SCOUTING THE RIVER HAWKS:  UMass Lowell, with a 15-7-3 / 7-5-1 record after dropping a pair of games last weekend against Providence, is ranked 7th in both the USA Hockey Magazine and the USCHO polls.  The team was picked for a fourth place finish in the Hockey East Coaches' Pre-Season Poll.  The River Hawk roster shows nine new faces including six forwards, one defensemen and two goalies.  Joe Gambardella leads the team in scoring with 34 points.  Seventeen players have scored goals, three are in double digits.  C.J. Smith tops the list with 13; Gambardella and John Edwardh have eleven goals.  The four goalies, including two freshmen, entered this season with a combined 99-minutes of collegiate experience.  All four have played with Tyler Wall getting the most time.  He has a 2.06 GAA and a .921 save percentage.

SCOUTING THE HUSKIES:  Northeastern has a 9-10-5 / 3-8-3 record following a weekend sweep of Merrimack College.  The Huskies were picked to finish second in the Hockey East Coaches' pre-season poll.  Fourteen different players have scored goals; Zach Aston-Reese leads the team and the nation  with 22.  He is also the nation's leader with 41 points.  Ryan Ruck has started all 23 games in net.  He has a 2.99 goals against average and a .896 save percentage.    

ALL-TIME SERIES vs. NORTHEASTERN:  This is the 112th meeting between the two schools in a series that dates back to 1983.  UMass Lowell leads the series 59-42-10.  The last time these two faced one another was the 2016 Hockey East Championship Game.  Northeastern won that match up, 3-2, but UMass Lowell does hold an edge in HEA Tournament play 10-5-0.  The River Hawks edged the Huskies in the regular season series, 1-0-1.  The UML win came in the opening game of the Friendship Four Tournament in Belfast, Northern Ireland.  Seven of the last 14 and 15 of the last 40 games between the two teams have gone into overtime.  UMass Lowell has a 10-3-10 overtime edge against Northeastern.  Both coaches, Norm Bazin and NU's Jim Madigan came on board for the 2011-12 season and since that time the River Hawks hold a 6-4-3 edge in the series.

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION: UMass Lowell and Northeastern have faced one another on eight different ice surfaces.  The two have battled at the Tsongas Center, Matthews Arena, Tully Forum (Billerica, Mass.), Fenway Park, Thompson Arena (Hanover, N.H.), Boston Garden, TD Garden and last year the SSE Arena in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

LAST WEEKEND:  Providence swept UMass Lowell in a pair of one-goal games, 4-3 and 3-2.  The River Hawks had leads in both games, but were unable to put the games away. 

ON THE NATIONAL STAGE:  UMass Lowell has been nationally ranked, in either the USCHO or USAHockey Magazine poll, for 106 consecutive weeks.  The stretch began when UMass Lowell appeared at #20 in the USCHO Poll on January 7, 2013.  Of those 106 weeks more than half, 73, have been spent in the top ten.

NINE GAMES TO GO:  Including tonight's contest, UMass Lowell has nine games remaining on the regular season schedule and the road may not be an easy one.  River Hawk opponents have a combined .516 winning percentage, but broken out over the nine games the winning percentage climbs to .522.  UMass Lowell has two games remaining with Northeastern, Boston University, Massachusetts and Boston College and a single game against New Hampshire. 

BACK-TO-BACK: This is the twelfth back-to-back weekend Mass Lowell has played this season.  The River Hawks are 6-4-1 on the first night and 6-3-2 the second. They have three weekend sweeps (Colorado College, Merrimack, Colgate/Dartmouth) to their credit.  They have been swept once (Providence).  A year ago UMass Lowell played 18 two-game weekend series and the results were similar night to night.  The River Hawks were 10-5-3 on the first night of back-to-back games and 11-5-2 in the second game.  The River Hawks had five weekend sweeps.

STAND ALONE GAMES:  UMass Lowell has played three "stand alone" games this year and has won all three.  They defeated RPI, 5-1, UNH, 2-1 and Massachusetts, 2-1.   A year ago the club played only four "stand alone" game during the season and won all four.  

HOME AGAIN:  Tonight's game against Northeastern is only the River Hawks second at the Tsongas Center since December 9th.  UMass Lowell had a stretch of 42 days between home games.  Five of UML's remaining nine regular season matches will be played at home.

