Heading into the final weekend of regular season play, the ECAC was so close that four different teams had a chance to win the crown. Though we knew which eight teams would make the conference tournament, not one team had a seed locked down. Over the course of the long season, the final standings came down to the difference between a win and a loss or a tie. In the ECAC, it is no cliché to say that every game matters because every point matters.
Clarkson was picked as the coaches’ preseason favorite, but there is very little separating them from Princeton and Cornell. Each team in this conference has questions and concerns heading into this season and for the Ivy League schools, they won’t be able to begin answering them for nearly a month. The conference has had two teams in each of the last two Frozen Fours and will look to continue to build on their national resume.
Brown
Last Season
5-20-4, 2-16-4 (eleventh). Did not qualify for the ECAC Tournament.
“I really don’t know what to expect. This is our second year. It’s really going to depend on how the team responds. It’s not new. It’s the girls understanding what they’re capable of,” said Coach Carisa Zaban Wahlig. “We peaked too early (last year). Winning is great, but it’s also a learned response. I don’t think as a team we were ready for that. I hope that this year it’s a bit more of a slower burn so that the end of the season we can hit our stride.”
Names to know
Senior Calla Isaac and Sophomore Haley Kliczko split time in the net last season. Most of their numbers are similar, but Isaac was far more successful in terms of wins, earning four of the team’s five successful outings. It’ll be interesting to see how this duo shares time this season and if the year of experience makes a difference for Kliczko, who showed promise last season but couldn’t quite put it all together.
What to Watch For
It’s about the small steps here and Wahlig led the team to a number of them last season. They won three more games overall and both conference wins were over ranked opponents – on back-to-back days. They allowed 25 fewer goals and junior Sena Hanson was an Honorable Mention All-Ivy pick.
They play a brutal schedule in February, running the gamut of the top teams in the conference with games at home against Princeton, Cornell and Colgate and playing on the road at Clarkson, Princeton, St. Lawrence and Quinnipiac
Crystal Ball
I’ve got Brown finishing 11th, but I’m hoping for more movement for them.
Clarkson
Last Season
30-8-2, 16-5-1 (third). Lost a national semifinal to Wisconsin.
“All team dynamics are different every year. At the beginning of the year it’s really important to get our leadership in place,” said Coach Matt Desrosiers. “We think we have some pretty good pieces in place with our returning players and we’re excited about the incoming players.”
Names to know
Senior transfer Caitrin Lonergan joins the Golden Knights from Boston College, where she had a prolific career. She was on our All-USCHO Rookie team in 2017 and was a Patty Kazmaier top-ten finalist in 2018. She tallied 39 points on 14 goals and 25 assists as a junior, but totaled 147 points on 59 goals and 88 assists in 112 games played in three seasons at BC. She played for Team USA in the Four Nations Cup last November.
Clarkson graduated 2019 Patty Kaz winner Loren Gabel, but Lonergan will join junior Elizabeth Giguère to once again give the Golden Knights a major offensive one-two punch. Our Player of the Year last season, Giguère led the country with 73 points and 47 assists. She tallied five short-handed goals and had three overtime game-winners, including in the NCAA quarterfinal. A Patty Kaz top-ten finalist
Redshirt senior Rhyen McGill was instrumental in the 2017 and 2018 National Championships for Clarkson and they missed her when she was out with an injury last season. She returns for her final year and brings a ton of experience and leadership to this team. She comes up big in big situations and serves as a really underrated foil to the flashier forwards.
What to Watch For
Clarkson has become the team to watch every offseason to see which transfer players they pick up and this year was no different. Lonergan joins junior goalie Amanda Zeglen moves over from Ohio State where she had 12 starts over two seasons. She’s the second straight net minder to make the move from Columbus to Potsdam. Kassidy Sauvè’s graduation left room for a starter at Clarkson and Zeglen will be competing with rookie Marie Dedert and sophomore Marie-Pier Coulombe for the starting role.
