Season Outlook: St. Lawrence Hunts for National Title

CANTON, N.Y. -- The St. Lawrence University women’s hockey team continued to solidify itself as one of the nation’s powerhouses in 2007-08, as the Scarlet and Brown advanced to their fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament and to the ECAC Hockey Championship Game last March. In 2008-09, the Saints will welcome back five of their top eight scorers, including senior captain Marianna Locke and assistant captains Carson Duggan and Alison Domenico. Their leadership, along with a talented crop of incoming students could once again put St. Lawrence in the hunt for the program’s first Division I National Championship.

The 2008-2009 team, under the new guidance of head coach Chris Wells, will have a combination of speed, strength, hockey-intelligence, goaltending, experience and leadership that will certainly keep them at the forefront of the sport. The Saints’ depth should not be overlooked, however, as the incoming group of first year students will also play an intricate part in the quest for an ECAC Hockey and National Title.

St. Lawrence’s offense will suffer a huge loss on paper with the graduation of the 388 career points of Sabrina Harbec and Chelsea Grills. Despite losing their two leading scorers from last season, the Saints can remain optimistic thanks to their outstanding scoring depth and corps of incoming rookies.

The Saints’ Class of 2009 is an integral part of the team’s offensive success. Carson Duggan, ECAC Hockey’s “Co-Rookie of the Year” in 2005-06, leads a strong group of senior forwards into their final year of collegiate hockey. Duggan, a Ma-Me-O Beach, Alberta native, has led the Saints in goals in each of her three seasons and will serve as an Assistant Captain for the 2008-09 campaign.

Meanwhile, fellow assistant captain Alison Domenico joined Duggan in the “Century Club” last season after a 36-point year. The Nepean, Ontario native led the squad with 11 power play goals last season and remained one of the team’s stand-out defensive forwards. Not to be overlooked are captain Marianna Locke and assistant captain Lisa Batchelor, who have both been steady contributors to the team’s offense over their three seasons. Lock stands only nine points shy of the 100 career point mark and tied Duggan with 21 goals last season. Senior Jordan Pyers also had a tidy junior year with four goals and two assists.

Though the team’s corps group of seniors will certainly anchor the offense, junior Tara Akstull turned many heads with a 42-point burst in 2007-08 after only tallying 14 points in her rookie year. The Clifton Park, NY native was the team’s third-leading scorer last year and become a key weapon on the Saints’ power play. The other key returner to the Saints’ group of forwards is sophomore Karell Emard, who picked up 24 points in her first year on five goals and 19 assists. Her efforts landed the Richelieu, Quebec native ECAC Hockey All-Rookie Team honors, and she will certainly be a player to watch in 2008-09.

Other returning forwards who will look to add to their offensive numbers from a year ago include junior Karlee Shields, who had two assists in her first season with St. Lawrence, and sophomore Kyrsten Venasse who chipped in two goals and a helper.

Coach Wells welcomes three new additions to the Saints’ forwards this season, including Alley Bero, Emma Clark and Vanessa Emond. Bero is a highly-touted player from the North Country who put up monster numbers with the Cornwall Typhoons. She is a solid skater and will add more pop to the team’s offense. Clark is out of the Culver Academy and will use her skill to add speed and another scoring threat, while Emond is a former teammate of Karell Emard with the Dawson College Blues and should fare nicely in the Saints’ offense.

The St. Lawrence defensive unit suffered major losses at the blue line with the graduation of All-American Annie Guay and All-Conference honoree Kerri Wallace. Though the Scarlet and Brown will be without their two leading defensive scorers from a year ago, they will return an experienced group with enormous talent.

This is the year for juniors Britni Smith and Brittaney Maschmeyer to take the reigns as the leaders of the defense, as they are now the group’s most experienced members. Maschmeyer has never missed a start in her St. Lawrence career, having now played in 79 consecutive games. The Bruderheim, Alberta native had her best offensive season in 2007-08, as she scored five goals and added 11 assists for 16 points. Smith remained a reliable penalty killer while totaling 14 points (3g,11a) in 35 games.