HONORING THE PAST:  As part of the celebration of the 50th season of UMass Lowell hockey, the River Hawks will honor the 1997-2007 All-Era Team on Friday night.  The team chosen through fan balloting includes goalie Cam McCormick, defensemen Darryl Green and Mike Nicholishen and forwards Chris Bell, Ed McGrane and Ben Walter.  McGrane (138) and Bell (114) were both 100-point scorers and Nicholishen (27-goals, 99-points) in the program's top scoring Division I defenseman. 

A GOOD START:  UMass Lowell has outscored its opponents 34-15 in the first period this season.  That's a scoring margin of plus-19 in the period and that figure is the best in both Hockey East and the country.

WHO's NEXT?: UMass Lowell heads back out on the road on Saturday night.  The River Hawks visit the Agganis Arena and Boston University at 7pm.  The River Hawks are 6-4-1 in the last eleven against BU, but the Terriers lead the all-time series, 72-28-9.  UMass Lowell swept BU out of the Hockey East playoffs a year ago, two-games to none.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN:  UMass Lowell is 10-4-1 away from the Tsongas Center this season.  Their .700 winning percentage is sixth best in the country and the best in Hockey East. Their ten wins away from the Tsongas Center is the most in the country.  That does include a six game road swing during which UMass Lowell was undefeated.  They won games at Merrimack, Dartmouth, RPI, New Hampshire and Massachusetts.  The team has been a strong team on the road during the last five-plus seasons.  Since Norm Bazin took over behind the bench the River Hawks are 52-30-8, .622, as the visiting team and 73-39-9, .641, including neutral site games.

BLASTS FROM THE BLUE LINE:  With his third period power play goal Friday night against Providence, Dylan Zink became UMass Lowell all-time leading goal scorer among Division I defensemen.  The goal was his 29th moving him past Maury Edwards and to the top of the list. 

ROAD WARRIOR:  Joe Gambardella is tied for the nation's lead in scoring on the road.  Twenty-four (6g, 18a) of his 34 points have come in 15 games away from the Tsongas Center.

TWO GOALS IS ENOUGH: When UMass Lowell defeated UNH 2-1 on January 6th, it was the first time this season the River Hawks have won a game when scoring fewer than three goals.  The River Hawks followed that up with a 2-1 win at UMass.  The team is 2-5-2 when scoring two goals or less this season.  A year ago the River Hawks were 5-7-4 when scoring two goals or less.

PLUS-75:  UMass Lowell Head Coach Norm Bazin is 75 games over .500 behind the River Hawk bench in five-plus seasons and that has moved the program over the .500 mark for the first time in the school's 34-year Division I history.  UMass Lowell is 578-577-109 since beginning Division I play in 1983-84.  Bazin has a record of 139-64-21 at the reins in Lowell.

RED LIGHT DISTRICT:  UMass Lowell is seventh in the nation in goals scored with 85.  That is just eight-goals back of Ohio State and Penn State, the national leaders.  The River Hawks are averaging 3.40-goals per game, tenth best in the country.  Three players, C.J. Smith (13), Joe Gambardella (11) and John Edwardh (11), have ten or more goals. 

WHEN ALL THINGS ARE EVEN: UMass Lowell is the 12th highest scoring team in the nation and third in Hockey East when playing at even strength.  The River Hawks have scored 54 of their 85-goals this season at even strength, an average of 2.16 even strength goals per game.

PUTTING THE "POWER" BACK IN POWER PLAY: UMass Lowell's power play appears to be on track.  The River Hawks have gone 11-for-35 (31.4%) over its last ten games.  That was after a 0-for-19 stretch.  Despite that roller coaster the power play is among the best in the country.  The River Hawks have scored 28 goals in 115 man advantage opportunities for a 24.3% success rate, the fourth best in the country and number one in Hockey East.  Twelve different players have scored with the man advantage; Joe Gambardella leads the team with six PPGs.  C.J. Smith has five, Jake Kamrass has four power play markers.  Mattias Göransson has three PP goals.  Michael Kapla has nine power play assists; Gambardella, Smith and defensemen Dylan Zink have seven. 

PENALTY KILLING: UMass Lowell Penalty Kill Unit has stepped it up big time.  After struggling early in the season with a man in the box, the PK unit has killed 59 of 64 (92.2%) over the last 15-games.  It had been a bit of a roller coaster before that, twice this season the River Hawks have given up three PPGs in a game. 

