Nicole's NCAA Notebook: February 2, 2026

• We got our first look at how teams will fare without the players they’re missing to the Olympics this weekend and I’d say Ohio State came out looking the best. The Buckeyes had just 13 available skaters, but had no problem taking 6-2 and 3-1 wins from UMD this weekend. Jocelyn Amos has been third on the team in scoring but stepped up even more, scoring four goals. Jordan Baxter also looked ready to take on a bigger role. 
• The Buckeyes have been pretty balanced in their attack throughout the year, so this wasn’t super surprising to me that they had a pretty seamless transition. I think it was good to see them gut out the second win against Eve Gascon’s goaltending. The concern for every team missing players is less about talent replacement and more about experience and figuring out how to handle a bigger load mentally and physically and how to navigate the toughest part of the season while being in unfamiliar territory. 
• But my winner of the weekend in terms of stepping into the spotlight was Minnesota freshman Avery Hovland, who scored the Gophers’ game-tying goal in the 3rd on Friday to force overtime, where Molly Jordan scored to give Minnesota a 3-2 win over #1 Wisconsin. 
• I think it’s important, too, that the other two Gopher goals in that game were scored by defenders. Minnesota is going to have to score by committee over the next month, something they’ve not done much in recent years. 
• Things got sloppy in their second game against the Badgers and I think that’s probably to be expected as teams find their new footing - there was basically no way to prepare for this situation. But a team that talented can clean up turnovers and too-casual passes. Minnesota’s adjustment comes in missing their leader and having to make up for not just her skill, but presence on the ice. 
• Wisconsin freshman goalie Rhyah Stewart didn’t look too out of her depth in Minneapolis this weekend. With just one career start, she’s probably the player that had to make the biggest transition and was kind of thrown in the deep end without a raft. 
• There were a couple of wild saves that were only necessary because of being out of position, but I think her coaches will be happy with a win and overtime loss from this series. She didn’t seem rattled and she did a pretty good job with rebound control. 
• The ECAC chaos continued. Princeton is back on top after Quinnipiac lost both their games and Clarkson split their weekend. The Tigers have 41 points, followed by Clarkson with 38, Yale with 36 and Quinnipiac with 35.5. ECAC teams have just four games and two weekends left in the regular season. It’s a little crazy that there’s still so much volatility in the standings, but the window to make a move is quickly closing. 
• Saint Anselm is back in a decent position atop NEWHA after they swept their weekend while Franklin Pierce lost a pair of one-goal games to LIU. 
• I truly love outdoor games in concept, but it’s such a shame that the reality is usually kind of a bummer. The Penn State men had 74,000 fans to watch them play at their football stadium this weekend. The announced attendance for the women’s game was more than 1,800 and having watched the broadcast, that feels generous. Even worse, that low number set a program record for single-game attendance. That’s all annoying, but honestly the game was almost unwatchable because of issues with the ice that had the game seemingly in a constant pause for repairs.
• Goals of the week:

A spectacular effort from St. Thomas' Chloe Boreen

The pass from Greta Henderson and the finish by Lexie Bertelsen for BU

Speed and a backhand from Wisconsin's Maggie Scannell

The cut and circle back on this short-hander from Princeton's Angelina DiGirolamo

Casey Borgiel's coast-to-coast goal for Colgate

The toe drag and snipe for an overtime game-winner over #1 Wisconsin for Minnesota's Molly Jordan

And Julia Cabral's OT game winner for UNH over #7 Connecticut