Friars and Huskies Clash in Pivotal Hockey East Series
The No. 7 Connecticut Huskies and No. 9 Providence Friars are gearing up to clash in an early season Hockey East conference matchup that could be a preview to what we might see in the Hockey East tournament later this season.
The 9-1-1 Huskies swept Maine last week at home in two very tight contests both resulting in a final score of 3-2, the first game needed overtime to generate that result.
Uconn’s one loss of the season came at the hands of the No. 14 Boston University Terriers. The tie was a 0-0 contest against the No. 10 Buckeyes of Ohio State.
The Huskies scoring is above average, scoring at a clip of 3.45 goals per game.
Ryan Tverberg, Hockey East October forward of the month, is the leading scorer for the Huskies. He has seven goals and four assists placing him at a point per game and a big factor in their offense.
Another big contributor to the blue and white offense is Matthew Wood. Wood was recently given an A grade from NHL central scouting, meaning he should be a first-round draft pick in the 2023 NHL Draft. His 10 points in 11 games as a 17-year-old freshman playing against players close to a decade older than him is proving just how good of a player he is.
On the backend Uconn is led by junior defensemen Andrew Lucas. The former Vermont Catamount captain has excelled as the quarterback of the teams powerplay and will be a key contributor in any offense the team produces.
Logan Terness and Arsenii Sergeev are splitting net duties this season. The two have a combined 1.82 GAA and .937 SV%. This elite level of play is why the team has only given up 20 goals on the season.
The goaltending has also sparked an astounding 93.2% penalty kill which is good for second best in the NCAA.
When there is so much positive in a team there has to be a negative, and the Huskies negative is their powerplay. It is connecting at a clip of 13.6% this year which is almost 30% worse than UMass who has the best power play in college hockey.
The 6-2-1 Providence Friars have been having a spectacular season under head coach Nate Leeman.
The team's losses came against No. 2 Denver, showcasing that the Friars are not a team that UConn can take lightly.
The Black and White are led offensively by Riley Duran and Brett Berard. The two have combined for 19 points on the season and play significant roles on the teams power play.
Providence’s powerplay is scoring 31.3% of the time it’s on the ice which can swing a game in their favor on any given night.
The Friars defensive corps is led by senior defensemen Max Crozier. The Tampa Bay Lighting prospect has five points in the backend while also blocking 16 shots this season.
Nate Leeman’s team is relying on freshman netminder Philip Svedebäck to have a big series this weekend. In nine games he has a 2.30 GAA and a .903 SV%.
These numbers have helped the team win some big games early in the season. Most notably last weekend in a sweep against Umass and a win against Northeastern.
This home and home series should showcase excellent offense and goaltending from both teams.
I’m expecting this weekend to be split between the two teams, with both teams getting their wins on home ice.
Historically Nate Leeman has had better results against Mike Cavanaugh, so if one team is to win both games it will be the Providence Friars.
Hayden Lewis is a first-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, please email lewis1818hayden@gmail.com.