Sawchuk was surely the surprise of last season, as she began the campaign as a steady forward. However, she volunteered to help shore up the team’s defense midway through the year, and her efforts were unmatched. The Sherwood Park, Alberta native’s shifty skating and constant defensive pressure frustrated opponents and made her one of the team’s go-to blue liners by the end of the season.

Michelle Zimmerman was the lone rookie defenseman remaining at the blue line after the 2007-08 season, as she put up sound numbers in her first year. Zimmerman finished with 11 points (2g,9a) in 39 games and added the game-winning goal against Clarkson at Cheel Arena in her first visit to the Saints’ archrival’s barn.

Meanwhile, junior Becky Street will continue to be a reserve defenseman for the 2008-09 campaign, though the Shelburne, VT native did play in the first three games of her collegiate career last year. Joining the mix this season will be first year students Sarianne Lynn and Josee Belanger, who both had stand-out careers along the blue line before heading the Canton, NY.

St. Lawrence University had to say goodbye to long-time starter Meaghan Guckian, who graduated with the University’s career shut-out record. Though the Scarlet and Brown will miss their predominant starter, with Maxie Weisz facing a wrist injury, the Saints brought in a back-up plan: Brittony Chartier.

Chartier was a stand-out goaltender at the University of Minnesota for two seasons before taking a year away from college. She had very impressive numbers playing a tough WCHA schedule, posting a 2.13 goals against average and a .903 save percentage. With a 5’11 frame and the personality to match, she immediately becomes one of the team’s cornerstones for the next two years.

Weisz has never disappointed her team, as she comes into her junior year with a perfect 9-0-0 overall record. However, she suffered a wrist injury during the season last year, and will likely be unavailable to the Saints until mid-season. The St. Lawrence coaching staff then added New Canaan, CT native Nikki Bongaerts to the roster, as she led her high school team to a perfect season during her senior campaign.

The St. Lawrence women’s hockey team’s 2008-09 schedule includes both rigorous non-conference opponents as well as traditional demanding ECAC Hockey foes.

The Scarlet and Brown may own the country’s toughest early-season schedule, as they waste no time before facing ranked opponents. They open this season at No. 9 Providence and Connecticut, who nearly earned an NCAA Tournament at-large berth last season. The Saints then head to No. 4 UNH and an up-and-coming Boston University team who the Scarlet and Brown will face for the first time.

St. Lawrence’s home non-conference series include back-to-back games against Robert Morris, Ohio State and Boston College. All eyes will also turn to Erie, PA on December 12 and 13 when national powerhouses Mercyhurst and St. Lawrence collide in important games that could have NCAA Tournament implications.

St. Lawrence will kick-off the ECAC Hockey regular season schedule on November 7th and 8th at Yale and Brown. Two dates that many will circle on their calendars are November 14th and 15th when nationally-ranked Harvard and Dartmouth make the trip to Canton, NY. The Saints will then return the favor for the final two regular season games of 2008-09 on February 20 and 21.

Finally, a new age in the St. Lawrence-Clarkson rivalry begins on January 21st when the Golden Knights visit Appleton Arena, as both teams add new head coaches to the mix (former SLU players Matt and Shannon Desrosiers are behind the Clarkson bench.)

The 2008-09 ECAC Quarterfinal round (best-of-three series) will begin on Friday, February 27th and will conclude on Sunday, March 1, with the semifinals and finals coming the following weekend at the highest remaining seed (March 7th and 8th).

Following the conference tournament, NCAA Tournament seedings will be announced and the National Quarterfinals will begin at the highest seeds Friday and Saturday, March 13-14. The 2008 Frozen Four will then be held for the four advancing teams from March 20-22 in Boston, MA.

The Saints will face their first test tonight, Friday, October 3rd when they face McGill at Appleton Arena in an exhibition game beginning at 7:00pm.