University of Connecticut Athletics
University of Connecticut
Merrimack
Huskies Continue Homestand Saturday Against Merrimack
2/8/2019 3:34:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey
TV Coverage: CW20 - Joe D'Ambrosio (pxp) Adam Giardino (color)
Video: Huskies All-Access
Live Stats: UConnHuskies.com
Ice Chips
- UConn will look to keep the momentum rolling from Thursday's thrilling 3-2 comeback overtime win over No.13 Northeastern going into Saturday's match-up with Merrimack at the XL Center. Saturday's game will be broadcast throughout Connecticut on the CW20.
- This is the 11th meeting between UConn and Merrimack since the Huskies joined Hockey East in 2014-15. The Warriors hold a 4-1-5 record over the Huskies and have won three-straight over the Huskies after a 5-2 win at home earlier in January.
- The Huskies will join the Warriors in honoring Merrimack Director of Ops Lance Brady, who passed away this week after a battle with cancer. Both teams will wear Brady's name on their jerseys for Saturday's game.
- UConn put an end to their 12-game Hockey East winless streak on Thursday night, fighting back from down 2-1 late to grab a 3-2 overtime win over the No. 13 ranked Northeastern Huskies. Sophomore Brian Rigali got the tying goal with 1:09 left in the third and junior Alexander Payusov won it just 1:05 into overtime to end the drought.
- Freshman goaltender Tomas Vomacka made 31 saves, matching his season-high, on the way to earning his first career Hockey East win in net on Thursday night vs. Northeastern
- Senior Karl El-Mir dished out a career-best three assists in Thursday night's win, giving him a team-leading 25 points on the season. El-Mir has 12 goals and 13 assists, both career-best marks. He has moved up to eighth in Hockey East in scoring and is tied for sixth in goals scored.
- El-Mir has six power play goals this season, tied for second in Hockey East and ninth in the NCAA. Five of El-Mir's power play scores have come with freshman Jachym Kondelik and sophomore Evan Wisocky picking up the assist.
- Freshman Jachym Kondelik continued to add to his impressive rookie numbers with a goal and an assist in Thursday's win, giving him a team-best six multi-point games this season. Kondelik has 24 points (4g/20a) is among the top freshmen point producers in Hockey East and the country. He ranks second in the league and tied for fifth nationally among first-year players in scoring.
- In the UConn freshman record book, Kondelik's 24 points currently rank tied for eighth during the Division I era (1998-present) and 15th overall. His 20 assists is tied for second on the rookie DI list and tied for sixth all-time.
- Freshman Ruslan Iskhakov had his best game in a UConn uniform in last Friday's loss to BC, having a hand in all three Husky goals, scoring twice, his first career multi-goal game, while adding an assist. Iskhakov added an assist on Thursday night and how has four goals and eight assists on the season.
- Junior Alexander Payusov's 14 goals is a career-best mark for the junior, eclipsing his 12 from last season, and is currently tied for third among Hockey East goal scorers.
This Season vs. Merrimack
January 12, 2019
Merrimack got goals from five different players on the way to a 5-2 victory over the Huskies in a Hockey East match-up from Lawler Rink last month. Merrimack built a 4-0 lead through two periods before the Huskies began to mount a comeback threat. Both UConn goals came in the third period from senior Karl El-Mir and freshman Jachym Kondelik. The senior broke the shut-out at the three minute mark of the third on a power play goal and Kondelik pulled the Huskies to within 4-2 at 11:02. Merrimack ended the threat however just over a minute later as August von Ungern-Sternberg scored his first collegiate goal to ice away the win. The Huskies outshot Merrimack 28-27 with junior Adam Huska making 22 saves in the loss.
Scouting the Warriors
The Warriors are currently tied with the Huskies in 10th in Hockey East with a 4-13-0 league record. Merrimack is coming off their bye week after being swept by conference foe, Vermont. Since knocking off the Huskies at home, 5-2, on January 12th, the Warriors have dropped four-straight. Freshman Chase Gresock leads the club in points with 19 on eight goals and 11 assists. Junior Tyler Irvine also has 11 assists on the season. Juniors Johnathan Kovacevic and Sami Travernier along with Irvine lead the team in power play goals with three apiece. In net, senior Craig Pantano has seen the majority of minutes with four of his six wins coming via shutouts. He has a 3.43 goals against and a .890 save percentage.
