By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director

The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's hockey team kicks off its 2018-19 season with a pair of road games, traveling to Resch Olympic Pavilion in Ashwaubenon, Wis., for a 7 p.m. nonconference game against St. Norbert on Friday, before heading to the Blueline Family Ice Center in Fond du Lac, Wis., for a 4 p.m. matchup against Marian the following afternoon.
 
The Matchups:
Friday, October 26, 2018 * Resch Olympic Pavilion, Ashwaubenon, Wis. * 7 p.m.
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (2017-18: 9-14-2 Overall) at St. Norbert Green Knights (2017-18: 9-14-4 Overall)
Saturday, October 27, 2018 * Blueline Family Ice Center, Fond du Lac, Wis. * 4 p.m.
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (2017-18: 9-14-2 Overall) at Marian Sabres (2017-18: 7-20-0 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• St. Norbert: Live Video | Marian: Live Stats * Live Video
 
Last Action:
• This weekend's games are the season-opener for the Cardinals, Green Knights, and Sabres.
 
Saint Mary's vs. Marian—Their Last Meeting:
• October 27, 2017 * Winona, Minn.: Bailey Wendt (Coon Rapids, Minn.) scored the Cardinals' first three goals to lead Saint Mary's to a season-opening 5-3 nonconference win over Marian at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena — and earn first-year head coach Greg Moore his first collegiate coaching win | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. St. Norbert—Their Last Meeting:
• October 28, 2017 * Winona, Minn.: Bailey Wendt (Coon Rapids, Minn.) followed up her three-goal effort against Marian the night before by scoring the Cardinals' first — and last — goals in their 3-1 nonconference victory over St. Norbert at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: Following this weekend's games against St. Norbert and Marian, the Cardinals are off until Nov. 9-10, when they kick off Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play with a pair of games against St. Thomas. Saint Mary's will host the Tommies in a 7 p.m. matchup at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena on Friday, before heading to the St. Thomas Ice Arena in Mendota Heights, Minn., for the 2 p.m. rematch the following day.
• St. Norbert: The Green Knights are back in action on Thursday and Friday, heading to the BMP Harris Bank Center in Rockford, Ill., for a pair of games against Aurora.
• Marian: The Sabres are right back in action — and right back at home at the Blueline Family Center in Fond du Lac, Wis. ­— on Sunday, hosting UW-Eau Claire in a 2 p.m. nonconference contest.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2018-19 Roster | 2018-19 Schedule | 2017-18 Final Statistics
• The Cardinals —who finished 9-14-2 a year ago — open the 2018-19 season without the services of graduated seniors Molly Abraham (Sterling Heights, Mich.), Mandy Sailor (Ramsey, Minn.), Hannah Croonquist (St. Paul, Minn.), Jamie Henderson (Madison, Wis.), Kayla Pierson (Shorewood, Ill.), and Jesse Cwik (Chicago, Ill.). … The Cardinals closed out the season 5-7-2 on their home ice a year ago, while going 4-7-0 on the road. … The Cardinals' nine wins a year ago are the most since going 10-13-2 during the 2015-16 season. … Bailey Wendt (Coon Rapids, Minn.) closed out the season as the Cardinals' leader in goals (13) and points (19) — both career highs. … Courtney Moser (Blaine, Minn.) posted a team-best 12 assists. … Wendt accounted for all four goals in the Cardinals' 4-2 win over Bethel on Feb. 3. It was Wendt's second hat trick, and third multiple-goal game, last season. … Wendt recorded her first collegiate hat trick against Marian on Oct. 27. … Wendt's four-goal game vs. the Royals was the first by a Cardinal since 2001, while her two hat tricks are the most in a single season since Emily Kearns scored three goals in a game twice during the 2003-04 season. … Wendt was one of six Cardinals with 10 or more points last season, being joined by Moser (15), Cwik (14), Natalie Ryan (Village of Lakewood, Ill. / 14), Anya Hafiz (Woodbury, Minn. / 12), and Henderson (10). … Delaney Wolf's (Bismarck, N.D.) goal against Concordia on Jan. 13 — the game-winner at 13:27 of the third period — was her first as a Cardinal. … Wolf became the third player to score her first collegiate goal this season, joining Mady Bodick (Savage, Minn.) and Lauren Rogers (Barrington, Ill.). … Ryan closed out the year with a pair of two-goal games last season — scoring twice against Concordia on Jan. 12 and against St. Olaf on Feb. 16. … Moser's two assists vs. Bethel on Feb. 3 marked the fourth time the freshman had two assists in a game. … Ryan assisted on three of the Cardinals' six goals vs. Saint Benedict on Dec. 1 en route to her first collegiate three-point game, while Rogers added two assists to her second-period goal for her first three-point game in a Cardinal uniform. … Wendt's goal at 19:41 of the first period against Marian on Oct. 27 was the Cardinals' first goal of the season. … Ashley Corcoran (Red Wing, Minn.), who stopped all 22 shots she faced against St. Olaf on Feb. 16 en route to her first collegiate shutout, closed out the year with a 2.83 goals-against-average and .910 save percentage. … Corcoran stopped a season-high 42 shots in the Cardinals' 1-1 tie against Gustavus on Jan. 26. … Corcoran stopped 30 or more shots 11 times last season. … Ary Ziakas (Palatine, Ill.)—who picked up the win against St. Norbert in her first collegiate start on Oct. 28, stopping 28 of the Green Knights' 29 shots—made a career-high 41 saves in the Cardinals' 6-3 loss to Lake Forest on Jan. 7. The 41-save effort was four more than Ziakas' previous career-best. … Ziakas compiled a 3.43 GAA and .904 save percentage in her seven appearances last season. … The Cardinals scored 33 goals in their nine wins a year ago, while managing a combined 20 goals in their 14 losses. … The Cardinals finished the year 5-3-0 when scoring first, while going 4-11-2 when their opponent netted the game's first goal. … The Cardinals erupted for a season-high six goals in their 6-2 win over Saint Benedict on Dec. 2. … Saint Mary's six goals vs. the Blazers were the most since the Cardinals scored six times in beating St. Olaf 6-3 on Nov. 17, 2016. … Saint Mary's 3-2 loss to Bethel on Feb. 2 was the Cardinals' fourth overtime game of the season — Saint Mary's beat Saint Benedict 2-1 on Dec. 2, and tied St. Catherine (3-3) on Jan. 19 and Gustavus (1-1) on Jan. 26. … The Cardinals' 3-2 win over Lake Forest on Jan. 6 snapped a 22-game winless streak against the Foresters (0-17-5). Saint Mary's last win over Lake Forest had been a 2-0 victory on Feb. 13, 2002. … With their wins over Marian and St. Norbert in their first two games of the season, the Cardinals opened their season 2-0-0 for the second straight year — having also opened the 2016-17 season with back-to-back wins over Marian and St. Norbert. … With their win over Marian on Oct. 27, the Cardinals have now won their last three season-openers — including back-to-back victories over the Sabres each of their last two seasons. … Saint Mary's season-opening 5-3 win over Marian on Oct. 27 was the first collegiate coaching victory for the Cardinals' Greg Moore.
 
