MANKATO, Minn. -- The Minnesota State women's hockey team will head to Boston to compete in the 2026 Ice Breaker tournament this weekend. They will start the tournament by playing Robert Morris on Friday at 3 p.m. Based on the results of Friday's games, the Mavericks will play at either 1 p.m. or 4 p.m. on Saturday and will face either Yale or the host team, Boston University. 

About the Ice Breaker:  

The Ice Breaker Tournament is an annual tournament, founded in 2019 and is in Boston for the first time. Minnesota State, Robert Morris, and Yale will travel to Boston University to compete. On Friday, MSU and Robert Morris will play, and Yale and BU will play. The winners of each game will play in the championship on Saturday at 4 p.m. CST, while the losers will play a consolation game at 1 p.m. CST. The Mavericks will be competing in the tournament for the first time in program history. 

Year	Host	Champion
2019	Mercyhurst	Minnesota Duluth
2022	Neutral Site (Lake Placid)	Clarkson
2023	Sacred Heart	St. Cloud State
2024	Ohio State	Ohio State
2025	Union	Wisconsin
2026	Boston University	---

About the Mavericks: 

Minnesota State heads into the Ice Breaker with a 2-4 record and are 0-4 in the WCHA. Last weekend the Mavericks took on the reigning national champions in Wisconsin and were swept. 

During the first game of the series both teams battled as Wisconsin had a 1-0 lead after the first period. Jaya Schippel got the start in net and was outstanding early on, continuously making sliding saves to rob the Badgers of numerous goals. She saved 30 of 31 shots in the first two periods and ended the game with 46 saves in her collegiate debut. The Mavericks fought back hard, getting a second period goal from Lauren Zawoyski on the power play, that hit a few skaters before finding the back of the net. The teams went into the third period tied 1-1 before the Badgers scored a couple of quick goals to close out the game 5-1.  

As soon as the puck dropped on Saturday, the Badgers were relentless firing shots on net. Kaydence Roeske got the start and stopped the first 14 shots she saw. After the strong defensive start, the relentless pressure wore down the Maverick defense as they quickly allowed four goals as Schippel entered the game for Roeske. Not much went right throughout the remainder of the game as the Mavericks struggled to sustain offensive zone time while the Badgers continued to score. Ayla Puppe eventually scored in the third period for her team leading third of the year, but the Mavericks ended up losing 12-1. 

Puppe leads the way in scoring this season with five points in her first six games while Zawoyski and Neely Hawn lead Maverick blue liners with three points.  

The Mavericks have gone 4-18 on the power play (22.2%) while the penalty kill has struggled going 12-22 (55.5%), and they have won 48.1% of faceoffs. 

Scouting Robert Morris:  

The Colonials enter the weekend holding a 3-5 record, with a 0-4 conference record. Last weekend they took on Syracuse and were swept 2-1 and 6-2. 

The offense is led by Greta Brezenski, Alaina Giampietro and Jessica MacKinnon who are all tied for the team lead with 12 points, creating a dynamic line that can cause problems for opposing teams. Brezenski and Giampietro both have six goals already to lead the team. Robert Morris has also received contributions from Mya Kearns and Rowyn Ringor who sit fourth and fifth on the team in points thus far. 

Maggie Hatch has played in all eight of their games so far this season and is the only goaltender to be between the pipes so far. She holds a 3.01 goals against average and a .883 save percentage.  

The Colonials have found themselves on the penalty kill a lot early in this season, allowing seven goals in 29 tries. They have struggled on the skater advantage going 4-33 (12.1%), and have won 52.9% of their faceoffs. 

All-Time vs. Robert Morris: 

Minnesota State is 5-5-2 all-time against Robert Morris dating back to 2006. The last time these two teams faced off was in 2023, in the Smashville Classic in Nashville, Tenn., where the Mavericks won 5-1. The Mavericks have won the last two matchups. In the 12 matchups, they have scored 35 total goals, averaging 2.92 a game. 

Scouting Yale: 

The Bulldogs will open their 2026-27 season with the Ice Breaker Tournament. After finishing last season with an impressive 16-10 record and 16-6 record in the ECAC. The Bulldogs are currently ranked No. 14 in both the USCHO and USA Hockey Polls. 

They enter this season having lost four of their top six scorers from a year ago. Molly Burke is returning skater with the most points; she scored 13 goals and added 23 assists during her first season as a Bulldog. Stephanie Stainton leads all returning goal scorers with 15 goals while also adding 17 assists in 2025-26 as a junior. 

Anna Phillips is the only returning goaltender. She played in 13 games, boasting a 1.92 GAA and a .919 save percentage leading her to a 7-6-0 record with 3 shutouts. 

The Bulldogs have 7 first year players, 7 sophomores, 7 juniors, and 6 seniors to round out their roster. 

All-Time vs. Yale:  

If the two teams face off it would be the first ever matchup between the two. They have never crossed paths despite both programs being around for 25+ years. 

Scouting Boston University: 

The host team will enter the tournament with a 1-4-1 record this season. Last weekend they were shutout by Colgate at home across two games, 2-0 & 1-0. Last season they struggled under head coach Tara Watchorn going 11-21-3 and 8-14-2 in Hockey East competition. 

Freshman Lo Lacahapelle leads the team in points and goals with 3 while doubling any other teammate in shots through the first 6 games. 

Sydney Fogu has played the most minutes in net for the Terriers; she has a 1.77 GAA and a .954 save percentage so far across 203+ minutes of action. Mari Pietersen has played in 3 games for 156 total minutes; she has a 4.23 GAA and a .897 save percentage. 

BU has won 54.5 percent of their faceoffs early this season and have gone 3-15 (20%) on the power play. They have only been on the pk 12 times and have allowed just 2 power play goals (83.3%) 

The Terriers are a young squad; they have 8 first year players, 7 sophomores, 5 juniors, and 4 seniors as they look to bounce back from a down season after winning the Hockey East title in 2024-25 with a 24-12-2 record (18-7-2 HEA). 

All-Time vs. Boston University: 

Minnesota State and Boston University have faced each other two times in the past. The teams are 1-1, with the Mavericks winning 7-2 in 2023-24, and the Terriers winning 5-2 in 2017-18. Last time these teams played in the Smashville Classic in Nashville, Tenn., Kamryn Van Batavia was one of the Maverick goal scorers in the 7-2 win.