Following a tough one-goal loss to Quinnipiac (11–6–1, 4–5–0 ECAC) last Saturday, the Yale women’s hockey team (3–7–2, 2–3–1 ECAC) will have a chance at redemption against the Bobcats in a Saturday rematch, its last game action until Jan. 7. Prior to that showdown, the Bulldogs will travel to Princeton to take on the Tigers (3–9–1, 3–5–1 ECAC) in another important ECAC matchup Friday night.

[ydn-legacy-photo-inline id=”5388″ ]

The loss to Quinnipiac saw goalie Jackee Snikeris ’11 make 41 saves in just her second game back from an injury, a performance that, when combined with her 28-save showing Friday in an upset win over the University of Connecticut, earned her ECAC Goalie of the Week honors in just her first week back.

Another senior, forward Bray Ketchum ’11 also comes into this weekend on a hot streak, having scored four goals in her last five games. Her line, made up of Ketchum, Aleca Hughes ’12 and Alyssa Zupon ’13, has accounted for more than half of the team’s fourteen goals over the same span.

“Bray, Aleca and I complement each other well because we all have different styles but each of us contributes a unique strength to the line’s dynamic.” Zupon said of the Bulldogs’ top line. “Every game, we want to set the tone for the team with aggression, a dynamic offense, power, and reliability … our line thrives on momentum, and once we start being successful, we feed off of that positive emotion and energy and refuse to slow down.”

Princeton, coming off a tough 2–1 loss to No. 5 BU, hopes to slow that line and the rest of the Bulldog offense down. Goalie Rachel Weber, though winless in the past six games for the Tigers, has played to a .904 save percentage over a span that has seen the Tigers play four ranked teams.

Quinnipiac’s Victoria Vigilante will also be a force to be reckoned with for the Bulldog offense. The sophomore made 22 saves against Yale in the Bobcat win Saturday and has kept opponents to 1.87 goals per game so far this season.

Her adversary, Snikeris, will also have her work cut out for her. The Bobcats sport freshman phenom Kelly Babstock, who leads the nation in points (33), and is third in goals (15) and second in assists (18). She was named ECAC Rookie of the Week this week, while teammate Kate Wheeler, whose goal beat the Bulldogs Saturday, was the conference’s Player of the Week.

“Quinnipiac plays aggressively all over the ice and we need to move the puck faster next weekend and keep them out of the front of the net,” Yale captain Sam MacLean ’11 said after Saturday’s game. “We can’t give them so many rebounds and shots from the point when they’re all crashing the net. I think we know what we have to work on to be more successful next weekend.”

The Bulldogs will look to put the lessons they learned Saturday to work this weekend as they face off against the Tigers and Bobcats in their last chance to make a mark before over a month off for exams and break.