CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Fresh off an upset win over the No. 8 team in the nation to begin its season, Harvard women's ice hockey will return to the ice this weekend to open ECAC play against the Union Garnet Chargers and the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) Engineers. The Crimson (1-0-0, 0-0-0 ECAC) will first battle the Garnet Chargers (2-6-0, 0-0-0 ECAC) on Friday before taking on the Engineers (4-3-1, 0-0-0 ECAC) on Saturday. Puck drop for both games is slated for 3:00 PM and both games will air live on ESPN+.
 
The Crimson will look to build off its strong start this weekend when it travels to Central New York to face off against its ECAC foes.
 

WHAT TO KNOW

 

Coming in Hot

• The Crimson heads into its first ECAC series of the season riding high off a 1-0 victory in its season opener against No. 8 Connecticut.
• Emily Davidson, the MAC Goaltending ECAC Goaltender of the Week, made 34 saves to record her first career shutout and lead the Crimson to the win.
• Jenna MacDonald scored the game-winning-goal in the contest, the first of her career.
• The Crimson defeated a top ten team for the second consecutive season under Laura Bellamy, the Landry Family Head Coach for Harvard Women's Ice Hockey.
• The Crimson blocked 21 shots in front of Davidson, led by Mia Biotti's three blocked shots. It was the ninth time Harvard blocked more than 20 shots in a game dating back to the start of last season.

 

Scouting Union

• The Garnet Chargers come into the contest with a record of 2-6-0 after a pair of one-goal losses to the University of New Hampshire last weekend. The team defeated Robert Morris (Sep. 28) and RIT (Oct. 4) for its two wins on the year.
• Despite its record, Union has played a number of close games this season and is only being outscored 21-18 by its opponents. The group has had success on the powerplay this season, converting on 26-percent of its opportunities while allowing only four goals on the kill.
• Sophomore forward Maddy Leaney's seven points lead the group heading into ECAC play and goaltender, Sophie Matsoukas, leads the charge between the pipes with a 2.54 GAA and .914 save percentage.
• The Crimson owns a 35-4-1 record all-time against the Garnet Chargers and a 7-2-1 record in the past ten meetings.
• A number of current Harvard skaters have had success against Union with Gabi Davidson Adams leading the group with four points off two goals and two assists. Jenna MacDonald and Paige Lester each own three points in the series.

Scouting RPI

• The 4-3-1 RPI Engineers come into the matchup off a loss and a tie against RIT last weekend. Prior to the series, the Engineers rattled off three straight wins against Syracuse (two) and Sacred Heart.
• RPI displays a balanced style that has seen the team outscore its opponents 16-12 and outshoot its opposition, 230-182.
• The Engineer powerplay has been on fire to start the season, converting on 33-percent of its chances (7-21) which gives the team the fifth-best powerplay in the country this season.
• Ten RPI skaters have recorded double-digit points this season with Aylah Cioffi, Andrea Trnkova and Sophie Helgeson leading the way with five points each.
• The Crimson owns a 22-8-3 record against the Engineers all-time and has posted a 8-1-1 record against the foe in the last ten matchups.
• Davidson Adams leads the team in career points against the Engineers with four while Biotti, Lester and Kate Kasica all own multiple points in their careers against RPI.

 

Game-Winning Plays

• The Crimson's win over the Huskies was powered by a standout defensive effort from the entire lineup.
• A staple of Harvard's defensive success since last season has been blocking shots. Harvard blocked 21 shots against Connecticut, including four on the penalty kill and six at the end of the game when the goalie was pulled. It was the ninth time the Crimson has blocked 20 or more shots in a game dating back to last season.
• Harvard's penalty kill unit held Connecticut scoreless on all four of its opportunities with Davidson making 10 saves on the kill to guide the Crimson to the win.

 

From the Blue Line

• All three of Harvard's offensive points against UConn came from the blue line as J. MacDonald picked up her third career goal with Biotti and Kaley MacDonald getting the assists.
• Crimson defenders accounted for 28-percent of the team's point production a year ago with Mia Biotti leading the charge with eight points in 2023-24.

 

Next Up

The Crimson will return to its home ice at the Bright Landry Hockey Center next weekend to begin a four-game homestand. The first series will see Harvard play host to a pair of Ivy League rivals in Brown (Nov. 1) and Yale (Nov. 2) at the Bright with both games set to air on ESPN+.