Scouting The St. Norbert Green Knights:
2018-19 Roster | 2018-19 Schedule | 2017-18 Final Statistics
• The Green Knights enter Friday's showdown against Saint Mary's coming off a 9-14-4 season a year ago. … SNC was picked fifth in the 2018-19 NCHA Preseason Coaches' Poll. … St. Norbert kicks off the 2018-19 season without the services of four of their top six offensive performers from a year ago. Graduated seniors Lexi Pyykkonen (10 G, 9 A, 19 Pts.), Selena Stromer (7 G, 5 A, 12 Pts.), Kenna Farrey (3 G, 8 A, 11 Pts.), and Natasha Smith (2 G, 9 A, 11 Pts.) accounted for 22 goals, 31 assists and 53 points a year ago. … Jessica Schlaff is the Green Knights' top returner, leading the team in assists (10), while finishing second in both goals (7) and points (17). … Lauren Michael shared the second spot in goals with seven, while adding four assists for 11 points last season. … Pyykkonen and Lisa Lenell shared the team lead with two game-winning goals each — Schlaff, Stromer, Michael, K.J. Wallace, and Libby Barbato accounted for the Green Knights' other five game-winning goals. … Six of Pyykkonen's team-leading 10 goals came on the power play. … St. Norbert also kicks off the new season without their top two goaltenders from a year ago. Leigh Grall posted a 2.50 goals-against-average and .903 save percentage in 21 games, while Brianna Kelly owned a 2.78 GAA and .878 save percentage in eight appearances. … Grall also finished the 2017-18 season with a pair of shutouts, with Kelly recording the other. … St. Norbert was outscored 72-59 a year ago — including 33-19 in the second period. … St. Norbert scored first in 14 of its 27 games, going 7-4-3. The Green Knights were 2-10-1 when their opponent scored first. … St. Norbert played five overtime games last season, going 1-0-4. SNC beat Marian 3-2, while tying Finlandia (4-4), St. Scholastica (1-1), UW-Eau Claire (1-1), and Northland (4-4).
 
Scouting The Marian Sabres:
2018-19 Roster | 2018-19 Schedule | 2017-18 Final Statistics
• The Sabres head into this weekend's season-opener coming off a 7-20-0 campaign a year ago. … Marian was picked to finish sixth in the 2018-19 NCHA Preseason Coaches' Poll. … The Sabres return their top five scorers from a year ago, led by Morgan Bolin, who led the team in all three offensive categories — goals (8), assists (8), and points (16). … Bolin was one of five players to record 10 or more points a year ago. She was joined by Calle Bye (6 G, 5 A, 11 Pts.), Hailey Miller (5 G, 6 A, 11 Pts.), Ally Fox (5 G, 6 A, 11 Pts.), and Jill Schneider (5 G, 5 A, 10 Pts.). … Marian's seven game-winning goals last season came from seven different players — Bolin, Miller, Fox, Schneider, Paige Johnson, Alexis Peterson, and Jamie Henrickson. … Foru of Miller's five goals last season came on the power play. … Lindsey Strainis returns between the pipes for the Sabres after a stellar junior campaign in which she was named First Team All-NCHA after compiling a 2.64 goals-against-average and .918 save percentage in 25 games. … Strainis etched her name atop the Marian record books in a number of spots last season, including career wins with 16 and career shutouts with seven. … Strainis also put her name among the Sabres' best in several Marian single-season categories —  including wins (6), saves (680), GAA (2.64), shutouts (2), and save percentage (.918). … Strainis made 30 or more saves in a game 11 times — including a season-high 41 saves in the finale of the Slaats Cup series with Adrian. … The Sabres scored first in 11 of their 27 games last season, going 7-4-0. Marian was winless (0-16-0) when its opponent netted the game's first goal. … The Sabres played three overtime games a year ago — falling to Concordia (Wis.) (3-2) UW-Stevens Point (2-1), and St. Norbert (3-2). … Marian closed out the 2017-18 campaign dropping its last four games.