Giguère and Lonergan will make an imposing front line, but it stands to reason that the Golden Knights still need to find some more scoring depth. Gabel and TT Cianfarano accounted for 40% of the team’s goals last season between the two of them and both have since graduated. Four players accounted for 103 of the team’s 143 goals last season and accounted for more than half their shots. The next highest goal-scorer had six tallies.
Crystal Ball
I have Clarkson finishing second, but think they could finish anywhere from 1-3. I’ll feel more solid on where they stand when we know more about who’s in net and how the rest of the offense lines up.
Colgate
Last Season
23-10-4, 15-4-3 (second). Lost to Clarkson in the ECAC semifinals.
“With our young group, the big focus is to really take advantage of every day we have together and continue to make progress. I think when you do that, you end up where you want to be,” coach Greg Fargo. “I think one of our strengths this year is the depth that we have at every position. I don’t know if we’ve ever been this deep.”
Names to know
Senior Liz Auby hasn’t had much chance to start in net, but she’s risen to the challenge whenever it presented itself. She’s 14-1-1 over 21 games played with six shutouts.
Sophomore Taylor Kirwan is a transfer from Lindenwood, where she tallied 14 points as a blue liner in her rookie campaign.
Freshman Danielle Serdachny scored three goals, including the semi-final overtime game-winner, en route to a Gold Medal with Canada at the IIHF 2019 U-18 Women’s World Championships.
What to Watch For
Their recruiting class was ranked the best in the country, so look for their rookies to have a big impact.
There are just two seniors on this team – Auby in net and defender Caroline Ross. Leadership will be important for their big freshman class.
They lost their two top scorers, who accounted for a third of the team’s points. Junior Malia Schneider will look to lead the offense, but the Raiders will look to their rookies with international experience to acclimate to the college game quickly.
Crystal Ball
I’ve got Colgate fourth. There seems to be a bit of separation between the top three and the next tier and the Raiders have a lot of questions to answer this season before we know if they can compete.
Cornell
Last Season
24-6-6, 17-3-2 (first). Lost to Minnesota in the national semifinals.
“We’re really excited about the way we performed last year. We feel we have a strong group coming back and added a good class in our freshman. Our senior class is ready to lead the way,” said Coach Doug Derraugh. “You need to keep improving throughout the year in order to have a chance to compete with the best of the best at the end of the year. I think if we can stay focused on being the best team we can possibly be in the end, I think that’s going to be very important. Quite honestly, there’s a bit of luck, as well.”
Names to know
Maddie Mills followed up her Ivy League Rookie of the Year season with another solid performance, leading the Big Red with 39 points. She isn’t as flashy as some other leading scorers, but brings poise and vision to Cornell’s offense.
Senior Micah Zandee-Hart is as unflappable a blue liner as exists in women’s college hockey right now. As the goalie situation gets settled, she’ll be an important part of keeping the defense calm and being the leader the Big Red need. Cornell was third in the country on defense last year, allowing just 1.69 goals per game.
What to Watch For
The Big Red lost very few of the pieces that made them a Frozen Four team last season. Marlène Boissonnault was a big presence for them in net, but junior Lindsay Browning stepped up in a big way in the postseason when they needed her to. She has limited overall experience, but showed she can handle the pressure and be the goalie they need.
Cornell ends the season with five games against teams that did not qualify for the ECAC tournament. They’ll need to stay sharp and work on ramping up for the postseason outside of their game schedule if they’re going to be at the caliber they’ll need to advance through the postseason.
They scored six short-handed goals last season. This is a smart team that sees the ice well and has the vision to know when to jump on those opportunities. They’re dangerous because they’re good on the puck, but they might be even better without it.
Crystal Ball
I have Cornell third, but I also think the top three spots are up for grabs and any of those teams could push past the others.
Dartmouth
Last Season
5-21-3, 4-16-2 (tenth). Did not qualify for the ECAC tournament.
