Quinnipiac (11-1-3, 5-1-2 ECAC) vs. Dartmouth (4-4-2, 4-1-2 ECAC)
When/where: Friday, Dec. 4 at 7 p.m. High Point Solutions Arena.
What to watch for:
Quinnipiac has recently hit its stride defensively with Sydney Rossman coming into this game sporting four consecutive shutouts. Breaking up the T.T. Cianfarano, Emma Woods and Melissa Samoskevich line has also created more offensive consistency for the No. 4 Bobcats. Here are my key areas of play for this matchup.
Special teams:
The Dartmouth Big Green lead the ECAC in power play percentage with a 25.8 percent success rate. Conversely, Quinnipiac is second in the ECAC in penalty kill percentage with a 92.1 percent success rate. Bobcats head coach, Cassandra Turner, attributes that to her teams focus on clean play and staying out of the box. With the strength of the special teams, Quinnipiac needs its defense that it prides itself on to hold strong against Dartmouth’s pressure and players such as Lindsay Allen, who thrives on the power play.
Neutral zone:
Puck possession will be the deciding factor in this game. Conference games are always a grind and while stats are telling of a team’s capabilities, it is going to come down to which team wants it more. Hustling to loose pucks in the neutral zone and winning face-offs is what will set up Quinnipiac’s offensive opportunities and shot at the victory. The Bobcats average 0.8 more goals per game than the Big Green so there is not a large gap in the offensive capabilities of these teams. Therefore, whichever team gains possession of loose pucks in the neutral zone will put itself in good position to get the win.
Quinnipiac (11-1-3, 5-1-2 ECAC) vs. Harvard (8-2-1, 5-1-1 ECAC)
When/where: Saturday, Dec. 5 at 4 p.m. High Point Solutions Arena
What to watch for:
It will be a battle between these two ECAC powerhouses. The No. 7 Harvard Crimson crushed the hopes of the No. 4 Quinnipiac Bobcats’ NCAA Tournament run last season, defeating them 5-0 in the 1st round. Quinnipiac is just 2-18-2 all-time against Harvard. Here are my key areas of play for this matchup.
Goaltending:
These two teams know how to score, and have the threats to do so. With both averaging around three goals per game, the offensive opportunities and shots are bound to be there. Quinnipiac’s Sydney Rossman and Harvard’s Emerance Maschmeyer need to be on their game. Rossman has six shutouts this season, one of those being Clarkson, who is arguably one of the best offensive teams in the nation. Maschmeyer holds a .958 save percentage and has only allowed eight goals in the six games she has started. Blocked shots and the play of these two goalies will decide who the top dog is in the ECAC.
Offensive Zones:
It comes down to which team can find the back of the net. If T.T. Cianfarano, Melissa Samoskevich and Nicole Kosta play their game and fire away at the Harvard net, the results will show on the scoreboard. Harvard’s Miye O’Dench is one of the best offensive players in the conference with 16 points in 11 games. If the Bobcats give her space in the offensive zone, they will pay. While this game is going to be won by the team that performs best on both ends of the ice and in all aspects of the game, it really comes down to the amount of chances in the offensive zones and who is able to convert those chances into goals.
