Women's College Hockey Game of the Week: No. 6 St. Lawrence vs. No. 13 Princeton

The ECAC conference is back.

This Game of the Week will be played in Tigers territory, with Princeton welcoming the St. Lawrence Saints to Hobey Baker Memorial Rink at 6 p.m. Friday (Nov 1). This will be the Black and Orange's home opener.

The matchup is also the Saints' first game of the season in conference play.

Princeton

Without its best player from last season Sarah Fillier – first overall pick of the 2024 PWHL draft –, Princeton tries to find a new pace to their game.

The Tigers currently hold a 2-2 overall record.

In the ECAC, Princeton previously faced Brown and Yale, dropping both matchups. Against the Bulldogs, the team from New Jersey lost 3-1. Meanwhile, against the Bears, they fell short of one goal, 4-3.

Even with the changes on the team's roster, old and new players have been stepping up and reshaping Princeton's program.

One of the new additions of the Tigers is Mackenzie Alexander, who was just named ECAC Rookie of the Month. The forward has three goals and four assists in only four games played.

However, Sarah Paul is the biggest scorer for Princeton so far. The junior has six goals and the highest shooting percentage in the team. In the 2023-24 season, she achieved her career-best in goals with 16, staying only behind Filler in the team's rankings.

The Tigers have also thrived on the special teams. Princeton holds six power-play goals in four games played.

Defending the net, two netminders have played: Taylor Hyland and Jennifer Olnowich. Olnowich has been the one who started most of the games, conquering a 1-2 record. Uma Corniea is another option for Coach Cara Morey, but even with 18 appearances last season, the sophomore hasn't seen the ice yet.

The Tigers' offensive pressure will be one of the biggest challenges for St. Lawrence in this upcoming matchup.

St. Lawrence

While it's St. Lawrence's first ECAC matchup of the season, the team comes up with a 10-game experience during this season. On non-conference play, the Saints hold a 6-3-1 overall record.

For their last series, St. Lawrence faced RIT. The Saints won the first game 4-1 but tied the second 2-2.

Even holding a considerably low conversion percentage of .160, they have taken the upper hand in most of their matches.

Abby Hustler leads the team in points, with 13. The senior also leads the team in assists (10).

Following right behind is Aly McLeod. The Graduate has 12 points so far and is the leading goal scored with six.

In the decisive moments, two other players stood out. Anna Segedi and Taylor Lum both have two game-winning goals and are tied first in that aspect.

The main goaltender for the Saints has been Emma-Sofie Nordstrom. The Herning, Denmark, native has played nine games, holding a 5-3-1 record.

The other option to defend the goal was Kassidy Lawrence, who won the one game she started.

Final Thoughts

This game promises to be a very exciting one. Both teams will have to deal with its flaws and prevent the other team from gaining from those.

St. Lawrence should look out for Princeton's special teams. Meanwhile, the Tigers should look out for the Saints shooting and scoring accuracy.

Sofia Miranda is a first-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact her, email szc6483@psu.edu.