By Gayle Simone

Picked to finish last in Hockey East Coaches Poll, the Huskies start their season Friday without returning key players, a new coaching staff and a big void to fill in net. But head coach Laura Schuler is optimistic about the team she has put together on the ice.

“We hope to take some teams by surprise,” Schuler said. “There is new energy and new enthusiasm with this team. The girls are really positive and ready to go. If they had it their way they would be playing today.”

With Chanda Gunn finishing her collegiate career last season, the Huskies turn the reigns over to junior goalies Marisa Hourihan and Katy Augustyn. Joining the two veterans is freshman Sarah Belliveau.

Hourihan, who opted to redshirt last season in order to have the opportunity to play this year, will get the start in the Huskies’ opening tilt against Niagara University.

“Marisa is one that’s up for the challenge,” Schuler said. “She feeds off that type of rush. It’s her time to show what she’s got.”

Hourihan played 14 games for the Huskies in the 2001 and ’02 season with a 6-3-1 record and recorded one shut out. With a 1.40 goals against average and .938 save percentage, Hourihan should pick up where Gunn left off.

The Huskies lost three key defenders and top scorer, Cyndy Kenyon, who all transfered, but Schuler said the team has made adjustments to fill their slots.

Last year Kenyon led the Huskies with 24 points, 11 goals and 13 assists. But not far behind her are returning players Amy Goodney and Marie Desrosiers.

Goodney, who finished the season as the Husky’s top goal scorer (12), has been named an assistant captain for the upcoming season.

The Huskies have also brought in freshman Missy Elumba to help with the offense. Unfortunately, the Huskies will have to wait for Elumba to make her debut. Elumba recently had knee surgery and will be sidelined for at least five weeks.

Returning defenseman Theresa Ella, also named assistant captain, will be sidelined for six weeks with a back injury.

“Ella is a such a leader on the ice,” Schuler said. “She has taken on almost a teaching role. She may be injured but that hasn’t stopped her from being who she is.”

Schuler said she will look to Goodney and Stephanie Wood to help out defensively during Ella’s absence.

“[Wood] is an exceptional leader on and off the ice with her work ethic,” Schuler said.

Schuler said she hopes the team will bring energy and excitement onto the ice this weekend.

“Those are two critical components going into the first two games,” Schuler said. “Going after loose pucks and back checking are two things that win games and those things take energy.”

Whether or not the returning players and newcomers can fill the void remains to be seen, but Schuler said she can feel a difference in just a short couple of weeks with the new coaching staff.

“It’s what they wanted. They are nothing but pumped up,” Schuler said. “I had such a positive experience here. Had the kids stayed they would have seen the difference. The girls are having a great time and that’s key to me.”

Other retuning Huskies are captain Lori DiGiacomo, Crystal Rochon and twin sisters Chrissy and Kathryn Sands. The four combined for 22 points, 10 goals and 12 assists.

Schuler, a former Husky player herself, said she is ecstatic to have the opportunity to coach here.

“It’s surreal,” Schuler said. “When I first decided to go to NU there wasn’t a question. NU at the time was the best women’s hockey program in the world. They had just come off winning back-to-back ECAC Championships. Even though I was recruited by other colleges, I knew NU was it.”

As a player, Schuler said she realized she wanted to be a coach at Northeastern. Schuler was given the opportunity this summer with one phone call.

“Joy [Woog] called me and told me she was resigning,” Schuler said. “She knew I was interested in coaching the team. I definitely wouldn’t have given up coaching at UMass-Boston if this position didn’t come up.”

Schuler’s dream gets underway this weekend with a two-game set in Niagara. The Huskies will return home Tuesday to face Quinnipiac University at Matthews Arena. The puck will drop at 7 p.m.