Robert Morris will return to CHA hockey play in the 2023-24 season, so there will be five teams competing in the conference this season. Penn State were picked first in the pre-season coaches poll, followed closely by Syracuse and Mercyhurst.
Lindenwood
Last Season
6-22-1, 4-9-1 (fourth). Lost to RIT in the opening round of the CHA tournament.
Names to Know
Sarah Waszkielewicz and Quinn Mclaren are both 5’11” freshmen defenders that Lindenwood will need to be impactful early on in their careers.
Natalie Ferenc and Julia Maguire split time in net last season and are likely to be used in a similar capacity this season. Having familiarity back there should help give the young skaters some confidence.
What To Watch For
Generally when teams are struggling to build up a program and amass wins, it’s because they aren’t very prolific on offense. But Lindenwood was better than half the teams in the country, scoring 2.45 goals per game. The Lions averaged 9.93 penalty minutes a game and gave up 29 power play goals last season on their way to allowing an average of 4.62 goals against per game – the second worst team defense in the nation. They simply have to get better in their own end.
Crystal Ball
I have Lindenwood finishing fifth.
Mercyhurst
Last Season
21-12-2, 10-6 (third). Lost to Syracuse in the CHA Tournament championship game.
Names to know
Vanessa Upson was the conference Rookie of the Year last season and returns to the ice for her sophomore season as the preseason pick for CHA Player of the Year. She had a stellar debut season, leading the CHA in points in conference play with 22 on 12 goals and 10 assists. She was the nation’s top freshman scorer in points and goals scored with 39 and 19, respectively.
Goalie Ena Nystrøm was named to the preseason all-CHA team. Her .939 save percentage last season was tied for seventh best in the country.
What To Watch For
This is a fairly young team that received outstanding contributions from rookies last season so I’m excited to see what they can do with that experience. Upson was named an associate captain and will be expected to take on a lot in her sophomore season. Lilliane Perrault is great at finding sticks and dishing pucks from the blue line, but I’d like to see the Lakers get better at moving the puck around down low.
Similar to Penn State, Mercyhurst has not set itself an easy task to start the season, with series against Colgate, Clarkson and Cornell making up part of their non-conference schedule. It has felt in recent years like the Lakers have lost some ground to Syracuse and Penn State, but this roster is promising and Mercyhurst should make a push at a regular spot in the new 15-team poll.
Crystal Ball
I have Mercyhurst third.
Penn State
Last Season
18-10-5, 8-3-3 (second). Lost to Mercyhurst in the CHA semifinals.
Names to know
Freshman Tessa Janecke was another breakout star of the U18 Women’s World Championships held in Madison in June. She tallied three goals and three assists and was named CHA preseason Rookie of the Year. Among a very talented US roster, she stood out and had a knack for scoring opportune goals.
Transfers Courtney Correia (Boston University) and Eleri MacKay (Colgate) are spending their final year of eligibility at Penn State. Correia led the Terriers in goals and points last season while MacKay added 7 goals and 9 assists for the Raiders.
Junior Josie Bothun was named to the preseason All-CHA team. She was second in the nation with eight shutouts last season and broke her own school record for most wins in a season with 18. Her 1.74 goals against average was 12th best in the country.
What to Watch For
Penn State has gone hard on the non-conference schedule this season, hosting Wisconsin, playing a set of games against UMD and St. Lawrence in Canton, NY, hosting Colgate and playing at Boston College in the first four weekends of play. They did not get a win in four games against St. Lawrence and BC to start last season, but came away with a tie and three one-goal losses. That might be disappointing, but I think it helps them know how they stack up and prepares them for possible post-season play. It also shows them what work needs to be done. Far too few schools are aggressive in this area and I like that Jeff Kampersal is pushing this at Penn State.
This Nittany Lion roster continues to gain depth. I expect a bigger role for Kiara Zanon and I hope to see more scoring from Julie Gough and Olivia Wallin. Mallory Uiehlein was named to the preseason all-CHA team and should continue to be solid for them up front.
Crystal Ball
The CHA is usually one of the harder conferences for me to predict. I like how much of a toss up it is, which means that while I have Penn State first now, I don’t think that will have much bearing on how things play out in the end.
RIT
Last Season
2-27-4, 1-12-3 (fifth). Lost to Syracuse in the CHA tournament semifinals.
Names to know
Sophomore Sarah Coe continued the tradition of talented and resilient goaltending for the Tigers in her rookie season. A CHA All-Rookie Team selection, she set the RIT single-season record for most minutes in a season (1,412), saves in a season (879) and games played in a season (28) while leading the CHA with 31.39 saves per game.
Junior Emma Roland led the team with nine goals and nine assists last season after tallying just one assist in the shortened 20-21 season.
What to Watch For
The growth of this Tigers team over the course of last season was evident, even if it didn’t always show up on the scoreboard. They had some hard-fought ties and heartbreaking overtime losses, but their margin of defeat in their final few games was much narrower than it was when the season started. Those sound like platitudes, but I was impressed with the way they fought through the whole season.
Crystal Ball
I have RIT finishing fourth.
Syracuse
Last Season
15-11-6, 11-4-1 (first). Lost to Quinnipiac in the NCAA regional.
Names to know
Coach Britni Smith takes over the helm in Syracuse after Paul Flanagan retired at the end of last season. The former Clarkson assistant inherits last season’s CHA regular season and tournament champions.
Sophomore Sarah Marchand is the top returning scoring for the Orange. Her 10 goals and 15 assists were second on the team last season, but she took half as many shots as her linemates. She’s got a great conversion rate, but she also needs to be putting the puck on net more often.
Grad student Lauren Bellfontaine was named to the preseason All-CHA team. Last year’s CHA Best Defensive Forward, she’s also one of the best players in the country in the faceoff circle. Her prowess sets the tone for the offense.
Freshman Rhea Hicks had two goals and an assist for Canada en route to a gold medal at the U18 Women’s World Championships in Madison in June.
What to Watch For
Last season, Syracuse averaged 2.66 goals scored and 2.50 goals allowed. They rode that tight margin to the top this season, but the rest of the league is better this year and the Orange will have to replace the goal-scoring prowess of Abbey Moloughney and the set up of Jessica DiGiralamo. The team relied on both of them to come up big in big moments and DiGiralamo led the team in shots by a wide margin. A number of young players were good in supporting roles last season, but if this team is going to defend its titles, they need some players to step into more central roles for this offense.
Crystal Ball
I have them second, but think at this point, they’re a perpetual contender to win the tournament and earn the autobid.
