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Mae Batherson was overjoyed when Syracuse scored a power play equalizer in its first game after a 41-day layoff. On top of her team lighting the lamp against conference foe Robert Morris, there was something extra for her to celebrate. 

Her linemate Hannah Johnson had just scored her first collegiate goal.

Johnson collected a pass from Tatum White at the blue line before firing a wrist shot through traffic in the Colonials’ crease and in the net. A memorable milestone in Johnson’s career also marked an impressive achievement for the Orange’s freshman class. 

Johnson’s goal made her the final rookie skater to record a point this season. Through eight games — six against ranked opponents — all five Syracuse freshmen skaters combined for six goals and 11 assists. 

Syracuse’s (3-8-1, 3-6-1 College Hockey America) freshman skaters’ recruiting class ranked No. 14 nationally per Neutral Zone. They collectively produced 17 points and handled head coach Paul Flanagan’s high expectations to perform in any given situation. With just over three weeks until the CHA playoffs, Syracuse’s youth have carried them all season and will be a key to winning important games down the stretch.

“We brought them in to play,” Flanagan said. “We’re usually disappointed if a freshman comes in and they’re not ready to play, because we’re counting on them.” 

Syracuse has dealt with injuries all season, giving valuable ice time to freshmen that may have otherwise been left out of the main rotation.

Throughout the majority of the Penn State series, Kambel Beacom’s injury shortened an already limited defensive group down to just four skaters — Johnson, the team’s two captains and the reigning CHA rookie of the year. 

In the midst of the defensive shortage, Johnson’s game was tested while alternating pairings with similarly offensive-minded Batherson or defensive-minded Kristen Siermachesky.

Simultaneously, the forwards were also dealt a minor blow when a lower body injury sidelined 

Rayla Clemons for a game and a half. Clemons had been a part of the team’s all-freshman line, skating alongside White and Sarah Thompson. Flanagan shuffled offensive lines to deal with the injuries.

Centering Victoria Klimek and Emma Polaski, the team’s two leading goalscorers became Thompson’s new assignment. Klimek scored four times in four games against the Nittany Lions, with Thompson assisting on two of them. Thompson sits third on the team in assists with four and leads the freshmen with six points. Against Mercyhurst this past weekend, Flanagan returned to the all-freshmen line.

“Any time you have freshmen that can contribute, that’s really going to help your team,” associate head coach Brendon Knight said. “As we go along here in the semester, they’re just going to get better and that’s just going to make our team better.”

Clemons was one of the Orange’s best forwards during the first half of the season. She recorded two goals and three assists before the month-long break, highlighted by a three game point streak to open the season.

On her first collegiate shift, Clemons centered sophomore Brynn Koocher and Klimek, the team’s second line in its season opener against Colgate. Clemons gathered a loose puck at Colgate’s blue line that Klimek dumped in off the right side of the boards. 

Clemons took on two Colgate defensemen before firing a wrist shot at Raiders goaltender Kayle Osborne who mishandled the puck, leading it to trickle slowly into the net for the game’s opening goal, 67 seconds into her collegiate career.

Just 14 and a half minutes later, Clemons became the first Orange player to score twice in her collegiate debut. Another Klimek set-up, this time on a 2-on-1 for an easy tap-in into an open left side of the net, gave Syracuse a 2-0 lead through two periods. 

“They all have different skills, which I think complement each other,” said Polaski. “This class I’m definitely a fan of.”

In Flanagan’s eyes, his first-year skaters no longer qualify as “rookies” in the second half.

“They have more confidence because the newness isn’t there anymore,” Flanagan said.

Published on February 9, 2021 at 10:43 pm

Contact Alex: ahcirino@syr.edu