“I’m super excited about the upcoming year. Last year we ended up showing that we can be a more competitive team. Moving forward this year, our goal is to become a winning program again. I think we’re in a really good place. The girls themselves felt like they were more competitive,” said Coach Laura Schuler.
Names to know
Sophomore Sara McClanahan was second on the team in scoring and brings a ton of creativity to Dartmouth’s offense.
What to Watch For
This will be Schuler’s third year leading the team and the Brown Bears should more easily settle into their systems and be able to play the game trusting their instincts instead of thinking through every step. How they see the game and are able to be reactive – and thereby speed up their game – should make a big difference in their ability to hand with teams.
Last year, they were a young team that showed a lot of promise. There were a number of players with individual talent, but this year I’ll be looking to see how they can all play together as more of a unit. They cannot rely on one or two players to carry the offense and this is a situation where I think the sum of the parts becomes far more valuable than they are individually. If they can find some line chemistry and trust, they’ll be a lot of fun to watch.
Crystal Ball
I have Dartmouth finishing ninth.
Harvard
Last Season
12-15-5, 9-9-4 (seventh). Lost to Colgate in the opening round of the ECAC Tournament.
“We’re anxious and looking to take a step forward. We have some good depth in different spots and hopefully that will pay dividends for us. We have a serious focus on getting depth at every position,” said Coach Katey Stone. “They believe. They know they can play with anybody.”
Names to know
Sophomore Lindsey Reed was fourth in the country with a .940 save percentage as a rookie. She was a difference-maker for Harvard and kept them in games throughout the season. Having her solid presence in net should allow them to be more creative and take more risks on the offensive side of the ice. It seems like the defense is shored up and solid. It’s time for them to figure out how to score some goals.
Sophomore Kristin Della Rovere led the team with 12 goals in her rookie season. She and junior Becca Gilmore should be the offensive catalysts and I think Gilmore could be primed for a big season.
What to Watch For
This continues to be a young team with seven freshmen and seven sophomores making up the bulk of the roster. A number of rookies stepped up and made a big impact for the Crimson and they’ll need that to happen again.
It’s a bit odd to think of a program as venerable as Harvard with a coach as successful as Stone as rebuilding, but this does feel like a time we may look back at as a turning point. One of the reasons the team struggled in the past few years is large graduating classes left a big void. How the Crimson can mitigate that and end the cycle a bit would definitely change how they’re able to compete year after year.
Crystal Ball
I’ve got Harvard sixth. They will be jockeying for position with St. Lawrence, but a good run could see them pushing Colgate for fourth, as well.
Princeton
Last Season
20-8-5, 15-4-3 (fourth). Lost to Minnesota in the opening round of the NCAA tournament
“We have a lot of young talent; we have some great senior leadership. (We need to focus on) how to keep getting a little bit better every year, every week, every day and every time we get together as a team,” said coach Cara Morey. “(Last season) was a big learning experience getting as far as we got and really competing in that NCAA game. We learned a lot about ourselves. We can take some of those lessons and maybe have a little more confidence going into the playoff stretch this.”
Names to know
Princeton returns its entire top line and lost just two of its eight top scorers. The prolific combination of sophomore Maggie Connors, sophomore Sarah Fillier and senior Carly Bullock are a force to be reckoned with. All three were among the top 15 scorers in the country.
Fillier had a breakout season. She was National, ECAC and Ivy League Rookie of the Year as well as Ivy League Player of the Year and second-team All-American. She led the country with 1.97 points per game
What to Watch For
The Tigers made a huge jump last season. They tallied six more wins – four of them in conference – and were in contention for the regular season title until the final game, finishing three points out of the top spot. They did so largely on the back of some stellar freshmen. Back as sophomores, they have to take on a leadership role and find a way to be as powerful and prolific now that they have the spotlight and focus of opponents’ defenses. They also had the luxury of playing very free, with little expectation. Now that they are expected to lead and score, they have to be able to be able to play that free when everything in their head is telling them to overthink it.
