Slater's saves helped Women's Hockey to strong start on ice

Story featured in Saturday's gameday program (written Wednesday Nov. 19)

Coming into the 2014-15 season the Concordia University Wisconsin Women's Hockey team knew it would have a goalie position battle on its hands. The Falcons roster consisted of four goalies all vying for the starting position.

During a preseason interview, first-year head coach Steve Fabiilli acknowledged the position battle and stated that each player would get their opportunities, whether in practice or a game. Six games into the season senior Andrea Mizanskey and sophomore Bridget Slater are the two netminders who split starts. While both goaltenders have had strong starts, it's been Slater who has seemed to take grasp of the starting job early on.

All Slater has done in her three starts is post two shutouts and a .976 save percentage, which ranks first in the NCHA. She is tied for the league lead in goals against average (0.67) and is coming off the best performance of her young career, a 33-save shutout of defending NCHA Champion Lake Forest last Saturday at the Ozaukee Ice Center.

Not bad numbers for a player who appeared in just nine games a season ago, making six starts. Five of those starts came at season's end, as Slater won the starting job with strong performances during the end of her rookie campaign.

Now in year two, Slater appears to me much more comfortable on the ice and the numbers certainly show. Twice she has stopped 30 or more shots, and many of the saves she made in Saturday's win over Lake Forest were impressive, to say the least.

"I kind of changed it up this season in terms of getting ready mentally," Slater said when referring to what has been different from year one to two. "I'll take a little more time to focus on the mental aspect of the game, picturing myself making the saves."

Those little changes have worked early on for the sophomore in her big improvement from last year. Slater remembers the first time she stepped on the ice in a Falcons uniform, which was in the second period of an NCHA game at Lake Forest. She gave up four goals in 20 minutes, which made it all the more rewarding when she was able to shut out the Foresters Saturday night.

"Last year [against Lake Forest] I was shaking when we went out on the ice," Slater said in recalling that 8-1 setback against the Foresters. "Coming in this year I knew what to expect and had a better grasp on how to prepare."

The mental aspect has helped, but other things have factored into the strong play by Slater and the Falcons this season. Fabiilli and his players seem to have a strong rapport early on, and the competition at the goaltender position has brought out the best in the sophomore.

The battle is something Slater has dealt with her entire playing career, as most goaltenders likely have. She has been competing for minutes since her high school playing days in Roseau, Minn. She knows other goalies are fighting for minutes as well and that she needs to bring her best effort each and every time her number is called upon.

Despite the constant competition, Slater describes her relationship with the other goalies, Mizanskey, Jennifer DeGeorge and Allison Kurek, as good, but being a little different with each player. She even credited DeGeorge with calming her down before the Lake Forest game. These players may be fighting for the same job, but they all want what is best for the team and whatever will get wins on the ice.