Accolades continue for Connecticut Huskies goaltender Elaine Chuli during improved season

-
After a difficult freshman season, Elaine Chuli has emerged as one of the comeback players of the year in Hockey East. Standing between the pipes for the Connecticut Huskies program, she is beginning to establish herself as an elite backstop.

With the Huskies standing as one of the feel-good stories of the 2013-14 NCAA hockey season, Chuli, a native of Waterford, Ontario, capped off a remarkable month of January with Hockey East Co-Goaltender of the Month honors. Sharing the nod with Corinne Boyles of the Boston College Eagles, it is an award that celebrates how far the team has come in such a short period of time.

Posting a won-loss mark of 3-7-0 during the month of January, there were positive signs for Chuli and her fellow Huskies. Considering the fact that no more than three goals were scored by an opposing team in any of those losses, it shows a much disciplined style of play on defense.

Victories against Vermont, New Hampshire and Providence highlighted the month. Losses to prominent programs such as Boston University and Harvard were only by one goal.

Statistically, she registered a sparkling 1.52 goals against average, complemented by a solid .955 save percentage in January. It improves her season numbers to a GAA of 2.67 while her save percentage on the season improves to .924, good for third among Hockey East goaltenders.

A 2-0 win on the road against the Vermont Catamounts provided Chuli with her first career shutout. Of note, it would serve as the first shutout for the rebuilding program since November 2011.

Perhaps most impressive was the fact that Chuli earned Hockey East Defensive Player of the Week honors twice in January. She was recognized for the week of January 6 after a 33 save effort in a loss at Princeton. The week of January 27 saw Chuli earn her second honor as she stopped 66 of 68 shots in a two-game series against the Providence Friars.


Considering this is the first monthly honor won by a Huskies player since goaltender Alexandra Garcia earned Goalie of the Month honors in November 2010, Chuli is helping to propel the Huskies in a positive direction. As she now boasts four conference awards this season, a playoff berth certainly looms ahead for a goaltender with a bright future. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Cheyenne Matus looking to make her mark with Rowan University

-
The road that Cheyenne Matus followed on her way to university hockey is one that many have taken before her. Competing in boys’ hockey, the feelings of resentment add to an uneasiness that is all too often, a sad yet character-building rite of passage. While she competed in other sports, such as soccer and softball, the Friday Night Skate at the local armory had captivated her. Three years later, the experience of house league hockey and private lessons paid dividends as Matus became a budding star in the various Boys Leagues. Reality would rear its ugly head once Matus became of high school age. Despite the fact that her skills were such that she was invited to compete in the high school spring league (before her freshman year was to begin), she found herself unfairly isolated and ostracized because she was the only girl competing. Once summer became autumn and school bells filled the air, Matus had endured three difficult days of tryouts. Despite showing hard work and d
Read more

Sarah Davis contributes three points as Minnesota Golden Gophers capture first game of 2014 Hockey City Classic

-
Image
For a Minnesota Golden Gophers squad that has made its share of NCAA women’s hockey history, January 18 marked a new milestone for the proud program. Competing at TCF Bank Stadium, the Golden Gophers competed in their first home outdoor game. It was also the first NCAA Division I outdoor game ever held in the state of Minnesota. With an attendance of 6,623 fans, it was the largest attendance for a home game since November 2, 1997, the first game in program history (an 8-0 win against Augsburg). Of note, the Golden Gophers played in one other outdoor game, a January 29, 2011 contest on the road versus the Wisconsin Badgers. Attendance for that event was 10,668 fans, the highest attendance for a road game in program history. Playing against fellow WCHA rivals, the Minnesota-State Mankato Mavericks, the Hockey City Classic marked what fans hope can become an annual tradition. Improving their mark to 21-1-1 on the strength of three points by Sarah Davis, the Golden Gophers have
Read more

Acquisition of Bailey Bram by Sweden’s Linkoping a revolutionary step in women’s game

-
Image
While the world of women’s hockey is dominated in international play by Canada and the United States, the borders in the global game are slowly dissolving. Last season, All-World goaltender Florence Schelling spoiled Canadian hockey fans by competing with the CWHL’s Brampton Thunder. In January 2014, Sweden’s LHC Dam (also known as Linkoping) has reciprocated by bringing Bailey Bram into the fold. Truly a historic signing, it recognizes the value that women's players from North America mean to the growth of the game globally. Ironically, Bram was Schelling’s teammate with the Thunder for the 2012-13 season.   The sojourn to Sweden represents the third country where Bram shall play competitive hockey. In addition to her native Canada, she played four years of collegiate hockey in the United States with Mercyhurst College in Erie, Pennsylvania. Reputed as a great team player and a friendly personality, Bram is the perfect ambassador for the game in Sweden.     Having pla
Read more