Friday-Saturday, Dec. 6-7
NCHA
Adrian at St. Scholastica
Already halfway toward their 14 wins of a year ago, the Saints have the top three scorers in the nation in Nina Waidacher, Isabel Waidacher and Michelle Fischer. St. Scholastica is the lone team with a goals-per-game average of over five. Adrian ranks fourth with a 4.50 average. Most likely, a battle of special teams will decide the outcome. The Saints bring an outstanding power play to the table. Although the hosts have carved out a whopping 41.5 percent success rate with the advantage, the Bulldogs are among the top penalty killing units with a 91.8 percent record. St. Scholastica 5-3, 4-2
WIAC
Wisconsin-River Falls vs. Wisconsin-Superior (home and home)
Stingy defense has been the norm on both sides recently;,Wis.-River Falls allowing just two scores in its last three, and the Yellowjackets a similar three goals against over the same period. Wis.-River Falls has been involved in a number of early season shootouts, having been involved in five games with combined goals of eight or more. The Yellowjackets’ offense has received outstanding work from forward Dani Schultz who has produced 10 points and three game-winners thus far. Wis.-Superior has not allowed a power-play tally its last 13 attempts. Home advantage goes a long way in this two game set. Wis.-Superior 4,-3 Wis.-River Falls 6-4
MIAC
St. Olaf at Gustavus Adolphus (home and home)
Mike Carroll’s Golden Gusties rank fourth in the nation in team defense, with eight goals given up in seven games. Contrarily, St. Olaf’s defense has been porous, making the challenge not so favorable for the overmatched Oles. Gustavus Adolphus 6-2, 5-0
Nonconference
Saturday Dec. 7
Colby at Southern Maine
This is the second meeting of two teams with serious top 10 aspirations. The Mules squeezed out a slim 1-0 win with a mid-third period goal in a late November matchup. The Huskies have a slight advantage in offensive play at this point in the season, but have lined up against foes lacking the cache of what Colby has faced thus far. Southern Maine’s opponents have compiled an overall record of 20-32-4, while the Mules have taken on teams that have an overall mark of 15-11-1. Colby is currently 2-2-0 against ranked or previously ranked clubs, while the Huskies are 0-1-0. Southern Maine senior forward Erin Banfield will be the lone skater on the ice who has at least a point-per-game average. Banfield has a registered a pair of game-winning scores as well. Mules’ sophomore Megan Fortier leads the team in goals with four. The power play units on both sides have struggled recently, which very well could be a deciding factor on the USM Ice Arena venue. Colby has shown adeptness on the road, albeit in a small sample, following an eye-opening 3-2 OT win over Bowdoin. Colby 4-3
Sunday Dec. 8
Amherst at Norwich
Amherst’s first week among the top 10 (No. 9) offers up a quality matchup with No. 3 Norwich, which has a seven-game win streak heading into weekend play. The Lady Jeffs’ top three point leaders have been held to a simmer recently, putting up a combined 2-1-3 over the last three games. The Cadets will skate off against Bowdoin on Saturday, while Amherst is idle, which may be meaningful but Norwich at home will be difficult to overtake regardless. Norwich 4-2
