No. 12/14 Northeastern women’s hockey (17-9-1, 12-7-1 HE) took on the University of Vermont Catamounts (6-19-2, 5-13-2 HE) Jan. 31. Coming off of a decisive weekend sweep against Merrimack College the week before, the Huskies were well rested going into the Vermont game, but their failure to finish and a shorthanded goal in the third period earned the Catamounts a 1-0 victory. 

“Tough loss,” said head coach Dave Flint after the game. “With the exception of the first period, I thought we actually played pretty well, … we just couldn’t put it in the net. That’s hockey sometimes. They got one bounce and that was the difference. So we’re gonna hit the reset button.”

The Catamounts started out with more shots on the board than the Huskies were used to and looked strong defensively. Despite starting, redshirt sophomore goaltender Ellie Simmons was subbed five minutes into the game out for senior goaltender Sydney Correa for Correa’s fourth game of the season.

Coming off a 1-5 streak, all against ranked opponents, the Catamounts had something to prove, launching six shots in the first period as Northeastern hit back, the game climbing in intensity quickly as the teams battled it out for the first look at the net. Freshman goaltender Lisa Jönsson held her own with six saves in the period. She continues to hold the No. 1 save percentage at .959 and goals against average at 1.069 in the NCAA.

1st | Couple nice saves from Lisa!

📺 https://t.co/iHGX2cj37U pic.twitter.com/2tB5LwxSOA

— Northeastern Women’s Hockey (@GoNUwhockey) January 31, 2025

Fifteen minutes into the game, in the midst of fast play, junior forward Lara Beecher was called for tripping, giving the Huskies a quick boost as they launched seven shots with several good looks at the net during the advantage. The team was inching closer and closer to the net before the period ended. 

Going into the second period, the Huskies tried to grab their previous momentum but the game was shifting back and forth, with Vermont taking four shots to Northeastern’s two in the first five minutes. 

Ten minutes into the period, senior defender Taylor Guarino was assessed with a minor for cross-checking, Northeastern’s first penalty of the game. Only 40 seconds later, Beecher got a shot off only for graduate student Maddy Skelton, at the net, to run backwards into Jönsson, tripping the goaltender up and handing Skelton a minor for goaltender interference, joining Guarino in the penalty box. 

A minute left in Guarino’s penalty time, the game became 4-on-4. The tables turned quickly and Northeastern launched two close shots in its minute-long power play. Going back to even strength, the Huskies were getting good looks but for each solid shot, a Vermont deflection took it out of reach. 

“UVM was really good on the defensive end and they blocked a lot of shots,” Flint said. “We had the chances tonight, we just didn’t capitalize.”

The momentum was slowed once again when graduate student forward Jaden Bogden took a penalty for interference with just three minutes left in the second period. Like deja vu, Vermont wanted in once again — a minute later, graduate student forward Kyla Bent wrapped her stick around senior forward Skylar Irving, taking the Catamount to the penalty box for two minutes for hooking.

It was Vermont that dominated in the game’s second 4-on-4 matchup. When the Huskies’ power play ended a minute later, there was barely a minute left in the period and neither team made the scoreboard at the end. 

The third period started on a breakaway by freshman forward Éloïse Caron that went astray but earned the team its third power play of the night after sophomore defender Hailey Eikos was called for cross-checking during the altercation. The Huskies’ chance was gone as soon as it began — the teams now faced 17 more minutes of ice time in which someone needed to find the board. 

The third period has been a haven for the Huskies all season when looking for the net, but 10 minutes in, the Catamounts were still holding their own despite a shot count of 10-3 in the first half of the period. Although Jönsson holds the No.1 penalty kill percentage in the NCAA, it only took a breakaway from sophomore defender Ashley Kokavec to break the line, shooting it just between Jönsson’s closing knees for a 1-0 scoreboard nine minutes into the period.

The Huskies, with only two previous come-from-behind victories this season, appeared scattered. Opposing teams’ getting on the board first has had the tendency to defeat the team rather than energize the Huskies this season, and Vermont took advantage as it launched five shots after its goal before Northeastern was able to regain possession. The Huskies managed to take 10 more shots in the period, but couldn’t find the net. 

With one final penalty earned by sophomore forward Cecilia DesLauriers for elbowing with less than three minutes to go, the Huskies played four forwards and junior defender Jules Constantinople to try their final hand in the last minutes of the game, this time on the power play. The minutes ticked by while the Huskies fought a history of a 3-7-1 losing record when the opposing team scores first, but this time they came up empty. 

A close shot with a minute and half to go gave the Huskies some legs, and the team put in an extra forward in exchange for an empty net with a minute to go. As the seconds ticked by and despite 18 shots in the third period, the team left with its third loss of 2025. Correa excelled in the matchup, saving 24 shots for her first shutout of the season. 

“I think we just have to remain positive. We can’t get too down and hang our heads about it. We’ve just got to focus our attention on … we’ve got to play 60 minutes. We played 40 tonight,” Flint said.

The Huskies will face off against the University of Connecticut Huskies (17-8-2, 15-3-2 HE) Feb. 1.