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Under first-year head coach Britni Smith, Syracuse looks to repeat as College Hockey America champions. Last season, the Orange earned the top seed in the conference tournament with a regular season record of 11-4-1 before winning the CHA tournament. SU defeated RIT 3-2 in overtime in the semifinals, then beat Mercyhurst for the title by the same scoreline. Sarah Thompson scored the game-winning goal in overtime, giving SU its second ever NCAA tournament berth, eventually losing 4-0 to Quinnipiac in the first round.

The Orange lost Abby Moloughney, their top scorer with 17 goals last season, who had a hat trick in the CHA semifinals. Another forward, Victoria Klimek, who tied for second on the team with 10 goals, also graduated along with defenders Shelby Calof and Jessica DiGirolamo. 

Syracuse returns three of its top five scorers, including sophomores Sarah Marchand and Madison Primeau, as well as graduate student Lauren Bellefontaine, who set the single-season record for faceoff wins last year. 

Mae Batherson leads a young blueline as the lone senior defenseman on the roster. Junior Hannah Johnson also brings experience defensively and played in all 32 of SU’s games last season. Goalie Arielle DeSmet also returns in her second season with the Orange. 

Syracuse opened up nonconference play with a 3-0 loss to No. 6 Colgate last week. As their home opener is set for next week against St. Lawrence, here’s a quick preview of the Orange’s 2022-23 team:

Opponents on the schedule 

SU continues its nonconference schedule with a two-game road trip against Merrimack, before two more games against St. Lawrence and Clarkson, both of whom Syracuse lost to last season.

On Oct. 21, Syracuse will play Clarkson for a third time in the Adirondack Ice Breaker Tournament in Lake Placid. Depending on the result, Syracuse will face off against Holy Cross or St. Lawrence in the next round. Other nonconference games for SU include Princeton, Vermont, Post, Colgate, Cornell and Stonehill. 

Syracuse opens up Conference Hockey America play at home on Oct. 27 against RIT, who SU defeated in all five meetings last season. SU also had success last season against Lindenwood, beating them in three of four matchups. The Orange will play Lindenwood at Tennity Ice Pavilion on Nov. 4 and 5.

In a rematch of the CHA championship last season, SU will visit Mercyhurst on Nov. 18 and 19. The Orange also face the Lakers in their last two conference games Feb. 10 and 11.

SU will play Penn State twice in early December and in February. The Orange defeated the Nittany Lions in two of their four matchups last season, losing once and tying the other. 

If Syracuse finishes in the top three of their conference during the regular season, it gets an automatic bid to the CHA semifinals, which take place from Feb. 24 to Feb. 26. The championship game is on the weekend of March 3-4.

Attacker to Watch: Sarah Marchand 

After finishing second on the team in points (25) her freshman year, Sarah Marchand returns for her sophomore season. Marchand emerged as one of Syracuse’s best passers with a team-high 15 assists, finishing top 10 in the CHA. She won CHA Rookie of the Week three times along with All-Rookie team honors for the conference.

Marchand sees the ice well, having a “pass first mentality,” according to former coach Paul Flanagan.

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To Flanagan, Marchand passed too much and didn’t shoot enough. But on Feb. 5 against Penn State last season, she picked up a loose puck from the neutral zone, creating a two-on-one into the attack. Instead of passing to Klimek, she flicked a wrist shot which found the net for the game-winning goal.

Marchand finished with double-digit goals, one of only two freshmen in the CHA to accomplish that last season. After making ten goals during her first year, she is tied for the fifth most goals a freshman has ever made at Syracuse.

Starting goalie Arielle DeSmet back in net  

After winning CHA Goalie of the Year last season, DeSmet has one more season at Syracuse. The graduate student transferred from Robert Morris, where she played for three years before coming to SU. DeSmet started the season as the backup, but was called into action when Allison Small got injured during the first period of the opening game.

From then on, DeSmet started for the rest of the season, finishing second in the CHA in total saves (775) and save percentage (0.939).

DeSmet recorded a 29-save shutout in a 3-0 win against RIT on Jan. 21. DeSmet had 30 or more saves in 12 of 28 appearances last season, and made a season-high 54 saves against Penn State in a 2-1 win on Feb. 5.

In the opening game of the season against Colgate, DeSmet saved 32 shots, denying Colgate a number of times from point-blank range, despite the 3-0 loss.

Published on September 29, 2022 at 12:32 am

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