111 POINTS AND COUNTING: UMass Lowell senior center Joe Gambardella joined the century club with an assist on C.J. Smith's third period goal in the River Hawks December 9th win against Merrimack.  It was the 100th point of Gambardella's career and the center iceman followed that up with the opening goal the next night and has added three-goals and seven assists in the seven games since the break.  He has 40 goals and 71 assists in 134 games.  Gambardella is the 43rd player in program history to reach the milestone and the 23rd in the Division I era.  He currently ranks 16th among DI players and 33rd all-time.  Gambardella has 25 points (7g, 18a) in his last 18 games.  The last River Hawk prior to Gambardella to reach 100 points was Joe Pendenza who achieved the mark during the 2013-14 season and ended his career with 110. 

102 POINTS AND COUNTING: UMass Lowell junior forward C.J. Smith reached the 100 point milestone Friday January 6th with an assist on Jake Kamrass' game winner at UNH.  Smith now has 102 points on 46-goals and 56-assists in just 104 games.  Smith is the 44th player in program history to reach the milestone and the 24th in the Division I era.  He ranks 43rd all-time and 23rd among Division I players at UMass Lowell.  He has three-goals and nine-points in his last six games.

100 X TWO:  This is the first time since 2006 that UMass Lowell has had two 100-point scorers skating at the same time.  The last time was in the last game of the 2005-06 season.  Andrew Martin scored a goal in the second period to earn his 100th point.  Elias Godoy, who assisted on the goal, had reached the milestone earlier in the year and finished his career with 121 points.

CAREER LEADERS:  UMass Lowell center Joe Gambardella, with 111 points, is 11th in career scoring among active players.   His 71-assists places him 10th on the active career list.   Defenseman Michael Kapla is third among active defensemen in the country and first in Hockey East in scoring with 79-points and second in assists with 64.  With 29 goals Dylan Zink is second among active defenseman in career goals and the leader among Hockey East Defensemen.

100 Games CLUB:  Six members of the current UMass Lowell roster have played at least 100 collegiate games.  Michael Kapla (145), Joe Gambardella (134), Dylan Zink (127), Evan Campbell (119), C.J. Smith (103) and Tyler Mueller (102) have all surpassed the century mark.  This is the fourth consecutive season in which the UMass Lowell roster has included at least six players with more than 100 games experience.

Mr. CONSISTENT: UMass Lowell center Joe Gambardella has been nothing if not consistent this season.  He has scored points in all but six of the River Hawks 25-games.  UMass Lowell is 9-0-1 when Gambardella scores a goal and 14-3-2 when he has a point in the game.  He has nine multi-point games.
 

COLLECTING HONORS: UMass Lowell center Joe Gambardella is grabbing some recognition.  He was named the MVP of the Ledyard Bank Classic in Hanover and named the Warrior Hockey East Player of the Week on January 2nd.  Gambardella had two goals, including a game-winner and five assists during the weekend.

A GOALIE STARTS THE OFFENSE:  When UMass Lowell goalie Tyler Wall picked up an assist on Kenny Hausinger's game winning goal at Rensselaer it was the first point for a River Hawk goalie in more than five years.  The last goalie to earn a spot on the scoring sheet was Doug Carr when he picked up an assist on Chad Ruhwedel's game winning goal at Maine on November 12, 2011.  For the record Wall is 1,318th in scoring among active players.

BY THE CLOSEST OF MARGINS: Last Saturday's 3-2 loss was the fourth time this year UMass Lowell has lost a one-goal game dropping their record at 3-4-3  A year ago UMass Lowell was 10-6-5 in one-goal games and is 42-28-21 in one-goal games since the 2011-12 season.

THREE IS THE MAGIC NUMBER: When UMass Lowell scores three or more goals in a game it is 13-2-1 and 115-16-6, .861, in the last five-plus seasons.  When the River Hawks keep their opponents under three goals, the team is 13-0-2.  When scoring two goals or less in a game the River Hawks are 2-5-2 this season and 24-48-15, .362, since 2011-12.

PROTECTING THE NET:  UMass Lowell goalie Tyler Wall is among the best in the nation and Hockey East at keeping the puck out of the net.  Wall ranks third in the league in goals against average (2.06) and fourth in save percentage .921.  He is 11th in the nation in GAA and 16th in  save percentage.

