WAKEFIELD, Mass. - The Hockey East Association has announced the pairings for the best-of-three quarterfinal round of the 2019 Women's Hockey East championship tournament. Playoff games begin Friday (March 1). A full schedule can be found below.
Hockey East regular-season champion and No. 1 Northeastern (23-5-5/21-3-3 WHEA) will play host to No. 8 Vermont (10-18-6/8-15-4 WHEA) at Matthews Arena as the Huskies earn hosting duties for the seventh time in a row dating back to 2013. The Huskies claimed the regular season crown for just the second time in program history in 2019 after winning their first Bertagna Trophy as WHEA Tournament champions in 2018. Northeastern has advanced to the semifinals each year since 2011. Vermont secured a spot in the playoffs on the season's final day, claiming a 2-2 tie at Maine to claim its seventh all-time playoff appearance. It marks just the second time these two programs have faced in the playoffs, after a 2013 quarterfinal match up that ended in a 5-1 Northeastern win.
No. 2 Boston College (23-10-1/19-7-1 WHEA) welcomes No. 7 UConn (14-16-4/9-14-4 WHEA) to Conte Forum to begin their best-of-three series on Friday. Boston College and UConn have met three times previously in the WHEA Tournament, all three coming in the semifinals. Most recently, the Eagles and Huskies clashed in the 2018 semifinals, a 4-2 UConn victory, after BC won the previous two meetings in the WHEA Tournament. Last season, UConn advanced all the way to the championship game as the seven seed, the first team do achieve that feat in league history. The Eagles swept the 2018-19 regular season series, 3-0-0.
No. 3 Boston University (19-7-8/15-6-6 WHEA) will entertain No. 6 New Hampshire (13-15-6/10-14-3 WHEA) at Walter Brown Arena as the Terriers look to return to the semifinals after falling in the quarterfinal round on the road last season. All time, BU owns a 4-2 record against the Wildcats in the WHEA Tournament. During the regular season, Boston University staked a 2-0-1 mark over the New Hampshire. New Hampshire looks to return to the semifinals for the first time since 2010.
No. 4 Providence (22-10-2/16-9-2 WHEA) draws No. 5 Merrimack (16-11-7/12-10-5 WHEA) to Schneider Arena for the first playoff meeting between the two programs. The Friars won the season series over the Warriors, 2-0-1. Providence last appeared in the semifinals in 2013 while Merrimack is making just its second postseason appearance (2017) and in search of its first playoff win. If the Friars advance, they will play in their home rink as Schneider Arena hosts the 2019 WHEA Championship, March 9-10.
ABOUT THE WOMEN'S HOCKEY EAST ASSOCIATION: The Women's Hockey East Association is a 10-team Division-I college hockey conference which began play in 2002-2003, with offices based in Wakefield, Mass. Member schools include Boston College, Boston University, University of Connecticut, College of the Holy Cross, University of Maine, Merrimack College, University of New Hampshire, Northeastern University, Providence College and University of Vermont. The league also sponsors an 11-team men's league which began play in 1984.