Three years ago, Steph Neatby was the USCHO Rookie of the Year. She stepped up in a big way and is a big reason the team was able to develop enough over recent seasons to be a contender this past year. She missed about half the season to injury and junior Rachel McQuigge was very good between the pipes in her absence. They shared the ice the rest of the way and now Morey has a goalie battle on her hands. It would be ideal for Princeton if Neatby can return to her former form. A lot of teams have successfully employed goaltending platoons in recent years, but Morey sounded like she’d like to have this situation resolved one way or the other instead.
Crystal Ball
I have Princeton finishing first. I imagine it’ll be a tight race, but this young team gained a lot of experience last season.
Quinnipiac
Last Season
12-18-6, 9-9-4 (sixth). Lost to Clarkson in the opening round of the ECAC tournament.
“We’re really proud of the work our team has put in (in the offseason).Our practices haven’t been this physical in years. The freshmen are already making an impact. It’s so good for our team,” said Coach Cassie Turner. ”I look at what our team wants and there’s no doubt they want to compete for championships. We want to improve how we’re playing and get ourselves playing our best hockey – a little bit more difficult to play against and be a little bit more gritty with the puck. I’m pretty excited about our (defense) corps. From top to bottom, we have a lot of experience which we haven’t had in a while.”
Names to know
Senior Sarah-Ève Coutu-Godbout had a stellar second-half for the Bobcats, tallying nearly all her points after the winter break. She
Senior Kenzie Prater has been absolutely solid on defense for Quinnipiac and serves as an important leader on the blue line. She has good vision and sees the ice well and that helps her build plays from the back and dish the puck well.
Senior Abbie Ives seemed to find her comfort zone in the net last season. There was a change in the offense when they realized they could trust her and be a bit more aggressive with the puck. At 5’10” she’s an imposing site in the net and she allows the Bobcats to build the game from the back and worry less about making mistakes.
What to Watch For
Quinnipiac graduated their top three scorers. A team that’s already more defensive-minded than offensively overwhelming, they’ll need players to step up and assume a more aggressive offensive role.
With seven rookies, a transfer and two redshirts returning to the ice, this feels like a brand new roster. There’s an opportunity to set a new course here, but there’s also the chance that it’s too much inexperience on one roster. How well this team gels and can begin to work together and trust each other, the more likely we’ll see Quinnipiac out-perform expectations.
Crystal Ball
I have them seventh, but think Harvard, Quinnipiac and St. Lawrence are pretty interchangeable right now.
RPI
Last Season
14-8-5, 10-11-1 (eighth). Lost to Cornell in the opening round of the ECAC tournament.
“We’re young this year. We have 10 freshmen and a transfer. It’s going to be a little bit of a building process to start. We’re looking to take another step as a program this season. There’s going to be a lot of growth,” said Coach Brian Vines. “Everything changes as soon as you drop the puck and play for real. We’re learning. We’re going to lean on (the new players) a lot.”
Names to know
Senior Blake Orosz saw an expanded role last season and took advantage. She led the team in points and goals. It was
Rookie Ena Nystrøm was the IIHF Division 1A Women’s World Championships Best Goaltender the past two years with Team Norway.
What to Watch For
There is no replacing Lovisa Selander, who graduated as the NCAA Division I record holder for career saves with 4167. They bring in two freshmen to compete with junior Jenn Gregg, who has not seen any ice time for RPI yet.
This is one of the most experienced rosters the Engineers have had in a while with a lot of minutes played. The senior class that just left was small and while they have to replace Selander and Jamie Grigsby, the rest of the team should have a fairly seamless transition.
Crystal Ball
RPI will finish tenth.
St. Lawrence
Last Season
14-15-7, 9-7-6(fifth). Lost to Princeton in the opening round of the ECAC tournament.
“The best thing about this job is you get to reinvent yourself every August,” said Coach Chris Wells. “(10 new players will bring) a big change in terms of the energy around the team. The expectations are to continue on with what we’ve done well in the past. The quicker we can do that, on and off the ice, we’ll start reaching what our maximum potential will be.”
