By Caroline Ingram, news staff
The Northeastern women’s ice hockey team headed into their season opener coming off a solid 3-0 exhibition win over Concordia University on September 29. The Huskies, playing as the home team at Boston University’s Walter Brown Arena, pulled ahead in the first period and never looked back, tacking on a goal in each period.
The Huskies came out strong offensively, playing well in front of second-year goalie Aerin Frankel starting in net. Just one minute and 14 seconds into the first period, the top forward line of fourth-year Tori Sullivan, third-year Matti Hartman and second-year Veronika Pettey had a great three on two chance, but the defense muffled her shot.
A little over five minutes into the period the first line had a prime scoring opportunity again as second-year defender Skylar Fontaine came crashing in from the blue line to pick up the puck and fire off a low shot, generating an opportune rebound.
After the game, assistant coach Lindsay Berman spoke about the offensive chances that were plentiful throughout Saturday afternoon’s game.
“I thought we shook off a lot of rust early on in the game. Our goaltending was awesome. We competed well and we were able to get pucks to the net which was key,” Berman said.
The scoring opportunities kept coming for the Huskies, who were finally able to convert on their chances with a goal by fourth-year forward Kasidy Anderson. Anderson picked up the puck behind the net, banking it off the boards to herself before cycling back up high and unleashing a shot that rang the iron. First-year forward Chloe Aurard was in perfect position to knock home the rebound, putting the Huskies ahead 1-0.
In the second period of action, the Huskies continued to dominate the offensive zone, going up on the man advantage 12 minutes and 24 seconds into the period after a penalty to Concordia’s Brigitte Laganiere for interference. The Huskies were almost able to capitalize on the power play with a great rebound scoring chance by third-year forward Andrea Renner. Despite an influx of puck movement on the powerplay, the Huskies were only able to generate two shots on goal during the two minute man advantage.
Halfway through the second period, fourth-year goalie Brittany Bugalski entered the game for the Huskies, since the coaching staff wanted to let both goalies see the ice. With Bugalski now in the net for NU, Concordia had a great scoring chance of their own as Laganiere just barely missed a wide open net with Bugalski tied up on her back.
Berman noted how beneficial it is that the team is fortunate enough to have two top-tier goalies in Bugalski and Frankel.
“It really helps us having both of them to rely on because they are both so strong and talented. One of the things I love about the two of them is that they support each other so when one is in, the other is on the bench cheering them on.”
Before the close of the period, NU was able to tack on another score. Renner picked up the puck from an idle Concordia defender and skated into the offensive zone on a short breakaway, firing a low shot that beat Concordia’s goalie Alice Philbert.
In the final period of play, NU found themselves on the man advantage early with a high-sticking penalty to Concordia forward Claudia Dubois just five seconds in. The Huskies were again unsuccessful on the man advantage, but would find the back of the net later in the period.
With the puck sitting at the top of the offensive blue line, Aurard skated by, gaining possession. Aurard was then poke-checked, but was miraculously able to regain control using her skates to knock it loose again. She took the puck deeper into the zone and beat Philbert with a low blocker-side shot to make it 3-0 in favor of the Huskies.
The team was already feeling Aurard’s impact on the team prior to the start of the regular season, something Berman quickly noticed.
“She’s a goal scorer for sure. She’s also a fierce competitor who is always by the net with one goal in mind – to put the puck in the back of the net. She’s really exciting to watch.”
Concordia was quickly running out of time in a 3-0 deficit late in the third. They pulled Philbert with 46 seconds to go in the game to try and get something on the board, but their efforts to disrupt NU’s combined shutout were to no avail.. The Huskies sealed the 3-0 win and closed out the game holding the overall shot advantage at 24 shots to Concordia’s 19.
