WOMEN'S HOCKEY NOTEBOOK
After a weekend sweep of Merrimack, the Catamounts return home this weekend for a 2023 Hockey East Quarterfinal rematch as they welcome New Hampshire to the Gut. The teams will face off Friday and Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m. All the action will be streamed live on ESPN+ with Rob Ryan on the call. All fans who wear their favorite pro hockey jersey on Friday and all kids wearing their favorite Halloween costume on Saturday will receive free admission to the game.
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RELATED LINKS
Live Stats
Live Video: ESPN+ | International Streaming ($)
CATAMOUNTS MAINTAIN RANKÂ
For the fourth consecutive week, the Catamounts retain their No. 12 position in the USCHO poll. In the USA Today/USA Hockey poll, UVM also maintains its 12th rank for the third consecutive week.Â
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BREAKING THE ICEÂ
Over the weekend, three Vermont skaters notched their first career goals against Merrimack. Second year defenseman
Krista Parkkonen ignited the scoring Friday with a slapshot goal early in the first period.
Rose-Marie Brochu and
Kaylee Lewis netted their first goals Saturday during the Vermont comeback. Â
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PRECISION PUCKSÂ
With a shooting percentage of 16.1%, Vermont is tops in all of Division I. Despite being outshot by 53 shots, the Cats have maximized their opportunities, scoring 18 goals on just 112 shots.Â
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BLAIS-SAVOIE, BROCHU, MCPHERSON TOP PERFORMERSÂ
Evelyne Blais-Savoie amassed four points (2 goals, 2 assists) during the two-game sweep of Merrimack. Her standout performance included a two-goal game on Friday and a pivotal moment in Saturday's 4-2 win when she sparked a three-goal surge early in the third period with the primary assist on
Lily Humphrey's goal.Â
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Brochu earned her first career points with one goal and two assists over the weekend. Brochu played a crucial role in Friday's 4-2 victory by assisting on the game-winning goal and followed up with her first NCAA goal along with an additional assist in Saturday's Victory.Â
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Jessie McPherson had another outstanding weekend making 35 saves in the series sweep of Merrimack. Â
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CATAMOUNTS LEADERSHIP GROUPÂ
Head CoachÂ
Jim Plumer has selected five student-athletes to lead the Catamounts during the 2023-24 campaign. 2023 World Championship bronze medalist Natálie Mlýnková will serve as captain for Vermont. The Catamounts will have four alternates this season withÂ
Hailey Burns,Â
Sara Levesque,Â
Maddy Skelton andÂ
Alaina Tanski. Skelton served as an alternate captain last season as well.Â
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CZECH CAPTAIN IS BACK FOR MOREÂ
Senior captain Mlýnková is the top returning scorer in Hockey East this season. She set new career highs in goals (23), assists (19) and points (42) last year.Â
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OFFENSIVE TOUCH KEY TO HISTORIC CAMPAIGNSÂ
Vermont scored over 100 goals in each of the last two years for the first time in program history on their way to back-to-back second place finishes in Hockey East with a program record of 22 wins in each campaign. Vermont returns 56.1% of its scoring from a year ago.Â
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SCOUTING THE WILDCATSÂ
New Hampshire enters the series with a 4-3-1 record following a weekend split with UConn. Junior forwards Brooke Hammer and Kira Juodikis both found the back of the net last Friday, securing a 2-0 victory for the Wildcats. New Hampshire fell 4-0 to the Huskies on Saturday at Toscano Ice Forum. Â
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Juodikis leads the Wildcats in scoring with five goals this season, ranking her third in the Hockey East conference. Marina Alvarez is also making her presence felt, holding the third spot in the conference for assists with five early in the season. Rookie Sedona Blair guards the net for UNH, boasting a .913 save percentage while allowing just 2.35 goals per game.Â
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SERIES HISTORYÂ
Vermont trails in the all-time series against New Hampshire with a record of 19-30-8. The two teams clashed four times last season, resulting in a 2-0-2 standoff, three of the four games went to overtime. Each team claimed one regular season game in the shootout for the extra league point. Their most recent encounter occurred in the Hockey East Quarterfinals, where the Catamounts managed to outlast the Wildcats with a thrilling 2-1 overtime victory.
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Mlynkova netted a goal for the Catamounts during the second period of the quarterfinals.
Maddy Skelton was credited with an assist on the game-winning goal in overtime to propel UVM forward. McPherson contributed with 29 saves and allowed only one goal in the victory.Â
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SAVE THE DATE – NOV. 10 FOR THE ANNUAL PACK THE GUT CHALLENGE
Save the date for this season's Pack the Gut Challenge - presented by the Windjammer – on Friday, November 10 vs. Boston College at 6 p.m.– admission is only $2 and free for kids 12 and younger and free for UVM students – help us break the Women's Hockey East attendance record which we set last year with a total of 2,210 fans in attendance at Gutterson Fieldhouse!
The Windjammer Inn and Conference Center is the presenting sponsor of the UVM women's hockey programÂ
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