Boston College and New Hampshire have one final regular season game on the schedule that has significant playoff implications.
Hockey East Women's Weekend Preview
News and notes from the upcoming weekend of Hockey East action.

#3 Northeastern vs. Merrimack (home-and-home)

- Hockey East's regular season wraps up this weekend with playoff seedings 3-7 still up for grabs. Northeastern and Vermont are the only teams heading into the final weekend of conference play knowing their playoff opponent, as the top-seeded Huskies will welcome the Catamounts to Matthews Arena.

- Coming off a Beanpot championship last Tuesday and a split weekend against Providence, the Huskies prepare to meet Merrimack in their final home-and-home series of the regular season.

- The Huskies saw their 12-game conference win streak coming to an end in a 2-1 overtime loss on Friday night against the Friars. Freshman forward Katy Knoll (Amherst, N.Y.) then contributed to three of Northeastern's four goals when she potted two and added a helper in a 4-1 win the next day.

- Merrimack's most recent outing was a series split with UConn. After falling to the Huskies in game one, 6-1, senior Léa-Kristine Demers (Repentigny, Qué.) made 27 saves and senior defenseman Chloe Cook (Summerland, B. C.) netted a goal in a 2-1 victory.

- Northeastern and Merrimack meet again after facing each other Feb. 7. The then-#2 Huskies skated past the Warriors, 5-1. Merrimack's tally came shorthanded off the stick of senior forward Mikyla Grant-Mentis (Brampton, Ont.) and freshman goaltender Emma Gorski (Wallaceburg, Ont.) made 47 saves. Brooke Hobson (Prince Albert, Sask.) had two goals for Northeastern.


UConn at #8 Boston University

- After a two-shutout weekend sweep over New Hampshire, #8 Boston University clinched the second seed in the Hockey East Tournament and is set to host either Maine or New Hampshire in the quarterfinals.

- The weekend set with UConn is crucial for the Huskies, who are still alive for a home-ice bid in the quarterfinals and can finish as high as third or as low as fifth.

- Most recently, Boston University swept New Hampshire with two shutout performances, one from junior Corinne Schroeder (Elm Creek, Man.) making 33 saves in a 1-0 win, and the other from sophomore Kate Stuart (Chilliwack, B.C.), who made 17 saves in her first collegiate shutout, 2-0.

- UConn's weekend split against Merrimack leaves the Huskies with a chance to host the Hockey East Quarterfinals. Senior Briana Colangelo's (Whitby, Ont.) two assists bumped the Husky forward to 100 career points, making her the fourth in program history to hit that milestone.

- Junior forward Natalie Snodgrass (Eagan, Minn.) led the conference with three goals over the weekend.

- The Terriers and Huskies have met only once this season, Oct. 18. By just a one goal margin, Boston University edged out UConn when senior forward Deziray De Sousa (Montreal, Que.) found the back of the net to clinch the game-winning goal, combined with Schroeder's 38 save performance.


Providence vs. Holy Cross (home-and-home)

- Coming off a successful weekend for both Providence and Holy Cross, the two squads enter the final weekend of regular season play. The Friars can finish as high as third by earning three or four points and help from Boston College, or as low as fifth.

- Providence's most recent weekend series put an end to #3 Northeastern's 11-game unbeaten streak and 12-game conference winning streak. Rookie of the Week defenseman Lauren DeBlois (Lewiston, Maine) forced the game into overtime when she scored in the second period to tie the game and then went on to find the back of the net again for a 2-1 overtime victory. Both goals came off helpers from senior defenseman Whitney Dove (Port Moody, B.C.) and sophomore forward Sara Hjalmarsson (Bankeryd, Sweden.)

- The Friars won the season series over Northeastern, 2-1-0, the only team to beat Northeastern more than once this season.

- Over the weekend, Holy Cross clinched their second regular-season series win as the Crusaders downed Vermont twice at home. Defensive Player of the Week, junior Julia Pelletier (Pelham, N.H.), recorded her first career shutout after stopping 29 shots in Sunday's 2-0 win.

- Providence and Holy Cross have met once this season on Nov. 1, as the Friars skated past the Crusaders in a 1-0 shutout. The single tally came from freshman forward Bailey Burton (Bloomington, Minn.)


Boston College at New Hampshire

- Boston College and New Hampshire have one final regular season game on the schedule that has significant playoff implications. With a win, Boston College can clinch home ice in the quarterfinals or fall all the way to fifth with a loss, while New Hampshire will land in either the sixth or seventh seed depending on the result.

- The Eagles split a weekend in Maine in two overtime battles last weekend. On Friday, Player of the Week senior forward Delaney Belinskas (Port Orange, Fla.) potted two goals, including the overtime game winner halfway through the extra frame to deliver a 3-2 victory.

- New Hampshire found themselves scoreless this weekend despite goaltending efforts from sophomore Ava Boutilier (Charlottetown, P.E.I.) who recorded 66 saves over the weekend series allowing only two tallies against.

- BC and UNH meet for the third time this season and enter the weekend with a split record including a then #7-Eagles victory on Nov. 1, 5-2, and a Wildcat victory on Feb. 7, 3-0, at Conte Forum. New Hampshire can finish sixth with a win or tie or lose and get help with a Maine loss or tie.


Maine at Vermont

- Maine and Vermont square off for one game with the Catamounts already locked into the eighth seed and the Black Bears battling for sixth or seventh with UNH. Maine will be seeded sixth win a win and a New Hampshire loss or tie or with a tie and a New Hampshire loss.

- Vermont holds the season series over Maine as they previously passed the Black Bears twice in December at Alfond Arena by matching scores of 3-2.

- The Black Bears most recently split a pair of overtime games against Boston College. Senior forward Tereza Vanišová (Strakonice, Czech Republic) scored at 4:26 of overtime in game two to deliver a home win in her final appearance at Alfond Arena while senior netminder Carly Jackson (Amherst, N.S.) made 35 saves in the 2-1 win.