Minnesota starts the season at the defending Hockey East Champs
The #2 ranked Minnesota Golden Gophers women’s hockey team kicks off the 2024-25 season this weekend on the east coast when they travel to Storrs, Connecticut to face the UCONN Huskies. UCONN is ranked #9 in the preseason poll and is favored to win the Hockey East Conference over traditional powers Boston College and Northeastern amongst others. Faceoff Friday night is at 5PM central, and Saturday’s game will begin at 2 PM central. Both games will stream on ESPN+.
Minnesota was once again predicted to be near the top of a very top heavy WCHA. In the preseason coaches poll the Gophers were predicted to finish this in the conference between reigning NCAA Champion Ohio State, and their arch rival the Wisconsin Badgers. Minnesota was initially ranked #3 in both Preseason NCAA polls, but moved up to #2 this week in the USA Hockey Poll after Minnesota-Duluth went into Columbus and swept a season opening series at previously #1 Ohio State. The USCHO Poll did not have a new poll this week and will once again come out after this weekend’s games. As usual the top three teams in the preseason national polls were the top trio of WCHA teams of the Buckeyes, Badgers and Gophers. But UMD made a statement last weekend that they should not be forgotten in the conference race.
Minnesota had three players honored on the Preseason All-WCHA Teams. Senior forward Abbey Murphy and junior defender Nelli Laitinen were both named to the main All-WCHA preseason roster. Murphy led the nation in goals last season with 33, and was third in the nation in points. Freshman defender Chloe Primano was named the preseason selection to be the WCHA Rookie of the Year. The 17 year old from British Columbia has been a star for the Canadian U-18 team and will look to step into a large role on the Gopher roster as quickly as opening night.
Minnesota will likely start senior Skyler Vetter in goal on Friday. The senior will be making her 81st appearance in net for Minnesota and will look to bounce back from what was statistically her worst season in the Gopher nets. She still was good with a 12-7-1 record and a goals against average just over 2.2, but those were the worst numbers of her career thus far. With Minnesota’s new influx of talent on the blue line adding fellow highly recruited freshman Gracie Graham and 2023-23 2nd Team All-American Sydney Morrow in the transfer portal from Colgate along with Primano, Vetter may have an easier year of it. Minnesota will likely look to ease in freshman Hannah Clark who should be the clear #2 goalie to start the season.
After the season opening series against the Huskies, the Gophers return home to face another Hockey East opponent in Boston University. The terriers come to Ridder Arena for a series before Minnesota dives into the deep end of the WCHA right away with a series at Ohio State immediately followed with the home series against Wisconsin. There will be no doubt that the Gophers will be battle tested after their first eight games.
UConn is coming off of the best season in program history. The Huskies won both the Hockey East Regular season and tournament championships for the first time in program history last season. They earned their first bid to the NCAA Tournament where they would fall in double overtime in an opening round game to Minnesota-Duluth. UCONN coach Chris McKenzie was named the CCM/AHCA Division I Women’s Coach of the Year Award last season in his efforts to make history with the Huskies. Earlier this fall the Huskies were predicted by the Hockey East Coaches to win the conference yet again as they return a trio of All-Hockey East performers from a season ago in Tia Chan, Jada Habisch, and Ashley Allard.
Chan is a senior goalie who in 23 games a season ago went 13-5-4 with a very impressive 1.15 goals against average and a .956 save percentage. Habisch is a 5th year senior forward from Buffalo, Minnesota who led UCONN in goals with 17 a season ago with eight of them being game-winning goals. Allard is a sophomore forward who recorded sixteen points for the Huskies.
Minnesota hosted UCONN for a series at Ridder Arena last season which Minnesota swept by scores of 5-3 and 3-1. Chan allowed all eight goals in the series. Minnesota had seven different goal scorers out of their eight goals with only then 5th year senior defender Madeline Wethington scoring a pair. Vetter played the second game in goal for the Gophers allowing just one goal on 23 shots in the win. UConn got a pair of goals in the series from junior forward Megan Woodworth. The Gophers are 3-0 all time against UCONN with their other win coming at Ridder in 2005. This will be the team’s first meetings in Connecticut.
Good luck to the Gophers as they look to end the season back on home ice.
HOW TO WATCH:
#2 Minnesota Golden Gophers @ #9 UConn Huskies
Where: Toscano Family Ice Forum, Storrs, Connecticut
When: 5 PM Friday, 2 PM Saturday
Video Stream: ESPN+
Free Audio Stream: Gophersports.com