ORONO, Maine – The #5 University of Maine men's ice hockey team will begin a seven-game non-conference stretch with two games at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) this weekend.
 
The Black Bears and Engineers will face off at 3 p.m. on both Saturday, Nov. 30 and Sunday, Dec. 1 at Houston Field House.
 
The non-conference contest will stream on ESPN+, with an international stream available via ECAC Hockey's StretchInternet portal. The games can also be listened to via 92.9 FM or online at GoBlackBears.com/MIHRadio.
 
Game 13 | #5 Maine at RPI
Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024 | 3:00 P.M. 
Houston Field House | Troy, N.Y.

Game 14 | #5 Maine at RPI
Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024 | 3:00 P.M. 
Houston Field House | Troy, N.Y.
 
WHAT'S ON TAP
• The University of Maine men's ice hockey team will begin a seven-game non-conference stretch this weekend with two games at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI).
• The Black Bears and Engineers will face off at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 30 and Sunday, Dec. 1 at Houston Field House.
• This also marks the end of a season-long three-game road stretch for Maine.
• Maine is coming off of a 3-1 win at New Hampshire this past Friday night … RPI played two game at home, falling to Clarkson, 3-1, before rebounding for a 3-2 win over St. Lawrence.
 
A WIN ON SATURDAY WOULD. . .
• Move Maine to 9-2-2 overall and 4-0-0 in non-conference games.
• Bump Maine to 3-2-1 on the road this season.
• Move the Black Bears to 12-4-0 in the all-time series with the Engineers, including a mark of 3-0-0 under Ben Barr.
 
SERIES HISTORY vs RPI
• Maine leads the all-time series with RPI at 11-4-0 and is riding a nine-game winning streak in the series.
• The teams met in Orono last year to open the 2023-24 season ... the Black Bears earned 4-1 and 6-3 wins.
• Thirteen current Black Bears played in that season-opening series, with nine of them registering points ... Josh Nadeau had two goals and two assists for four points while Thomas Freel had four helpers ... Lynden Breen recorded one goal and two assists for three points to go with 19 face-off wins.
• The Black Bears have an all-time road mark of 4-1-0 against the Engineers.
 
ABOUT RPI
• The Engineers enter the weekend at 5-4-1 overall.
• Will Gilson (4-5-9) and Tyler Hotson (3-6-9) lead the team in points … Rainers Rullers (5-2-7) leads the team in goals.
• RPI sits 10th in the country with a power-play conversion rate of 25.8 percent … eight different players have scored a power-play goal.
• Goaltender Noah Giesbrecht has started seven games, going 4-3-0 with a .912 save percentage and 2.73 goals against average … Jack Watson is 1-1-1 in three starts with a .902 save percentage and 3.61 goals against average.
• Dave Smith is in his eighth season as head coach of the Engineers.
 
RPI ROOTS
• Maine head coach Ben Barr played his collegiate hockey at RPI, skating for the Engineers from 2000-04 and captaining the squad as a senior.
• Barr recorded 64 points on 25 goals and 39 assists in 140 career games ... he earned Team MVP honors as a junior after scoring 11 goals and adding 13 assists for 24 points.
• Barr also spent time as a volunteer assistant coach at RPI.
 
UP NEXT
• The Black Bears will close out the first semester at home next weekend, hosting Stonehill on Saturday, Dec. 7 and Sunday, Dec. 8.