NEWHA Playoffs 2025: Championship Preview

We’ve made it, everyone! The conclusion of the New England Women’s Hockey Alliance is here, and there’s only one thing left to do — play for a championship. No. 1 Long Island University has built their way back to the title game, while No. 3 Sacred Heart worked all season to find themselves one win away from program history. Before the matchup, let’s get into everything you need to know before puck drop. 

Things to Note: 

The winner of Saturday’s contest will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, set to start on Thursday, March 13th. LIU has made the tournament once back in 2023, where they were the 11th seed. The Sharks were eliminated by the eventual national champion Wisconsin Badgers in a 9-1 loss. Sacred Heart has not made the tournament since becoming a Division I program. 

This will be the third year NEWHA receives an automatic bid to the tournament. 

How Did We Get Here: 

After sweeping Saint Michael’s in the quarterfinal round, the Sharks played host to Post on Wednesday for the semifinal, and recorded their third-straight playoff shutout in the process. Ryane Kearns' game-winning goal was scored 28 seconds into the second period, while Abbie Thompson had to make just 14 saves in her seventh shutout of the season. For the second time in the last three years, LIU advances to the title game, and are looking to regain the crown they originally captured back in 2023. 

Two power play goals and a 50-save shutout from Carly Greene lifted Sacred Heart to a championship berth, and they’re looking for just their second NEWHA title in program history. Bria Holm scored the game-winning goal 14:34 into regulation time, and from there the Pioneers never looked back. SHU also blocked an additional 19 shots from Saint Anselm en route to the 3-0 win. The Pioneers' lone title came back in 2018, the first championship in NEWHA’s history. 

Game Info: 

No. 3 Sacred Heart at No. 1 Long Island University – Saturday, March 8th at 7 PM 

Northwell Health Ice, East Meadow NY
Available to watch on ESPN+

What to Expect: 

The last time these two teams met in the regular season, LIU skated to a 3-0 victory at the end of January. The Sharks won the original contest in the regular season as well, while SHU had consecutive 1-0 wins to split the season series. 

There’s a lot to like about both of these two teams, and it starts from the goaltenders before moving out. 

Thompson, as I’ve said time and time again, has been solid for LIU all season. While her 14 saves from the semis aren’t the highest number, the quality of stops that she’s been making for the Sharks all season has been high. Her .939 save percentage is tied for ninth-best in the NCAA, while her goals against average of 1.62 is 1oth-best. All while she’s playing some of the top minutes in the country, with 32 starts under her belt. When the Sharks have needed her, Thompson has right there – a key factor in getting them back to the championship game. I mean, just look at her three straight shutouts in the postseason. 

Greene on the other hand is now in possession of the top SV% mark in the country with a .961, and her GAA of 1.22 is the second-best mark, behind only Wisconsin’s Ava McNaughton. While her 17 starts leaves her far behind the rest of the goaltenders near the top of the list, her play this season has been outstanding, and considering just how long she’s been performing at this level even with everything else going on, she deserves some praise and recognition. The senior wasn’t meant to be the main starter heading into the season, but she’s proven her capability time and time again, and it’s one of the main reasons why the Pioneers are where they are to close out the conference year. 

Outside of their goaltenders' productivity, the matchup features two very solid defensive units. The Sharks and Pioneers both are averaging below two goals per game against, with a 1.6 and 1.8 team GAA respectively. While LIU does a better job suppressing opponents; chances, with 25.8 shots per game against compared to 30.7 from SHU’s opponents, the Pioneers do a better job getting in the way of pucks. 

All told, Sacred Heart is coming into the matchup with a combined 505 blocked shots, an average of 13.6 per game. Long Island on the flip side has over 150 fewer blocks, with 343 total (9.5 per game). Sure, blocks aren’t always the most critical part of the game, but they can come in in the biggest moments when need be. 

Someone to keep an eye on when it comes to blocks is Sacred Heart’s Savannah Popick. The senior had an impressive 80 total blocks this season, with seven of those coming in the season series against LIU. She’s not afraid to get in front of shots when she needs to, and that might be integral against a high-powered Sharks team. 

Which flips me to the shots category. Altogether, LIU has the higher shot average of the two, with 31.7 per game. While SHU isn’t far behind with their 30.7, the Sharks have three skaters over 100 shots total this season — the Pioneers have just one. 

If we’re looking for one person to generate a lot of chances, Grace Babington from LIU is the top contender. In the four games against SHU this season the sophomore had 12 total shots, and has been generating a lot in the postseason as well. If SHU is able to shut her down the Sharks may have problems, but that’s going to be a tough task to handle. 

Which leads me to the overall offensive names to watch. And again, I’ll mention Babington here for LIU. Outside of her team-leading 109 shots this season, Babington is second on the squad in scoring with nine goals and 23 points. That goal scoring number is directly on par with her success from last year, though she’s doubled her assists between her rookie season and now. Her play-making is only getting better, and it’s helped LIU’s productivity overall. 

Not to mention she leads the Sharks in game-winning goals with four, which might not seem like the most important statistic but it’s still critical for the team throughout the year. Last time out against SHU, Babington contributed to all three goals in the win, and she had two more assists in the other LIU win this year. Keeping her shut down is going to be key for the Pioneers in the matchup, but considering how quiet she’s been the last two games, Babington seems primed for a breakout moment in the championship game. 

And on the flip side, I’m going to discuss a player that definitely hasn’t gotten enough love recently in Isabella Chaput. The sophomore again has been a top-contributor for the Pioneers, and has already beaten her previous single season record with at least a game left to play. While she doesn’t appear on the scoresheet every game, her 13 goals have been critical — including four on the power play, making up nearly a third of the goals SHU has scored on the advantage. 

In the postseason Chaput has two assists, though she’s been firing off shots left and right for the last two games with nine combined. In the November weekend series between these two teams, the forward had a goal in each contest, including the eventual game winner in the second game. Chaput might have to come up big for SHU in order for them to hoist the trophy, but if there’s someone to do it on the Pioneers I’d expect it to be her. 

Wrap Up: 

Look, I’m not going to make a prediction here. Partly because I think my record of right predictions this season has been atrocious, yes, but mainly because I think this really is a tough toss up. Both teams have been so solid all season, and are so similar on paper that it’s hard to imagine a clear cut winner. There are ways for either side to win, and there are ways for either side to lose. 

Whatever happens, this is going to be a great end to a really great season of hockey in NEWHA. And it’s going to be a really fun contest to watch, so definitely don’t miss out.