Leonoff Makes 35 Saves

NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- With one of its international stars away, the Yale women's ice hockey team got a big night from a different one to secure a 5-1 victory over Dartmouth Friday night at Ingalls Rink. Junior forward Hanna Åström, just recently back from playing for her native Sweden in the 4 Nations Tournament, had two goals and two assists to help make up for the absence of sophomore forward Phoebe Staenz (currently in Germany playing for her native Switzerland in the Nations Cup). Senior goaltender Jaimie Leonoff had 35 saves in the win.

"I said to Hanna she's a completely different player now," said Yale head coach Joakim Flygh. "She battled some injuries in the fall, but she had a great tournament with Sweden and I think that gave her confidence. She stepped in tonight and took over the game at times."

Yale (7-6-1, 4-3-0 ECAC Hockey) had not played since a 3-2 win at Rensselaer Dec. 6, and Dartmouth (coming off a 5-1 win at Northeastern Wednesday) had an 11-5 shot advantage in the first period. But the Big Green made one big mistake in the frame, and the Bulldogs made them pay. On a Big Green power play, a Dartmouth player lost control of the puck while falling to the ice just outside her own zone. Åström grabbed the loose puck and skated in all alone to deposit her second goal of the season at 11:02.

Åström struck again at 5:30 of the second to extend the lead to 2-0. After senior Jackie Raines gave the puck to freshman defenseman Mallory Souliotis near Yale's net, Souliotis went coast-to-coast and deked one final defender before sending the puck over to Åström for the finish.

"That was a great move around that defender," said Flygh. "For the last six or eight game in particular Mallory has been great. We're starting to see the type of player she is."

Dartmouth (6-7-1, 2-5-1 ECAC Hockey) crept closer with a highlight-reel goal of its own at 10:00 of the second. On a 2-on-1, forward Samantha Zeiss shoveled the puck across the crease to forward Karlee Odland, whose one-handed deflection snuck over Leonoff's left shoulder.

Yale finished the second period strong, though, scoring twice more to take command. Åström had an assist on the third goal, as did Raines, as they set up sophomore defenseman Taylor Marchin for a hard slap shot on a power play that slipped past Dartmouth goalie Robyn Chemago at 16:39. Raines then finished the period in style with a great individual effort, winning a faceoff to Chemago's left and powering in to score at 18:04 -- just two seconds into a 4-on-4.

"That was a smart play by Jackie, putting the puck where she did -- stick side, high," said Flygh.

Dartmouth upped the offensive intensity in the third period, outshooting the Bulldogs 16-3, but Leonoff stopped all 16 shots to eliminate any chance of a comeback. Junior defenseman Kate Martini, who had a team-high five blocked shots for the game, made the final 5-1 by scoring with 94 seconds left. Åström and junior forward Jamie Haddad assisted on the play.

Dartmouth had come into the game with some of the best power play numbers in the country, having scored on 15 of 45 chances (33 percent). But Yale wound up scoring more times on Big Green power plays than Dartmouth did, thanks to the short-hander by Åström and a 3-for-3 performance by the Yale penalty killing unit.

"We did a good job of blocking shots, and Jaimie did a good job fighting through traffic to see the puck," said Flygh.

Yale, which has won three games in a row, hosts No. 6 Harvard Saturday at 4:00 p.m.

Report by Sam Rubin '95 (sam.rubin@yale.edu), Yale Sports Publicity