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As Syracuse prepared for its season-opener against Stonehill on Oct. 4, the 2024-25 season seemed to be a transition campaign for the Orange. After falling short of the College Hockey America playoffs for the first time ever last season, SU retained 11-of-24 players, including just one of its top-5 scorers from 2023-24.

After losing many key contributors, it would’ve been easy for Syracuse head coach Britni Smith to file the new season away as a rebuilding year. Instead, Smith aimed to forge a competitive team with her revamped roster.

“We have a lot of new faces in the locker room, and one of the things for us heading into the season was that we didn’t want that to be our narrative for the season,” Smith said after SU’s 4-0 win to start the season. “We wanted to come out and show right away that we were a united front.”

Syracuse’s (7-12-0, 5-3-0 Atlantic Hockey America) new players have largely defined its season so far, but not in the way Smith originally feared. Rather than struggling to find their footing, SU’s new wave of talent has looked at home through the first half of its campaign, accounting for over 70% of its goals thus far. Guided by their newcomers’ contributions, the Orange currently sit second in the AHA standings and have already matched their win total from last season.

SU began building chemistry even before the team arrived on campus. Smith made sure the first people the new members of the team spoke to were teammates who could help make their transition seamless.

Smith leaned on forward Tatum White and starting goalie Allie Kelley, the only two graduate students SU retained from last season, to set the program’s expectations.

“When the new faces arrived here in August, it felt like they had already been a part of our program well before that,” Smith said.

Forward Jackson Kinsler — a sophomore transfer from Boston University — has already proven to be one of SU’s strongest offseason additions.

Despite logging just one goal in 26 games as a freshman, it took Kinsler just 68 seconds to find the back of the net with the Orange. Now up to four goals and 11 points this season, Kinsler has continued to show her offensive potential.

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After its series win over Stonehill to start the season, Syracuse fell into a nine-game losing streak. The skid, highlighted by multi-goal losses to then-No. 8 St. Lawrence, then-No. 10 Quinnipiac and then-No. 12 Penn State, forced Syracuse’s freshmen to lean on its veterans for guidance. Amid the rut, newly-acquired graduate students Charli Kettyle and Bryn Saarela helped keep spirits high.

Kettyle, a transfer from the University of New Hampshire, led Syracuse’s defenders with two goals and an assist during the string of losses. Her patient, composed playstyle has helped stabilize SU’s blue line against some of the nation’s best offenses. And with five goals so far this year, she’s already surpassed her career high of three.

Where Kettyle has led SU’s defense, Saarela has done the same for its offense. During SU’s lengthy skid, the Holy Cross transfer led all Orange players with five points. Fast forward to the midway point of the season, she’s Syracuse’s most productive player.

Saarela leads the Orange in goals (10) and points (18) through 19 games. She also carries an impressive three-game point streak into the next calendar year, as she combined for six goals and two assists in her last three contests, including her first-career hat trick.

Not only is Saarela dominating, but she’s been taking SU’s younger players under her wing to help them grow, too.

“I try to build (the freshmen’s) confidence as best I can, even by just doing little things during practice or during games like a fist bump, just to let them know they are doing something right,” Saarela said.

After over a month since its last victory, Saarela and Kettyle combined for three goals in Syracuse’s 4-2 come-from-behind win over the Rochester Institute of Technology on Nov. 15. SU has gone 4-3-0 since then, with its new faces continuing to lead the charge, accounting for 12-of-14 goals in those contests. Additionally, 5-of-7 freshmen have contributed at least a point so far.

Syracuse’s newcomers have exceeded expectations and solidified the Orange as a conference contender. Now, the question is whether they can remain consistent enough down the stretch.

“At this point, it feels kind of weird calling them newcomers. They’re a huge part of our team as we head into the second half of the season,” Smith said following Syracuse’s 4-1 win over Robert Morris on Dec 6. “Because of them, we’re a team that has great chemistry, and we’ll be ready to hit the ground running (when we return).”

Published on December 9, 2024 at 9:31 pm

Contact Matthew: mgray06@syr.edu