The grad student is one point away from tying Amanda Pelkey (2011-15) with 105 career points, the most by a Catamount.

↓ Boston College – The Eagles were drubbed 5-0 by #8 Quinnipiac last weekend in a game where the Bobcats outshot them 54-13. It dropped BC from the rankings and cast serious doubt on whether they can be a contender this season.

↑ St. Lawrence's Lucy Morgan  – The Saints' goalie recorded her 2000th career save on Thursday in her team's 2-0 win over Syracuse.

↑ Penn State coach Jeff Kampersal  –  The Nittany Lion bench boss won career game 400 in Penn State's 4-2 win at St. Lawrence on Saturday.

(Photo: UConn Women's Hockey/Twitter)

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NCAA colgate penn state Minnesota State minnesota duluth uconn northeastern jeff kampersal Theresa Schafzahl lucy morgan Boston college ice hockey