University of Connecticut Athletics
University of Connecticut
Merrimack
Weekend Set with Merrimack Opens Hockey East Play
10/31/2019 1:42:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey
|  WATCH |  CBS All-Access (Fri & Sun) |
|  LIVE STATS |  MerrimackAthletics.com (Fri) Statbroadcast (Sun) |
|  TWITTER |   @UConnMHOC  #IceBus #BleedBlue |
|  GAME NOTES |  UConn Notes   Merrimack Notes |
Ice Chips…
The 2019-20 Hockey East schedule gets underway this weekend as the Huskies face-off with Merrimack in a home and home series. UConn will head to Lawler Rink on Friday night and return home to the XL Center to host the Warriors on Sunday afternoon.
Since joining Hockey East in 2014-15, the Huskies are 2-4-5 against Merrimack. Both UConn wins have been shutouts including the last meeting between the two schools, a 5-0 Huskies win in Hartford last February. The win ended a seven-game winless streak against the Warriors (0-3-4) that dated back to 2014-15.Â
The Huskies are looking for their first win at Lawler Rink since the 2012-13 season, a 3-1 win in a non-conference match-up.
UConn is back in action after a two-week layoff that ended the opening month of October. November will be the Huskies busiest month of the season with 10 games on the slate, six at home in XL Center.
UConn is coming off their first win of the season, 5-2, at Renssalear on October 18. Five different Huskies scored with sophomores Ruslan Iskhakov and Carter Turnbull both collecting a goal and an assist in the win.
The Huskies have a plenty of youth on their roster in 2019-20 with 18 combined sophomores and freshmen, and that youth has powered the offense in the early going. Of the nine goal scorers thus far, eight are either a freshmen or sophomores, and the two classes have combined for 25 of the team's 33 total points (10/15a) through four games.
Sophomore Jachym Kondelik is one of five players tied for the team lead with three points. Kondelik has scored twice and added an assist through four games. He was the team's top-returning point producer after finishing his rookie season with 26 points (4g/22a), second on the club.
Sophomore goaltender Tomas Vomacka made a career-high 45 saves in the season opener at Sacred Heart. He made 20 saves in the second period alone, including stopping a penalty shot. Vomacka has started all four games this season and sports a 2.98 goals against and a .910 save percentage.
Last Season vs. Merrimack
Jan. 12, 2019 - Lawler RInk
Merrimack got goals from five different players on the way to a 5-2 victory over the Huskies at Lawler Rink last January. Merrimack built a 4-0 lead through two periods before the Huskies began to mount a comeback threat. Both UConn goals came in the third period from senior Karl El-Mir and freshman Jachym Kondelik. The senior broke the shut-out at the three minute mark of the third on a power play goal and Kondelik pulled the Huskies to within 4-2 at 11:02. Merrimack ended the threat however just over a minute later as August von Ungern-Sternberg scored his first collegiate goal to ice away the win. The Huskies outshot Merrimack 28-27 with junior Adam Huska making 22 saves in the loss.
Feb. 9, 2019 - XL Center
UConn freshman Jonny Evans scored twice and assisted on two more while fellow rookie Tomas Vomacka stopped 29 shots to record his first career shutout as the Huskies posted 5-0 win over at the XL Center. In addition to Evan's four point night, fellow freshman Ruslan Iskhakov scored a goal and added an assist to match his career-high for points. Junior Benjamin Freeman added a goal and an assist and sophomore Zac Robbins scored his first of the season in the win. UConn notched their first shutout at home since a 4-0 win over Alabama Huntsville back on October 8, 2016. Vomacka stopped seven in the first, 15 in the second and sealed it with seven saves in the third for his fourth win on the season.
