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The length of a hockey game is 60 minutes.
Playing a full 60-minute game is something the University of Maine women’s ice hockey team (5-5-1 overall, 1-5-1 in ECAC conference play) hopes to accomplish sooner than later, according to head coach Rick Filighera
“The day they go out there and play [a full game] and believe they can get it done against anybody is the day we’ll turn the corner,” Filighera said.
After two losses against No. 6 Niagara a couple weeks ago, the Black Bears stormed back on Nov. 26 with an impressive 8-0 victory against division foe Quinnipiac (1-8-0 overall, 0-6-0 in ECAC).
Sophomore forward Karen Droog tied the UMaine record for goals in a game with four.
Sophomore forward Meagan Aarts tied another UMaine record with four assists in the team’s first victory since a 3-0 shutout on Nov. 1 at Cornell.
The Black Bears now travel to Hanover, N.H. to play a set of games against another powerhouse, No. 3 Dartmouth (6-1-0, 4-0-0), this weekend.
The Big Green are led by Carly Haggard who has nine goals and eight assists through seven games.
Dartmouth goalie Amy Ferguson has compiled a 6-1-0 record, a 1.99 goals against average and a .885 save percentage.
In seven games this season, Dartmouth has outscored its opponents 30-14 and allowed only four goals on 25 power play opportunities.
UMaine will have to exploit all scoring chances and play well on power play opportunities in order to return to Orono with some wins, according to Filighera.
“We are very capable of beating the team,” Filighera said. “It’s going to be a matter of are we going to show up and get the job done.”
UMaine will also have some acute injuries with which to deal. Junior forward Christine Lane left in the second period of the last game because she did not feel well and it is currently unknown if she will able to play.
Senior defenseman Tracy Caridade is having trouble with her back, but is expected to play. Junior forward Cindy Biron will be out indefinitely due to a knee problem. Junior forward Nicole Munro is suffering from pain in her shoulder, but is expected to play this weekend.
After the Black Bears complete this weekend’s games, UMaine will play 15 of the next 17 games at home, a place where the team has not played since Oct. 27.
“That’s going to be huge for us,” Filighera said. “We need to do a little home cooking and get the job done.”
