Connecticut gave Hudson Schandor an opportunity, but he’s given plenty back.
Schandor, Connecticut’s 5-foot-9, 175-pound graduate student forward from North Vancouver, B.C., recently surpassed 100 career points with a goal and two assists in a 4-1 win at New Hampshire last Friday, becoming the second-highest scorer in program history since it joined Hockey East in 2014.
“The biggest thing for me is, I’m proud to get this done as a Husky,” Schandor said. “I’m so grateful, really, for everyone here, for all that they’ve given to me and the opportunity they’ve given me. It’s hard not to get emotional when I talk about it. It’s a special place.”
Lightly recruited out of high school, Schandor has thrived in his time at UConn. His 104 career points as of this writing puts him one behind the school’s all-time leader in the Hockey East era, Jáchym Kondelík, who played forward for the Huskies from 2018-22 and now plays professionally overseas.
“These guys gave me an opportunity when I didn’t have a ton,” Schandor said. “I wasn’t in the best head space when they first reached out. (I) don’t know how high their expectations were of me, but the way they kind of brought me in and put their arms around me, everyone on the staff, it’s special. It’s truly a family here, and to be a part of it and to be able to be a leader here on this team now, it’s an unbelievable feeling.”
Schandor is currently third in Hockey East in scoring in conference play with five goals and eight assists. His goal against UNH, which came at 18:19 of the first period and put UConn up 1-0, was the Huskies’ nation-leading sixth shorthanded goal of the season.
“I don’t think we’ve had a penalty kill this aggressive, ever, in (my) time here,” Schandor said. “To be able to score as many shorthanded goals as we have this year is just a testament to the intelligence within our staff and within the guys on the kill. It’s like a special-operations unit we have going right now.”
Schandor earned high praise from Huskies coach Mike Cavanaugh, who noted Schandor started as a fourth-line player with a partial scholarship, working his way into a full scholarship.
“He’s the epitome of what I want in a UConn hockey player — on the ice, off the ice, he does all the little things,” Cavanaugh said. “Three-time captain — that should say enough about him as a player. (I) wish I had 30 of him. You’d be very successful if you had a lot of kids like Hudson Schandor.”
The Huskies currently sit in third place in the Hockey East standings and could be alone in first by the end of the weekend. UConn will visit league-leading Maine Friday and Saturday night (7 p.m. both nights on ESPN+).
Whatever happens to UConn the rest of the season, Schandor said he’s happy to be on the ride. While contemplating his hockey future after his senior season in 2023-24, Schandor said he weighed all options, but decided on one more year as a Husky.
“Something I’ve also learned here is the true power of loyalty,” he said. “Being a Canadian kid and coming to these American universities, you (find) out pretty quickly how much loyalty means to these guys. (It’s) a family. It truly is. And to be a part of the UConn family, for one more year, my last year, was something that outweighed everything.”
