The No. 8 Northeastern women’s hockey team (12-2, 9-0 HE) continued its outstanding streak with a double header against the University of Maine Black Bears (4-10-1, 2-5-1 HE). The Huskies’ Nov. 21 3-1 and Nov. 22 2-1 finishes might have been close, but neither away game threatened to break their undefeated conference streak. The victories also marked their first sweep in Orono, Maine, since the 2012-13 season.
While the team has seen some turbulence in the last few weeks — star sophomore defender Tuva Kandell departed just weeks into the season and sophomore forward Éloïse Caron and sophomore defender Tristan Thompson had injury scares (both have returned) — the team has so far been able to hold its own.
The bench runs deep on the offensive side, and goaltending from sophomore Lisa Jönsson, and occasionally freshman Renna Trembecky, has been outstanding. The defense has the most to improve upon, but senior defender Jules Constantinople’s four goals are much of why Northeastern is ranked sixth in the NCAA in scoring defense. She is also second in the country in total power-play goals. Over the weekend, though, captain and senior forward Lily Shannon was the star of the show, taking four goals.
On Nov. 21, Shannon knocked one in just 35 seconds into the game. Shannon leads the team in points and assists, ranking eighth and sixth, respectively, in the NCAA. From just off the crease, Shannon caught a pass from freshman forward Stryker Zablocki, who was behind the net, to score.
Just three minutes later, on the power play, Zablocki passed to Constantinople, who found sophomore forward Morgan Jackson by the net. Jackson scored for a 2-0 scoreboard. It was the Huskies’ seventh straight game with a power play goal.
The Huskies shut out the Black Bears for the entire first and second period. Jönsson made 27 saves in total, the most shots on goal she’s faced all season. The Black Bears came close to the Huskies’ shot count, which they tend to dominate, ending at 35 to 28. With two minutes to go, Shannon took an empty-netter, and the Black Bears fired back 30 seconds later with their only goal of the night coming from junior forward Mikayla Boarder.
On Nov. 22, the Huskies got a scare when the Black Bears’ freshman forward Isabelle Michaud struck right off a face-off in the O-zone, just five minutes in. Trembecky, who was in the net, took the goal as a warning and blocked the remaining 30 shots on goal in the game.
The Huskies were unable to bounce back in the first period, but Shannon saved the day with two goals in the second. Eleven minutes in, Zablocki intercepted the puck behind the net and found Shannon, who was perfectly poised to sink the shot and tie it up.
Later, with 15 seconds left in the second frame, Shannon fired a rocket from the upper slot for an outstanding second goal. The third period came up empty for both teams, finishing the game at 2-1.
The Huskies’ victories were certainly closer than they have been recently, but they still won six meaningful conference points. Northeastern has yet to defeat any ranked team after taking its only losses of the season in a double-header against the No. 7 Quinnipiac University Bobcats.
The ranked team drought won’t continue for long — next week, The Huskies will take on the No. 6 Penn State Nittany Lions (16-0, 12-0 Atlantic Hockey America), in Matthews Arena Nov. 28 and, in Dorothy Talbot Arena in Gloucester on Nov. 29.
