University of Connecticut Athletics
Huskies Back in Hockey East Action Facing Merrimack
12/2/2021 7:25:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey
Media Coverage
TV: (Sat.) NESNplus - (pxp) Randy Brochu, (color) Bob Crawford
Video Stream: (Fri.) CollegeSportsLive.com/Hockey East |. (Sat.) NESN.com / Outside New England - CollegeSportsLive.com
Live Stats: (Fri.) MerrimackAthletics.com (Sat.) UConnHuskies.com
Twitter: @UConnMHOC
Ice Chips
The UConn Huskies jump back into Hockey East play this weekend with a home-and-home series against Merrimack. UConn will head up to Lawler Rink on Friday night and return home to host the Warriors at the XL Center on Saturday afternoon on NESNplus..
The Huskies come into the weekend in sixth place in the Hockey East standings with a 5-4-0 record and 14 points. Merrimack is tied for seventh place with Boston University, both with 11 points.
The Huskies swept last year's series with the Warriors and have won four of the last six meetings. Under head coach Mike Cavanaugh, the Huskies are 5-6-5 against Merrimack and are 3-3-2 at home and 2-3-2 on the road.
UConn is coming off a 6-1 win at home over Colgate last weekend to improve to 2-0-0 against the ECAC this season. Six different Huskies scored goals in the win with sophomore Artem Shlaine picking up a goal and two assists for a career-best three points. Senior Marc Gatcomb and Carter Turnbull and sophomores Hudson Schandor and Nick Capone all had a goal and an assist.
Sophomore Ryan Tverberg, a native of Richmond Hill, Ontario, was one of 35 players invited to Canada's National Junior Team selection camp ahead of the 2022 IIHF World Junior Championships at the end of the month. Canada's National Junior Team selection camp will be held in Calgary next week. It will include practices and two games against a team of U SPORTS all-stars on Dec. 11 and 12 before the team starts a training camp, December 14-19.
If selected for the final roster, Tverberg will become the sixth player during head coach Mike Cavanaugh's tenure to play at the prestigious IIHF World Junior tournament and the first to earn a spot on the Canadian National Team. Last season, Vladislav Firstov and Yan Kuznetsov played for Team Russia at the event. Jachym Kondelik was a member of the 2019 Czech Republic National Team. Adam Huska was a member of the Slovakian National Team in 2016 and 2017 and Tage Thompson was a member of the 2017 U.S. National Team that took home the gold medal.
Tverberg is the Huskies leading scorer this season, scoring nine goals with seven assists through 14 games. He is a +7 on the season five multi-point games and had a five-game goal scoring streak as well. He is tied for fourth in Hockey East in scoring, averaging 1.14 points per game. His nine goals are tied for third.
UConn grad student goaltender Darion Hanson was named the runner-up for Hockey East Goaltender of the Month for November. He started all seven games in November, posting a 4-3-0 mark with a 2.43 goals against average with a .921 save percentage and 199 saves.
Hanson, who transferred in this season from Union, and has started all 14 games and played every minute for the Huskies. On the season, he owns a 2.35 goals against average and a .923 save percentage He has played the third most minutes in Hockey East and ranks sixth in goals against and fourth in save percentage.
Seniors Jachym Kondelik and Marc Gatcomb are tied for 12th in Hockey East in scoring with 12 points. Kondelik has three goals and nine assists, tied for fifth in the league. He is the Huskies leading active career point leader at 83 points (19g/64a).
Gatcomb's five goals is tied for 16th in Hockey East. His 12 points marks his previous season-best marks set during his sophomore and junior seasons.
Last Season vs. Merrimack
Jan. 29, 2021 - W, 6-1 - @ Lawler Rink
-UConn junior Carter Turnbull and sophomore Harrison Rees both scored twice to lead the Huskies to a 6-1 win over Merrimack at Lawler Rink to open a two-game set last season
- UConn had 11 different Huskies get on the scoresheet with six players posting double digit points in the win.
- The Huskies scored two goals just 58 seconds apart in the first period and never looked back putting three on the board in the second period, two on the power play. UConn finished 2-for-6 on the power play, taking advantage of a five-minute power play and 5-on-3 chance in the second period.
- Rees scored his first goals of the season while Turnbull now has a team-leading eight goals on the year. Sophomore Vladislav Firstov scored a goal with an assist. Freshman Hudson Schandor scored the Huskies other goal.
- Junior Tomas Vomacka needed to make just 19 saves as UConn limited Merrimack to just 20 shots on the day.
Jan. 30, 2021 - W, 6-2 - @ Freitas Ice Forum
-UConn junior Jonny Evans scored four-straight goals as the Huskies posted a 6-2 win and earn a Hockey East sweep over Merrimack. The win marked the 100th career victory for UConn head coach Mike Cavanaugh.
- With UConn leading 2-1 in the second period, Evans ripped off four-straight, including three in the third period to become the first Husky in the Division I era (1998-present) to score four or more goals. Evans scored on the power play, shorthanded and twice at even strength to finish out his career-best day. It was the third career hat-trick for Evans who had two last season.
- After a 1-1 first period, freshman Ryan Tverberg scored the game-winner at 3:21 prior to the Evans onslaught of goals. Junior Kale Howarth had the Huskies other power play goal and added an assist.
- Merrimack got power play goals from Declan Carlile and Zach Uens in the loss.
