Clarkson Announces 2008-09 Schedule

Photo by Jim Meagher

First-year co-head coaches Shannon and Matt Desrosiers will guide the Clarkson University Women's Hockey team in its most competitive schedule ever this season. The Golden Knights, with 14 lettermen returning, will be tested early and often during the 2008-09 campaign, playing nine games against teams that were ranked among the Top 10 in the nation in the final 2008 USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll.

Click here for complete schedule as a PDF

"This year's schedule will be one of the most challenging we have seen at Clarkson," stated Shannon Desrosiers.  "We have a very difficult opening to our season so there will be no time to ease into anything.  Everyone must come prepared to work hard and hit the ground running in order to start the season off on the right foot."

Following an exhibition contest against Ottawa PWHL on September 27, marking the earliest starting date ever for the Green and Gold, Clarkson officially opens its sixth season on October 4 with the first of eight road games in the opening 10 games of the season.  The Knights, who will be led by senior captain Kimberly McKenney (Smiths Falls, ONT) and senior assistant captains Marie-Jo Gaudet (Sherbrooke, QUE) and Courtney O'Connor (Chicago, IL), will play a weekend series at Boston College. A top team in Hockey East, the Eagles advanced to the 2007 NCAA Frozen Four.

Returning to New England on October 18, Clarkson will face Boston University, a rising program in Hockey East, at Agganis Arena, site of the 2009 Frozen Four. The next day, the Knights travel to Durham, NH to battle perennial NCAA powerhouse the University of New Hampshire.

The first of 17 regular season home games at Cheel Arena takes place on October 24 when Clarkson hosts Mercyhurst College at the start of a two-game series. The Lakers have participated in the past four NCAA Tournaments.

After a trip to the Buffalo, NY metro region for a weekend series at Niagara University on October 31 and November 1, Clarkson begins ECAC Hockey play. The Knights open the 22-game league campaign at Brown University on November 7.

"We believe our conference should be very close again this coming year," says Shannon Desrosiers. "So every point is going to be important.  I think we learned a lot about that last season so our girls should be well prepared and motivated to compete hard every night."

Clarkson will face defending league champion Harvard University in its first ECAC Hockey home game of the season on November 14, followed by conference powerhouse Dartmouth College on November 15.

A pair of Wednesday night encounters against arch-rival St. Lawrence University stand out in the 2009 portion of the schedule. The Knights play the Saints in Canton on January 21 and then meet up with their North Country foe in Potsdam on February 4.

Quinnipiac University, guided by former Clarkson coach Rick Seeley, visits Cheel Arena on February 14.

Clarkson will also host non-league weekend series against the University of Vermont and the University of Maine to round out the 35-game schedule.

Last season, Clarkson skated to its best record to date with a 24-9-5 overall record and a fourth-place 13-6-3 ECAC Hockey mark.