ORONO, Maine — The University of Maine men's ice hockey team will jump on a plane and fly to Denver, Colorado for the season opening Ice Breaker Tournament. Air Force and Denver are the two scheduled opponents for the Black Bears. Puck drop against the Falcons is scheduled for 9:00 pm ET on Friday, October 7, while the game against the Pioneers is set for 8:00 pm ET on Saturday, October 8.

GAME INFORMATION
Game #1: Maine Black Bears at Air Force Falcons
DATE: Friday, October 7, 2022
TIME: 9:00 p.m. ET
SITE: Ice Cadet Arena -- USAFA, Colorado
2021-22 RECORDS: Maine 7-22-4 (5-17-2 HE), USAFA 16-17-3 (11-12-3 AHA)

Game #2: Maine Black Bears at #1 University of Denver
DATE: Saturday, October 8, 2022
TIME: 8:00 p.m. ET
SITE: Magness Arena -- Denver, Colorado
2021-22 RECORDS: Maine 7-22-4 (5-17-2 HE), UD 31-9-1 (18-6-0 NCHC)

FRIDAY: WATCH LISTEN LIVE STATS TWITTER
SATURDAY: WATCH LISTEN LIVE STATS TWITTER

About the Black Bears

• The Black Bears enter the 2022-23 season with 16 new faces on the roster after seeing 13 players graduate, transfer, or leave to pursue professional hockey.

• 12 letterwinners from the 2021-22 season return for this chapter of Maine hockey, which include the four newly minted captains. Jakub Sirota will sport the 'C', while Lynden Breen, Ben Poisson, and David Breazeale have each earned an 'A' on their sweater.

• The 11 incoming freshmen and five transfers make up players who were added by the coaching staff, whom are in their second full season behind the bench.

• Seven of the incoming student athletes are from the United States. Three new faces cross the border from Canada, while one Black Bear jumps the pond from Scotland.

• Justin Michaelian (Ferris State), Michael Mancinelli (Arizona State), Didrik Henbrant (Alaska-Fairbanks), Jacob Mucitelli (Clarkson), and Cole Hanson (Colgate) are the five transfers who chose the University of Maine over their other offers.
 

About the Falcons

• Air Force finished the 2021-22 season with a record of 16-17-3, ultimately falling in the Atlantic Hockey Final Four to American International College.

• The Falcons return all five of their top scorers from 2021-22 in Will Gavin, Willie Reim, Brandon Koch, Nate Horn, and Clayton Cosentino.

• Guy Blessing appeared in 10 games last season. The sophomore goaltender posted a 3.02 GAA and .889 save percentage, while winning two total games for the Falcons.
 

The Series with Air Force

• Maine and Air Force have squared off five times prior to Friday's tilt, with Maine holding an edge of 5-0-0 in the all-time series.

• The squads first squared off during the 1979-80 season with Maine winning, 6-1.

• Most recently, the Black Bears won a non-conference contest in 2005, 3-1.

• Maine has outscored Air Force 33-9 over the five victories. the most goals scored and the widest margian of victory both occurred during the same contest when the Black Bears won 12-5.

About the Pioneers

• Denver finished the 2021-22 season with a record of 31-9-3, ultimately winning the NCAA National Championship with a 5-1 victory over Minnesota State.

• The Pioneers return one of their top five scorers from 2021-22 in Mike Benning.

• Magnus Chrona appeared in 37 games last season. The senior goaltender posted a 2.11 GAA and .911 save percentage, while winning 28 total games for the Pioneers.

The Series with Denver

• Maine and Air Force have squared off 12 times prior to Saturday's tilt, with Maine holding an edge of 8-4-0 in the all-time series.

• This will be the 10th matchup between the programs in the last 32 years.

• The squads will be facing off for the first time since Oct. 12-13, 2007, when the Black Bears visited Magness Arena.

• The Black Bears defeated the Pioneers twice during the 2005-06 season while outscoring Denver 93.

-UMaine-