University of Connecticut Athletics
University of Connecticut
Quinnipiac
Huskies Ready for Connecticut Ice
1/23/2020 10:46:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
| Â TV | Â SNY |
| Â RADIO | Â Â UConn Sports Network from Learfield IMG College (ESPN 97.9 FM; WILI 1400 AM / 95.3 FM) |
| Â AUDIO STREAM | Â TuneIn.com |
| Â LIVE STATS | Â Statbroadcast |
|  TWITTER |  @UConnMHOC #BleedBlue #IceBus |
| Â GAME NOTES |
 UConn Game Notes  QU Game Notes   SHU Game Notes Yale Game Notes |
Ice Chips
The UConn Huskies hit pause on the Hockey East schedule to take part in the inaugural Connecticut Ice Festival this weekend at Webster Bank Arena in Bridgeport. The first-ever tournament features Connecticut's four Division I hockey teams in UConn, Quinnipiac, Sacred Heart and Yale in a four-game tournament with all games being carried live on SNY.
The Huskies will open the tournament on Saturday afternoon taking on the No. 17 nationally ranked Quinnipiac Bobcats followed by Sacred Heart and Yale in the nightcap. The winners and losers will match-up on Sunday to close out the event.
UConn is looking to end a four-game Quinnipiac winning streak in the series. The two teams have met every season since the 2012-13 campaign and under the direction of head coach Mike Cavanaugh, the Huskies are 1-4-0 against the Bobcats.
The Huskies have already faced Sacred Heart once this season, skating to a 3-3 tie with the Pioneers at Webster Bank Arena in the season-opener. SHU is unbeaten in the last seven meetings (6-0-1) and since the Huskies left Atlantic Hockey in 2014-15, is 5-0-1 against UConn.
The Huskies beat Yale for the first time in program history last season, earning a 3-1 win over the then No. 15 ranked Bulldogs at Ingalls Rink.
UConn comes into the weekend set riding a pair of Hockey East wins last week. The Huskies came back to beat Maine, 3-2, at Webster Bank Arena then went on the road to knock-off No. 12 ranked Northeastern in overtime, 3-2.Â
After a four-point week, the Huskies have moved into a tie for sixth place in the Hockey East standings with Boston University with 14 points. Following this weekend's tournament, UConn will end the regular season with nine conference games, six on the road.
Freshman Vladislav Firstov was named the Pro Ambitions Rookie of the Week in Hockey East for the second time this season after scoring three goals in last week's wins. Firstov had the game-winner against Maine and his second multi-goal game of the season with two at Northeastern. He currently leads the Huskies in scoring (16 pts) and goals scored (9). Firstov is tied for eighth among Hockey East rookies in scoring.
The UConn lineup has nine Huskies, led by Firstov, have double digit points this season and eight different players have scored five or more goals on the year.
Sophomore Tomas Vomacka was named the HEA Defensive Player of the Week after a pair of wins. Vomacka stopped 37 shots and kept the Maine off the scoreboard in the second and third periods in a 3-2 win, including 16 saves in the third period alone. On Saturday, he turned away 35 shots to backstop the win at Northeastern.
Senior Benjamin Freeman is ranked fourth in Hockey East and eighth nationally in face-off percentage, winning .606 (231-150) of his face-offs on the year. Freeman is second in the conference with 231 face-off wins.
Husky defensemen junior Adam Karashik and senior Wyatt Newpower are among the top shot blockers in Hockey East this season. Karashik is third in the league with 38 blocks, a 1.73 pg average. Newpower is sixth having blocked 31 shots (1.35 pg).
Last Meeting vs. Quinnipiac
October 16, 2018 - L, 4-2 at Frank Perrotti, Jr. Arena
UConn's Jonny Evans and Carter Turnbull each scored the first collegiate goals but the Huskies managed just 13 shots in a 4-2 loss at Quinnipiac early last season. Quinnipiac got two goals from William Fallstrom while Brandon Fortunato and Odeen Tufto each scored first period goals. Turnbull cut the QU lead to 3-2 with a third period power play goal but Fallstrom put the icing on the win with an empty net goal at 18:24. The Bobcats held a 28-13 edge on the shot chart but were 0-for-4 on the power play.
Last Meeting vs. Sacred Heart
October 5, 2019 - T, 3-3 at Webster Bank Arena
UConn goaltender Tomas Vomacka made a career-high 45 saves but a hat trick by Sacred Heart's Matt Tugnutt, his third coming with 3.0 seconds left, helped send both teams home with a 3-3 tie in the season opener this fall. The Huskies got three goals from three different players in the second period as Marc Gatcomb, Jachym Kondelik and Kale Howarth all found the back of the net. Tugnutt scored in each period, and provided the game-tying goal with an extra skater on the ice and three seconds left. Vomacka was brilliant all night, stopping 20 shots in the second period alone, including a penalty shot. The Pioneers held a 48-20 shot advantage but UConn killed off all six of their power plays.
Last Meeting vs. Yale
December 21, 2018 - W, 3-1 at Ingalls Rink
The UConn Huskies got 39 saves from Adam Huska and goals by Alexander Payusov, Benjamin Freeman and Brian Rigali on the way to a 3-1 win over No. 15 ranked Yale University at Ingalls Rink last season. After a scoreless first period, UConn's Payusov opened the scoring at 7:17 of the second. The Huskies were primed to take a 1-0 lead into the locker room but Yale's Anthony Walsh just beat the horn in the period to tie the game with 0.5 seconds left. The Huskies put 11 shots on goal in the third period and Freeman produced the game-winner at 9:52. The Bulldogs pulled Tucker with just under two minutes to play and Rigali picked-up the empty net goal to seal the win at 18:48.
Last Time Out...
- UConn senior Benjamin Freeman scored the game-winning goal in overtime to deliver the Huskies a 3-2 upset win over No. 12 nationally ranked Northeastern last Saturday afternoon at Matthews Arena.
- The Huskies got a power play chance with 2:22 left in overtime and Freeman delivered, putting home a rebound at 3:11 to win it.Â
- UConn freshman Vladislav Firstov scored two goals for the Huskies, his second multi-goal game this season and his eighth and ninth on the year. Northeastern's Grant Jozefek posted a pair of goals of his own, both coming in the second period.
- Both UConn and Northeastern goaltenders were big factors on Saturday, especially in the third period. Sophomore Tomas Vomacka stopped 35 shots to earn the win. NU's Craig Pantano stopped a season-high 41 shots.
Huskies Add Two Student-Athletes for Spring Semester...
- Head Coach Mike Cavanaugh announced the additions of defenseman Bryan Nelson and goaltender Matt Pasquale to the Huskies roster for the remainder of the season.
- Nelson, a senior, was previously a member of the Huskies during the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons. He appeared in four total games for UConn and was a 2017 Hockey East All-Academic team honoree.
- Pasquale, a freshman, comes to UConn after a recent three-game stint with the Northeast Generals of the NAHL and previous to that, he spent two years playing with the New Hampshire Jr. Monarchs of the NCDC. He played his high school hockey at Central Catholic in Lawrence, Mass. While at CC, Pasquale appeared in 68 games and had a 1.27 GAA and a .942 SV %.
