Wednesday, December 4, 2024
Women’s Notes: Northeastern’s Jönsson Delivers In November
Freshman Goaltender Showing Up Big for Huskies
Northeastern freshmen goaltender Lisa Jönsson (Stockholm, Sweden) started two games in October. After an early loss to Boston University, she earned her first win on Oct. 19 against Holy Cross. That win sparked a five-game winning streak between October and November.
The rookie netminder posted a 4-1 record in November, including three shutouts. Two of those came in back-to-back games as the Huskies swept conference rival UConn. Jönsson made 37 saves in the second game of the series, prompting head coach Dave Flint to say, “She was huge for us. She stole the win for us today.”
Jönsson carried an active shutout streak into the next weekend, but Maine ended it despite the Huskies securing the win. The following night, Northeastern completed the sweep of Maine, with Jönsson earning another shutout to close the series.
In November, Jönsson allowed just three goals in five games and posted a .979 save percentage. On the season, she holds a 5-2-0 record and leads all goaltenders nationally with a 1.01 goals-against average and a .964 save percentage.
Senior forward Skylar Irving (Kingston, Mass) praised her freshmen goalie: “She’s incredible. … She definitely bailed us out a couple of times, obviously as a freshman, it’s definitely nerve-racking, but she just came in and played incredible. We’re lucky to have her back there,” she said. “She makes big saves and that’s what we need from a goalie a lot of times.” (Source: The Huntington News)
The Huskies hit the road tonight to face the New Hampshire Wildcats at 6 p.m. ET. The game will be streamed live on ESPN+ and TSN+.
Daily Scoreboard | Weekly Schedule | Composite Schedule | Stat Leaders | Goaltending Leaders
Must Read:
USCHO: Women’s College Hockey: Weekend Recap
NE Hockey Journal: Preseason Girls MIAA Hockey Rankins: Who’s No. 1?
NHL: Color of Hockey: Roberts Shooting, Scoring More for Penn State Women’s Team
NHL: Pittsburgh Pennies Reestablished to Expand Opportunities for Girls’ Hockey
Hockey News: Clarkson Wins SMASHVILLE Women’s Hockey Showcase
Hockey News: ECAC Stars On A Climb Toward The Top
Ice Garden: NEWHA Weekly Roundup
Ice Garden: WCHA Weekly Roundup
Ice Garden: Division 3 Women’s Hockey 101
The Athletic: What We Learned in the PWHL’s Opening Weekend: Rookies Rock and Goals Aplenty
The Victory Press: Nicole’s NCAA Notebook: Dec 2, 2024
Must Watch & Hear:
Our Girls Play Hockey: Navigating Prep School Hockey: Advice from Briana Decker
Our Kids Play Hockey: Thanksgiving Reflection and Hockey Life Lessons
Decision Makers: Cassandra Turner & the Quinnipiac Bobcats
ECAC Hockey: Hockey Prospect Radio – Tony Maci, Union
Locked on NHL: Women’s Hockey Spotlight: The PWHL Season is Here!
Turkey Tourney Titles:
The Nutmeg Classic delivered a rematch of the 2023 final between Yale and Quinnipiac. Yale avenged last season’s loss, claiming the trophy with a shootout victory and spoiling Quinnipiac’s bid for a fifth consecutive Nutmeg championship. Senior netminder Pia Dukaric (Ljubljana, Slovenia) stopped all three shootout attempts, while Grace Gilkyson (Jr., Calgary, Alberta) buried her attempt for the Bulldogs to secure the win.
On Broadway at the SMASHVILLE Classic, the Clarkson Golden Knights defeated Merrimack in the championship game, extending their unbeaten streak to nine games and their winning streak to five. Anne Cherkowski (Gr., Coldstream British Columbia) recorded a three-point afternoon with a goal and two assists. Senior goalie Holly Gruber (Stevens Point, Wis. posted a shutout, her third of the season.
Princeton’s Paul Power Play Prowess:
The Princeton Tigers are 8-5 this season, highlighted by two wins over top 15 opponents. Senior forward Sarah Paul (West Kelowna, British Columbia) leads the team with 14 goals and five assists for 19 points.
A key part of their win over Boston University on Nov 27 – the Tigers netted 3 extra strength goals.
The Tigers currently lead the nation in power-play percentage at 41 percent. Their 18 power-play goals, scored on 44 opportunities, are the most in the country. Eight different players have scored power-play goals this season, with Paul leading the team with seven, matching her total from last season.
Around the Block:
Robert Morris leads the nation in blocked shots with 310 through their first 16 games, averaging nearly 20 blocks per game. Graduate student Allyson Hebert (St. Andrew’s West, Ontario) paces the Colonials with 48 blocks this season.
The next closest team is RIT, with 280 blocks in 17 games.
Fit To Print:
“But, for me, I developed natural competitiveness by having brothers, but it was because my brothers were better than me. And so, if you’re a kid, if your kid is lacking competitiveness, I would say put them in a situation where they’re not the best player. … then at some point I’m going to become more competitive to try to make sure I am not getting beat every single battle. So, my suggestion for how you grow as an athlete is by putting yourself in uncomfortable positions and be surrounded by players who are better than you.”
— Brianna Decker (Wisconsin, ’13) on developing competitiveness for young aspiring hockey players. (Source: Our Girls Play Hockey)
PWHL Note of the Week:
The six franchises of the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) unveiled their 2024-25 opening night rosters ahead of the league’s second season. Of the 159 players listed for opening weekend, 143 are former college hockey standouts making 90 percent of the league NCAA alumnae.
The 143 NCAA alumni in the PWHL represent 34 schools across nine countries. Twelve NCAA programs have at least five former players on league rosters, led by Ohio State and Wisconsin with 15 each, followed by Minnesota Duluth (13), Clarkson (12), Northeastern (11), and Quinnipiac (10).
All six teams saw action opening weekend and 18 goals were scored, in total. Of the 18 goals scored, 17 were netted by NCAA alums and Danielle Serdachny (Colgate ’24) netted the first by an NCAA rookie.
On the Docket:
Forty — yes, 40 — teams are in action between today and Sunday. Check out all the action and keep track of scores using College Hockey Inc.’s weekly schedule.
Top matchups this weekend include No. 9 St. Cloud State hosting No. 4 Minnesota Duluth on Friday and Saturday. In the East, No. 7 Quinnipiac hits the road to face No. 14 Princeton.
Fries at the Bottom of the Bag:
Maine goaltender Kiia Lahtinen (Fr., Porvoo, Finland) made a career-high 55 saves in their loss to Wisconsin on Saturday … Minnesota State’s Hailey Hansen (So., Blaine, Minn.) received WCHA goaltending honors for the second straight week. Hansen stopped 53 of 55 shots on the weekend against Dartmouth and recorded her second career shutout on Friday … Ohio State and Mercyhurst’s game on Monday, Dec. 2 was postponed due to weather … Franklin Pierce freshman Bo Dean (Toronto) recorded her first multi-point game of her career scoring two goals in their win over Post … Princeton’s Mackenzie Alexander (Etobicoke, Ontario) leads all freshmen in scoring this season with eight goals and 21 assists for 29 points in 13 games played.
CONFERENCE WEBSITES
CHA | ECAC | Hockey East | NEWHA | WCHA
Did you know? 97% of NCAA Division I women’s hockey players earn their degree!