HOCKEY EAST HEADLINES

UMass Lowell earned three points in Hockey East play on the opening night of the season, toppling Merrimack, 4-0. Rookie goaltender Austin Elliott made 17 stops in his collegiate debut to post a shutout while grad transfer Jay Ahearn scored twice.

Massachusetts took a weekend sweep off Northern Michigan by scores of 4-3 and 4-1. Junior Jack Musa racked up five points (3g, 2a) in the series while winning all five faceoffs he took. Newcomer Lukas Klecka netted a goal in both games of his collegiate debut to propel the Minutemen’s offense.

UConn traveled to Colorado Springs to square off with NCHC foe Colorado College, earning a weekend sweep with a convincing 5-1 victory on Saturday. Senior blueliner Tom Messineo scored the game-winning goal and blocked seven shots in the win.

Northeastern took a 6-4 win over Holy Cross to open the final season at Historic Matthews Arena. Joe Connor had two goals, including the game-winner, and a power-play assist.

Boston University opened the year with a 4-2 win over LIU, where Cole Hutson scored the game-winning goal and added an assist. The Terriers also took a 3-0 exhibition win over RPI, backboned by 21 saves from Max Lacroix.

HOCKEY EAST CO-PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Jack Musa - Massachusetts
Cole Hutson - Boston University

Jack Musa (Jr., F; Orange Park, Fla.) put up five points on three goals and two assists in a weekend sweep of Northern Michigan and blocked three shots, won 5-of-5 faceoffs and was a plus-three. He opened the scoring in Saturday’s 5-3 win, had an assist on the game-winner in a come-from-behind third period, and added a late, shorthanded empty net goal. On Sunday, set up the game-opening power-play goal and registered another empty net goal.

Cole Hutson (So., D; Chicago, Ill.), the reigning National Rookie of the Year, scored the game-winner against LIU in a 4-2 victory while also providing the primary assist on the game’s opening strike. Hutson then assisted on the first two goals of Sunday’s 3-0 exhibition win over RPI. He has reached 50 points in just 40 career games, besting his brother and reigning NHL Calder Trophy winner Lane by one, as Lane got 50 points in 41 games

PRO AMBITIONS ROOKIE OF THE WEEK

Lukas Klecka - Massachusetts

Lukas Klecka (Fr., F; Bratislava, Slovakia) scored in both games of a weekend sweep of Northern Michigan for first two tallies of his career. He put five shots on net and was a plus-two rating for the weekend. He tied the score in the second period of Saturday’s 5-3 win when UMass was trailing 2-1 and followed up on Sunday with an empty net goal to help secure a 4-1 win.

HOCKEY EAST DEFENDER OF THE WEEK

Tom Messineo - UConn

Tom Messineo (Sr., D; Westwood, Mass.) scored the game-winning goal on Saturday in a 5-1 victory at Colorado College. He also blocked seven shots in the game to help the Huskies to their first win of the season.

STOP IT GOALTENDER OF THE WEEK

Austin Elliott - UMass Lowell

Austin Elliott (Fr., G; Strathmore, Alta.) made his collegiate debut in the first Hockey East game of the 2025-26 season, stopping all 17 shots he faced from Merrimack to lift the River Hawks to a 4-0 victory. His performance gave UMass Lowell the first win of the season and entered in first place in the Army ROTC Hockey East Standings.

HOCKEY EAST TOP PERFORMERS

Andre Gasseau, BC (Sr., F; Garden Grove, Calif.) Began his 2025-26 campaign with three points in the season opener against No. 13 Quinnipiac. He assisted on each of the Eagles’ three goals.

Cole Eiserman, BU (So., F; Newburyport, Mass.) Picked up 2025-26 where he left off last season, scoring two goals in the Terriers’ season-opening 4-2 win over LIU on Saturday. He also assisted on all three BU goals in a 3-0 exhibition win over RPI.

Ryder Ritchie, BU (Fr., F; Kelowna, B.C.) Dished out two assists in his collegiate debut, a 4-2 win over LIU, before scoring an empty net goal in a 3-0 exhibition over RPI.

Mikhail Yegorov, BU (So., G; St. Petersburg, Russia) Made 36 saves to backstop BU to a 4-2 win over LIU on Saturday night.

Max Lacroix, BU (Jr., G, Denver, Colo.) Had 21 saves in an exhibition shutout of RPI, lifting BU to a 3-0 win.

Joey Muldowney, UConn (Jr., F; Lake View, N.Y.) Scored a goal in each game of a 1-1-0 weekend at Colorado College, including striking just 52 seconds into the first game of the season.

Alexandre Blais, UConn (Fr., F; Longueuil, Que.) Finished a 1-1-0 road trip to Colorado College with one goal and one assist for two points with a plus-one rating.

Tyler Muszelik, UConn (Sr., G; Long Valley, N.J.) Went 1-1-0 in two games at Colorado College, making a total 60 saves. In Saturday’s 5-1 win for UConn, Muszelik stopped 26 shots while allowing just one goal.

Dalyn Wakely, UML (Fr., F; Port Hope, Ont.) Dished out two assists in his NCAA debut, including the primary helper on a shorthanded goal that gave UML a 2-0 lead in an eventual 4-0 win over Merrimack.

Jay Ahearn, UML (Gr., F; Staten Island, N.Y.) Made a splash in his River Hawks’ debut, finding the back of the net twice in a 4-0 win over Merrimack in league play.

Tnias Mathurin, UML (Fr., D; Ajax, Ont.) Scored the first goal of his career in the River Hawks’ season opening 4-0 win against Merrimack Friday night. He also tied for the team lead with a plus-two rating on the night.

Joe Connor, NU (So., F; Nottingham, N.H.) Racked up three points in Northeastern’s lone game of the week- end, a 6-4 win over Holy Cross. He scored two goals, including the game-winning goal, and added a power-play assist. He had a game-high five shots on net and blocked one shot.

Austen May, NU (Sr., D; Woodhaven, Mich.) Dished out two helpers in a 6-4 win over Holy Cross, setting up the game-tying and game-winning goals for the Huskies to finish with a plus-two rating. He had a team-high three blocked shots and one shot on net.