WORCESTER, Mass. - The Holy Cross men's ice hockey team will face off against No. 20 University of Connecticut for a home-and-home series this weekend. Friday's matchup, in Worcester, Mass., will stream on NESN+, while Saturday's matchup in Storrs, Conn. will stream on ESPN+. Both games will begin at 7 p.m.

THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT HOLY CROSS (1-0-0, 0-0-0 AHA):

• The 2022-23 AHA Championship runner-up Holy Cross Crusaders return 19 players, while adding six freshmen and two transfers to the fold.
• Holy Cross defeated LIU last week in their season opener, 5-2, earning them votes in the USCHO poll this week. Nine Crusaders recorded a point in the win, with Ghirardosi netting two empty-net goals to put the game on ice.
• Ricketts was named the AHA Forward of the Week for recording two assists and 17 faceoff wins, both team highs, while anchoring a penalty kill unit that ended the night 7-for-8.
• Senior Jake Higgins and juniors Matt DeBoer and Liam McLinskey picked up their first goals of the season, while senior Alec Cicero, junior Matt Shatsky, and sophomore Devin Phillips picked up their first assists. Freshman Brody Gagno recorded his first collegiate point, an assist, on the second goal of the game.
• Friday's game will be the team's Brain Cancer Awareness Game, where the team will recognize 10-year old Giuseppe Struppe, a member of the Junior Crusaders hockey team.

 
SCOUTING #20 UCONN (1-0-1, 0-0-0 Hockey East):

• After finishing fourth in Hockey East last season with an overall record of 20-12-3 and a league record of 13-9-2, the Huskies were selected to finish fifth this season. 
• The Huskies welcomed back four of their top five goal scorers from last season, while adding five freshmen and two transfers to the fold.
• In their opening games against Colgate last weekend, UConn took a win and a tie out of their two-game set.
• On Friday, UConn defeated Colgate, 4-2, before skating to a 3-3 tie on Saturday.
• Sophomore Matthew Wood and freshman Jake Richard lead the Huskies in points with three each, while Wood and sophomore Samu Salminen lead the team in goals with two each.

 
LAST TIME THEY MET:

• The Crusaders are 48-52-2 all-time against the Huskies.
• Their last meeting was in the 2013-2014 season, a two-game set on Feb. 14-15. The Crusaders took the first meeting, 3-1, while the Huskies won the second meeting, 0-5.

FOLLOW THE CRUSADERS 
Be sure to follow the Holy Cross men's ice hockey team — and all things Crusader Athletics — on social media!
Twitter - @HCrossMHockey | @goholycross
Instagram - @hcrossmhockey | @goholycross
Facebook - Holy Cross Men's Ice Hockey | Holy Cross Athletics
YouTube - GoHolyCross