Sunday, February 08, 2026
The Providence College hockey team extended its winning streak this weekend to nine games with a 6-1 win at the University of New Hampshire on Friday night and a 6-1 win over the University of Vermont at Schneider Arena on Saturday night. PC currently has the longest winning streak in all of college hockey.
The 4th straight weekend sweep of Hockey East opponents lifted the Friars’ overall record to 18-7-2 for the year and to 13-3-1 in Hockey East. PC now has a commanding eight-point lead over Boston College and Connecticut in first place in Hockey East standings.
The Friars journeyed to Durham, NH, to Whittemore Center to face the Wildcats on Friday night before 4,600 Wildcat fans. UNH lit the lamp first on a power play goal just 1:57 into the first period. Neither team would score the remainder of the first period. In a back-and-forth period, PC could only muster six shots on goal.
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PC remained frustrated without a goal until 15:41 of the second period when Hudson Malinoski, who had seen limited goal success lately, buried his seventh goal of the season on a PC power play. It appeared that UNH had taken a 2-1 lead early in the third period, but coach Leaman challenged the goal, alleging an UNH offside. The challenge held, wiping out the Wildcats goal.
The referee’s decision to cancel the UNH goal had a significant psychological impact on the game. PC was energized and blasted 15 shots on net, and UNH went into a funk. PC scored soon after at 3:43 when PC’s Aleksi Kivoija, a 6’2” 220 lb. sophomore from Finland, found the back of the net to give the Friars a 2-1 lead. Kivoija’s goal ignited the Friars, who scored four more goals in a rare 5-goal period against Hockey East opponents. Tanner Adams’ goal at 9:50 which extended the PC lead to 4-1 spurred a steady flow of Wildcat fans out of the arena. Logan Sawyer scored his 12th goal of the season at 16:43 on a PC power play to give the Friars a 6-1 victory.
A crowd of over 3,000 fans filed into Schneider on Saturday night, lured by free post -game skating, to see the Vermont Catamounts face the Friars. The Catamounts came to Providence with only a 12-14 record, but came off a shocking 6-1 win over Boston College Friday night at BC.
PC ran out to a 2-0 lead in the first period on goals by Kivioja and Malinoski and appeared to have Vermont’s number in this contest. But the Cats took over the play in the second period and poured 13 shots on PC’s rooking netminder Jack Parsons. Parsons was up to the task and kept Vermont off the scoreboard. The only goal was an unassisted short-hand goal by PC freshman defenseman Donovan McCoy at 17:40 to give PC a 3-1 lead at the end of two periods.
Vermont continued to pepper PC’s goalie Parsons with 13 more shots in the third period, but PC took advantage of its limited scoring opportunities with three more goals. PC gave up a short-handed goal to Vermont’s Colin Kessler at 7:43 for Vermont’s only tally. The final score of a 6-1 PC win is a little deceptive as Vermont brought the play to PC in the second and third periods and ended up putting 30 shots on goal to PC’s 18 shots. Parsons’ 29 saves for the game was the difference.
PC next plays Northeastern in a home twin-bill at Schneider on Friday and Saturday, February 13 and 14. Puck drop for Friday’s game is at 7 PM and for Saturday’s game at 5:30 PM.
Additional Slap Shots:
–With PC’s starting goalie Phil Svedback still out with an injury, PC is the only team in college hockey without a senior on its roster.
–The short-handed goal given up by PC in the Vermont game was PC’s 7th of the season, but its first since November 1st against UMass Lowell when PC gave up its 6th short-handed goal. The six short-handed goals in the first month of the season reflected PC’s rocky start and challenges in integrating twelve freshmen into college hockey.
–The weekend play of PC’s freshman goalie Jack Parsons, allowing only one goal in each game, brought his record for the season to the following: 10-1, 1.89 goals/game, .929 save percentage. His 1.89 goals/game is the fourth least in college hockey.
Bob McMahon is the former Director of Parks in the City of Providence and a lifelong Providence College Friar fan.
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