Names to know
Senior Kalie Grant is the highest returning scorer from last season. She seemed to grow into her role and her skills a bit last season and the team will be looking for her to lead them this year.
Senior Skylar Podvey is on the small side, especially for a defender, but she uses her speed to chase down opponents and the puck, is gritty in the corners and adds an offensive threat for the Saints from the blue line.
What to Watch For
The Saints graduated three of their top four scorers from last year. They have the advantage that scoring is more of a team effort than focused in on one or two players, but there are still a number of leadership roles that need to be filled on the offensive side. Ten new players on the roster means a lot of turmoil and uncertainty as the team tries to figure out how to work together and how their lines will shake out.
They also lost three of four goalies to graduation. The only goalie on the roster with any game experience is sophomore Jaimie Rainville, who tallied 25 minutes as a backup last season. It’s a wide open battle between her and freshmen Caitlin Whitehead and Lucy Morgan. St. Lawrence deployed a platoon last year and who will earn minutes for them this season will be interesting to follow.
Crystal Ball
For now, I’ve got St. Lawrence finishing fifth, but Harvard will be coming for them.
Union
Last Season
4-28-2, 2-19-1 (twelfth). Did not qualify for the ECAC tournament.
“We really want to take another step forward again this year in terms of how we’re building our culture, how we’re continuing to perform on the ice, how we play the game and a big thing that our team wants to do is continue to raise our standards and develop a new set of standards for what it means to be a Union women’s hockey player. That was a really big focus in the spring. We want to be playing for a championship. It’s more than just a playoff spot,” said Coach Josh Sciba.
Names to know
Senior Katelynn Russ has led the team in scoring in each of the last two seasons.
Freshmen Emma Michalicka and Olivia Groulx were teammates before attending Union. The team could use some help with chemistry and players who already trust each other will be a boost for the Dutchwomen.
What to Watch For
After showing a ton of improvement two seasons ago, last season did not continue the upward trend and appearance of growth. There are 14 upperclassmen on the roster and their experience should be important to carrying this team ahead.
They end the season on the road at Cornell and Colgate, two teams that were susceptible to upset last season. That could be an emphatic way to close out the regular season and make a statement about how far the program has come and what they might be capable of.
Crystal Ball
I’ve got Union 12th right now.
Yale
Last Season
8-18-3, 7-12-3 (ninth). Did not qualify for the ECAC tournament.
“We’re all at the same starting point, from players to coaches. The players are able to reset. There’s energy around the group,” said Coach Mark Bolding. “We’ve got to be most focused on becoming a great team as quickly as we can so we can keep up with this tough league. This is a great challenge for (the coaching staff). We’re going to set expectations and benchmarks more than goals. Goals are nice, but we have to set some standards and benchmarks for this team.”
Names to know
New coach Mark Bolding comes to Yale from Norwich University where he amassed 266 career wins, reached the Division III Frozen Four on seven separate occasions and was named American Hockey Coaches Association National Coach of the Year four times.
New assistant coach Danielle Blanchard was a part of seven national championship teams at Plattsburgh State as a player and assistant coach. In 2008, she earned the Laura Hurd Award as the top Division III women’s hockey player in the nation.
What to Watch For
There’s a lot of upside for this Bulldog team where four of their five returning top scorers were freshman last season.
Senior goalie Tera Hofmann has been a strong presence in net for the Elis and gives them a solid base from which to build. Opponents scored 3.00 goals per game against Yale and Hofmann had a career high with 639 saves last season. The Bulldogs have to stop pucks getting to the net and provide a more solid foundation in front of her.
They have a brutal eight-game stretch to end the season in which they’ll face Princeton and Quinnipiac twice, plus games against Clarkson, Colgate, Cornell and St. Lawrence. The one positive is that most of the games are at home. They’ll need to build to the end of the season and play their best hockey at the end to be able to survive that stretch.
Crystal Ball
I’ve got Yale finishing eighth this season.
