ORONO, Maine – The #7 University of Maine men's ice hockey team will resume Hockey East play this weekend with a pair of games at #8 UMass Lowell on Friday, Jan. 10 and Saturday, Jan. 11.
 
Friday's puck drop is set for 7:15 p.m. while Saturday's is slated for 6:05 p.m., with Saturday's contest airing live on NESN. Both Hockey East tilts will stream on ESPN+, with an international stream available via Hockey East/Stretch Internet. The games can also be listened to via 92.9 FM or online at GoBlackBears.com/MIHRadio.
 
Game 20 | #7 Maine at #8 UMass Lowell
Friday, Jan. 10, 2025 | 7:15 P.M. | ESPN+
Tsongas Center | Lowell, Mass.
 
Game 21 | #7 Maine at #8 UMass Lowell
Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025 | 6:05 P.M. | NESN / ESPN+
Tsongas Center | Lowell, Mass.
 
WHAT'S ON TAP
• The #7 University of Maine men's ice hockey team will travel to #8 UMass Lowell for a top-10 series this weekend at the Tsongas Center.
• This marks the return to Hockey East play for both squads.
• Last weekend, the River Hawks won the Coachella Valley Cactus Cup with wins over Michigan Tech and Omaha ... the Black Bears split with #6 Denver at home.
• Maine sits first in Hockey East with 18 points on a 5-2-2 mark while UMass Lowell is tied second with 17 points and a 5-3-1 record.
 
A WIN ON FRIDAY WOULD. . .
• Move Maine to 14-4-2 on the year and 6-2-2 in Hockey East contests.
• Move Maine to 5-2-1 in road games.
• Bump the Black Bears to 85-49-6 all-time against UMass Lowell, including a mark of 34-15-8 in road meetings.
• Give Maine its fifth ranked win of the year.
 
SERIES HISTORY vs UMASS LOWELL
• Maine holds an all-time record of 84-49-6 against UMass Lowell ... the Black Bears are 33-15-8 against the River Hawks on the road.
• Last season, Maine swept a two-game set at Alfond Arena with 5-3 and 7-2 wins ... Harrison Scott scored four goals, including a hat trick, in the series and added an assist for five points.
• The two squads first met on Jan. 14, 1978, with UMaine dropping that road tilt, 5-1.
• Brandon Holt (2-4-6) and Lynden Breen (2-4-6) are Maine's active scoring leaders against UMass Lowell ... David Breazeale (3-0-3) all have multiple goals, Scott (4-1-5) and Taylor Makar (2-1-3) all have multiple goals against the River Hawks.
 
ABOUT UMASS LOWELL
• The River Hawks enter the weekend at 12-4-2 overall and 5-3-1 in Hockey East play … UMass Lowell won the Coachella Valley Cactus Cup this past weekend with a pair of 3-2 ins over Michigan Tech and Omaha.
• The last Hockey East action for UMass Lowell came when it closed out the semester with a home-and-home series against Boston College, earning a 3-3 tie at home on Dec. 6 and falling 3-2 on the road on Dec. 9.
• UMass Lowell has the sixth-ranked power-play in the country at 25.9 percent.
• Mirko Buttazzoni leads the team with 15 points from five goals and a team-high 10 assists … Scout Truman has a team-leading eight goals and six assists for 14 points.
• Henry Welsch (9-2-1, .892 save percentage, 2.50 GAA) and Beni Halasz (3-2-1, .922 save percentage, 2.14 GAA) have both seen time between the pipes.
• Norm Bazin is in his 15th season behind the bench of the River Hawks.
 
IT'S WORTH NOTING
• Thirty-three percent of Maine's goals have come in the first two minutes or last two minutes of a period.
• Maine is the only team in the country to rank in the top five in goals scored per game (3.6) and goals allowed per game (1.7), sitting tied for fourth and second, respectively.
• Harrison Scott is tied for second nationally in goals (13) ... Scott's 51 points since the start of the 2023-24 season are the fourth-most by a Hockey East player while his 604 face-off wins are the most.
• With Thomas Freel (7) and Scott (6), Maine is one of two teams in the country to have multiple players with at least five power-play goals each.
• Maine is 10th nationally in face-off winning percentage (53.4) ... Scott's 56.8 winning percentage is eighth in the country among players with at least 200 wins.
• The Black Bears have out-shot the opponent in 22 straight contests dating back to last season and in 48 out of 56 contests dating back to the start of the 2023-24 season.
• Josh Nadeau's 58 points in his first 55 games as a Black Bear mark the most by a Maine player since Michel Léveillé had 64 points in his first 55 games while Nadeau's eight game-winning goals are the most.
• Albin Boija is third nationally in goals against average (1.61).
 
UP NEXT
• Maine will return home next weekend to host UConn on Friday, Jan. 17 and Saturday, Jan, 18.