BOSTON— The No. 5 Northeastern women's hockey team is set to kick off its title defense with a matchup against the 10th-seeded Merrimack Warriors in the Hockey East Quarterfinals on Saturday, Feb. 25 at 2 p.m. in Matthews Arena. The top-seeded Huskies are looking to secure a record sixth-straight Hockey East title.
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The game will be streamed live on ESPN+ and available for international streaming. Tickets are available
here.
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THREE THINGS TO KNOW:
- TOURNAMENT TIME: Northeastern is looking to capture an unprecedented sixth-straight Bertagna Trophy. The Huskies have won five-straight Hockey East Tournaments and have outscored their opponents 63-15 over the course of that run. This marks the second-straight season the Huskies and Warriors will meet in the quarterfinal round. Northeastern won last season 8-0, with graduate student Maureen Murphy recording the ninth-ever hat trick in Hockey East playoff history. Northeastern in 17-3 in Hockey East Quarterfinal appearances, with 14 victories in a row dating back to the 2015 season. All 17 of Northeastern's victories in the quarterfinals have come at Matthews Arena.
- GOOD THINGS COME IN THREES: Graduate students Alina Mueller, Chloé Aurard and Murphy are all three in the top-nine point scorers in the NCAA. Mueller leads the Huskies and ranks fifth in the nation with 50 points, while Murphy ranks tied for sixth with 48 points and Aurard is tied for ninth with 47 points. Northeastern is the only school in the country with three players in the top-10 in NCAA scoring. In Hockey East play, the trio are the top-three point scorers. Mueller finished with a league-best 40 points and earned scoring champion honors for the third time in her career. Aurard was second with 38 points in 26 conference game and Murphy tallied 36 points in just 22 league games for the third-best mark.
- WARRIORS COME OUT AND PLAY: Northeastern swept Merrimack in the regular season, with a 5-0 victory, 4-1 win and 3-1 victory. In three games against the Warriors, Aurard and Murphy lead the Huskies with six points each. Aurard has a team-high three goals and Murphy has a team-high six assists. Senior goaltender Gwyneth Philips has posted three victories over the Warriors, including one shutout and made 31 saves. Merrimack defeated the seventh-seeded Terriers, 5-4, in overtime in the Hockey East Opening Round to advance to the quarterfinals against Northeastern. Alexa Pongo scored the game-winning goal for the Warriors in OT. Katie Kaufman leads the Warriors with 22 points. Emma Gorski and Calli Hogarth have split time in net this season with Gorski playing in one game and Hogarth getting the start in two against NU.
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With a victory, the Huskies will advance to the Hockey East Semifinals on Wednesday, March 1 at Matthews Arena.
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