UConn men’s hockey sets sights on national tournament appearance

STORRS, CT (WFSB) - UConn men’s hockey fell short of reaching the national tournament last season, losing to UMass Lowell in the hockey quarterfinals.

By most accounts, the season was a success. The Huskies had back-to-back 20-win seasons for the first time in their history. They finished in the top 20 in back-to-back seasons for the first time in their history.

With that kind of success comes the expectation of more success.

“Coach is always saying, pressure is a privilege. People are kind of relying on you to produce something. It means that you’re in a good place,” said Hudson Shandor.

Shandor is a team captain, one of four seniors on a team loaded with experience.

Jake Flynn is one of the three graduate students on UConn who decided to come back for one more try.

“We’re ready to win here. I’ve got one year to do it, this is the year we’re gonna do it, so why wouldn’t you want to come back?” said Flynn.

The trophy case is filled with the program’s history, some of the awards they have won. The national championship trophy is missing.

“You know we played Northeastern here on opening night, we had a lead in the third period, and we lost that game. We had a lead against Quinnipiac in the Connecticut tournament and lost that game,” said head coach Mike Cavanaugh. “If we win those two games, we’re in the national tournament.”

The next step for UConn is getting to that national tournament.

They have skill, speed, size and experience.

In the first hockey preseason poll, the Huskies were picked to finish fourth in their conference.