BOSTON – After facing off in the Beanpot final earlier this week, the No. 6 Northeastern women's hockey team (25-5-1, 19-2-0 WHEA) and the No. 1 Boston College Eagles (30-0-0, 20-0-0 WHEA) will meet once again Friday in the final regular season matchup between Hockey East heavyweights. The Huskies enter the weekend just two points back of Boston College for first place in the Hockey East standings.
LAST TIME VS. BOSTON COLLEGEFreshman
Brittany Bugalski made a career-high 42 saves, but the No. 1 Eagles skated to a 7-0 win over the Huskies on Tuesday in the Beanpot championship game at Walter Brown Arena. BC netted two goals in the first period, before adding five more in the third to turn a close game into a comfortable victory. The setback was the first for Northeastern since falling to Boston College on Nov. 28; between the two losses, NU won 14 straight games, its longest streak since the 1988-89 season.
HOCKEYÂ EASTÂ PLAYOFFÂ PICTUREÂ HEATSÂ UPWith two weeks left in the regular season, the Hockey East playoff picture is beginning to take shape. Seven of the eight playoff spots have already been clinched, and Providence can lock up the final berth with a win over Merrimack this weekend. Boston College, Northeastern and Boston University have clinched home-ice advantage in the WHEA Quarterfinals and will host a best-of-three series during the final weekend in February.
HUSKIES APPROACHING SINGLE-SEASON WINS RECORDWith 25 wins this season, Northeastern is approaching the single season program record for wins in a year (27) held by both the 1996-97 and 2001-02 squads. This season's win total of 25 is tied with the 1998-99 team for the fifth-most in a season in program history. With one more win, the 2015-16 team would tie the 1987-88 and 1997-98 squads with 26 wins in a year.
OFFENSEÂ ONÂ DISPLAYTwo of the NCAA's top scoring offenses will do battle on Friday afternoon at Conte Forum. Boston College leads the nation with a 5.37 goals-per-game scoring average, while Northeastern ranks third with a 4.42 goals-per-game clip. The Huskies have scored five goals or more in 18 of their 31 games, and have potted at least seven goals in six contests.
BUGALSKIÂ EARNSÂ WHEAÂ ROOKIEÂ HONORSFreshman goaltender
Brittany Bugalski was named the Pro Ambitions Rookie of the Week in Hockey East on Monday. Bugalski posted a 2-0-0 record with a 1.50 GAA and a .946 save percentage in backstopping the Huskies to a pair of victories last week. Last Tuesday, Bugalski became the first NU freshman goaltender to win a Beanpot game since Shannon Meyers in 1996 when she stopped 30 of 32 shots in a 3-2 win over Boston University. Bugalski then turned aside 23 of 24 shots on Feb. 6 in a 3-1 win at Providence.Â
HUSKIESÂ TOPÂ SCORINGÂ CHARTSÂ INÂ 2016Since Jan. 1, no player in the NCAA has scored more points than linemates
Kendall Coyne (31) and
Denisa Krizova (21). Coyne has tallied 16 goals and 15 assists–both NCAA highs–since the New Year, while Krizova ranks second with nine goals and 12 helpers. The third member of NU's top line, junior
Hayley Scamurra, is tied for fifth in the NCAA with 16 points (6-10-16) since the start of the calendar year.
COYNEÂ REWRITINGÂ NUÂ RECORDÂ BOOKSSenior
Kendall Coyne is in the midst of an historic season as the Huskies seek their first-ever appearance in the NCAA tournament. Coyne leads the nation in goals (39) and points (68) and recently broke the Northeastern all-time points mark, previously held by Hilary Witt '00. Coyne tallied a hat trick on Jan. 10 with Witt on the opposite bench (as the head coach of UNH) to pass the former NU legend with her 209th career point. Since then, Coyne has stretched her record to 233 career points, the third-most among active NCAA players and the 13th-most in the NCAA since the year 2000.