AMONG THE NATIONAL LEADERS:  Joe Gambardella ranks in the top 10 in scoring nationally.  Gambardella is eighth with 34 points (11g, 23a).  His 23 assists are fifth in the nation.  Gambardella is fifth in scoring among Hockey East players and C.J. Smith is 17th in the country and seventh among Hockey East players with 28 points (13g, 15a).  Defenseman Dylan Zink is second among Hockey East Defensemen and fourth in the nation with 22 points (8g, 14a).  His eight goals are tops among HEA Dmen and second in the country. Mattias Göransson is the top scoring freshman defenseman in Hockey East and is tenth in the nation with 13 points (4g, 9a).  Michael Kapla's 16 assists is fifth best among the nation's defensemen and second in Hockey East.  Tyler Wall is the winningest freshman netminder in the country with 14 wins.

GETTING OFFENSE FROM THE DEFENSE: UMass Lowell has the sixth highest scoring defense corps in the country.  The River Hawks blue liners have combined for 18-goals and 70 points.  Those numbers rank the River Hawk D corps second in HEA.

Mr. CLUTCH: Dylan Zink has proven to be Mr. Clutch during the last three seasons.  19 of his 29 goals (65.5%) have either tied the score or given the River Hawks the lead. Zink, who twice gave UMass Lowell the lead in the Ledyard Bank Championship Game including the game winner, led UMass Lowell with eight "clutch" goals during the 2015-16 season.  Four of his seven goals this season are defined as "clutch."

A WIN WOULD:  If UMass Lowell wins tonight it would prevent the River Hawks from losing three in a row, something that has not happened this season.  It would also keep the River Hawks in no worse than fifth place in Hockey East.  It would also be the program's 579th as a Division I program, putting the program two games above the .500 mark.

PUNCHING THE CLOCK: Through 25 games, UMass Lowell has played from behind for just 211:40 and only in portions of nine games.  UMass Lowell has held the lead for 860:25 of the 1,515-minutes of hockey the team has played this season.

Multi-GOAL GAMES:  UMass Lowell forward C.J. Smith has five multi-goal games this season.  That number places Smith second on the national leader board in multi-goal games.  Smith had two goal games against Colorado College, Clarkson, Vermont, Notre Dame and Dartmouth.  Smith has twelve multi-goal games in his career.

HOT SHOT JUNIOR:  UMass Lowell forward C.J. Smith leads all juniors playing college hockey in career scoring with 46-goals and 102-points.  Brady Ferguson, playing at Robert Morris is second with 96 points.  Union's Spencer Foo is second in goals with 39.  Smith's 54 assists finds him just three behind Anders Bjork of Notre Dame.

HITTING THE TARGET:  UMass Lowell center Joe Gambardella, with 11 goals on just 49 shots on goal, has scored on 22.4% of his shots.  His shooting percentage is the second best in Hockey East.  John Edwardh is second among River Hawk players and fifth in Hockey East with 11 goals on 51 shots, a 21.6% success rate.
 

WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES: One year can make a big difference and it has for a couple of UMass Lowell forwards.  Through 25 games, John Edwardh has a career high 11-goals and 21-points.  At the 25-game mark a year ago, Edwardh had just three-assists.  He finished the year four-goals and 13-points.  Jake Kamrass also has established career highs with eight-goals and 15-points.  He finished the 2015-16 season with five-goals and ten-points and at the 25-game mark he had just one assist.

HOME COOKING:  There is nothing like home cooking for several of the UMass Lowell River Hawks.  Defenseman Dylan Zink has scored 14 of his 22 points and ten of his 14 assists in just ten home games.  C.J. Smith has scored 11 of his 26 points at home and Joe Gambardella has five of his 11 goals at the Tsongas Center.  

CIRCLE OF DOMINANCE: UMass Lowell has dominated in the faceoff circle this season winning 865 of 1,609 puck drops.  The .538 faceoff winning percentage is the seventh best in the nation and third in Hockey East.  Joe Gambardella leads the team winning 266 of 458, .581.  Gambo ranks sixth in Hockey East.  Evan Campbell (198 of 371, .534), Ryan Lohin (168 of 318, .528) and Nick Master (187 of 369, .507) are all over the .500 mark.