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. Check out Thursday's How to Watch for links to all the weekend's games.
(1) Ohio State at (3) Minnesota
Friday at 6:00 PM and Saturday at 3:00 PM Eastern
This is the first big test of the season for the Gophers, who have three wins over Bemidji State and a victory against Maine thus far. Ohio State has been rolling through their early season and will be riding the high of sweeping Wisconsin last weekend.
Minnesota has a new coach for the first time since their freshman were born and graduated most of their offense and playmaking. There's a lot of learning to adjusting to be done and they're going to be forced to do it very quickly against the Buckeyes. Wisconsin struggled with the pressure and forecheck and I'd imagine that will be a similar problem for the Gophers, who also gave up two goals in each of their games against BSU.
I'll be specifically watching rookie Adrianna Milani, who accelerated her enrollment and just turned 18. She has four goals through their first four games and was a clear step ahead of players at the last U18 World Championship. I can't wait to watch her against a team that will really challenge her. Similarly, I'm excited to see Sarah Paul, Minnesota Gopher. She was injured most of last season and has been generally snake-bitten throughout her career. She's got so much potential and it's a shame she hasn't been able to try and reach it.
Ohio State looked like they were in late-season form despite it being early October and that they were missing a few players. They are just a step above right now and they're going to cause difficulties for everyone that has to play them. I feel like the Gophers are going to wish they had a few more weeks before they had to play this series. They could use the time to gain experience, confidence and chemistry.
(6) Northeastern at (4) Quinnipiac
Friday at 6:00 PM and Saturday at 3:00 PM Central
Northeastern has had an interesting start to the season, with an OT loss to RIT, a win over Providence that came due to two short-handed goals seconds apart and then a massive comeback win over New Hampshire. That makes it difficult to really have a grasp on what this team is capable of this season. While it bodes well that they pulled out the last two wins, that's unlikely to be something they want to have to do again and again. It feels like the Huskies haven't quite put all the pieces together but it's clear there are some special players on this roster.
Quinnipiac is 5-0 and have done it differently every time. They're getting scoring form all over the place - junior defender Aynsley D'Ottavio had just six goals in her first two seasons and has already potted four this year and junior forward Avery Bairos didn't tally a point as a freshman and had nine points with four goals last season. She already has five goals and an assist this year. They lead the team in points so far.
The Huskies will be looking to use speed and their transition game to put the Bobcats on their heels. Quinnipiac will be looking to interrupt that flow with strong defense so they can create turnovers and use that transition against Northeastern.
(8) Connecticut at (7) Princeton
Friday and Saturday at 3:00 PM Eastern
We can officially call the women's hockey season underway as the Ivies finally take the ice this week. But most of them are facing tough tests right right off the bat.
Princeton won a share of their first ever ECAC title last season and are looking to come back stronger this season. They graduated Issy Wunder, but return several other top scorers, including Mackenzie Alexander and Riley Sorokan. There's no time for them to ease in and they'll be hoping for big contributions from freshmen former US U18 players Tina Scalese and Charlotte Averill.
UConn is 2-2 to start the year. They struggled in a pair of games at St. Cloud State but rebounded with a sweep of Clarkson two weeks ago. After a week off, they'll be trying to find the balance and keep up their winning ways. The heart of their offense is still Claire Murdoch, but Caileigh Tiller has started her collegiate career hot with three goals and three assists in the first four games. Having another big scoring threat adds needed depth the to Huskies' attack.
Taylor Belchetz has started all four games in net for Connecticut. She notched a shutout in game two against Clarkson, but gave up 10 goals in the other three games. She's going to need to be sharper and her defense is going to have to be stronger in front of her if UConn is going to be a tournament team at the end of the year. St. Cloud used speed and a strong forecheck to keep them off balance and Princeton should be able to replicate a lot of what worked for SCSU. If they follow that game plan, UConn will have its work cut out for itself.
(Photo: Ohio State Women's Hockey /X)
