Northeastern women’s hockey (21-13-1, 15-11-1) took on the Providence College Friars (20-12-3, 16-9-2) in a high energy quarterfinal round 3-2 March 1. The last time the Huskies faced Providence College was their only double loss weekend of the entire season during the Beanpot intermission in January. Last weekend, the Huskies split the series against the University of Vermont.
Sophomore defender Rylie Jones was back in the lineup for the first time since Jan. 7. However, freshman forward Morgan Jackson was out for her first game all season. With 10 points to her name, Jackson has been an asset for the Huskies’ drive to the net in the last few months.
As a result of these changes, the first and second lines, which had been solid since January, moved significantly. Freshman forward Éloïse Caron, who’s formed a strong second line with Jackson and sophomore forward Allie Lalonde in the last two months, was moved back up to the first line to work with junior forward Lily Shannon and senior forward Skylar Irving. Graduate student Jaden Bogden worked with Lalonde and sophomore forward Ella Blackmore on the second line instead.
Northeastern came out strong with six shots in the first five minutes, eager to take the lead. Freshman netminder Lisa Jönsson was back in the net after sophomore goaltender Mattie Robitzer had a brief stint in the last two games. Jönsson made six saves in the first period as Northeastern led the shots 18-15 by the end of the first.
Just 30 seconds into the second period, Caron got knocked down by a stick to her neck by the net. She lay flat on the ice for several minutes in a scare for the Huskies, given Caron’s status as the second highest point-scorer on the team. She was back on the ice five minutes later with no lingering signs of the injury.
Seven minutes into the period, on a different power play, Irving took a shot from the top of the right faceoff circle, and the puck landed above senior goaltender Hope Walinski’s shoulder. This was Irving’s 15th goal of the season.
Only a minute later, Lalonde grabbed a stray rebound from Bogden’s shot to nail in her fifth goal of the season. Lalonde took nearly a year break from competitive play due to injury, but since her return, she has been an integral part of the team’s offensive power going into 2025. The goal went under review for potential offsides before being called fair.
Northeastern took care of the remainder of the second period, getting several close shots off and outpacing the Friars 12-6 for shots on goal.
After two saves by Jönsson two minutes into third period, a shot by freshman forward Jessie Pellerin came from the center of the crease straight to the back of the net for a 2-1 game.
Northeastern challenged the goal for goalie interference because Jönsson’s leg was stuck under a Friar to the right of the net for a brief second before the shot came but the goal was called fair and left the Huskies to struggle defensively for the next few plays.
A shot by Blackmore eight minutes into the final period off a rebound from Lalonde took the game to 3-1. Despite the shot being called no-goal on the ice, after further review, Northeastern widened its lead.
Graduate student forward Millie Sirum got the puck into the net in a scramble where the defense lost the puck, giving the Friars the opportunity to love the puck to 3-2 for the Huskies. A one-goal deficit had Northeastern ready on the defensive, taking down Providence’s 11 shots on goal in the period as the Friars searched for a tie.
With two minutes to go, Providence took out a sixth forward for an empty net; graduate student defender Lily Yovetich took a blocked shot before limping off the ice.
With 48 seconds to go, senior forward Hannah Johnson tripped Bogden, who was on the way to an empty net shot. The Friars played the final seconds shorthanded with Walinski back on the ice but their efforts came up short, and the Huskies took the game 3-2.
The lone upset in the quarterfinal round, Northeastern will face off against the University of Connecticut Huskies (22-11-2, 19-6-2) in the semifinals March 5, a redo of last year’s Hockey East Championship. Despite falling in last year’s final contest, Northeastern has beaten UConn in three of three games this season, including two shutouts by Jönsson.
