Friday, December 29th vs. Harvard (4pm)
CATAMOUNT CUP
(Gutterson Fieldhouse; Burlington, Vt.)
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Game Notes | Preview Interview
Follow on Twitter: @RiverHawkNation @RiverHawkHockey Â
Commercial Radio:
River Hawk Network: (WCAP 980AM)/UMass Lowell Game Day App
Talent: Bob Ellis (Play by Play); Andy Merritt (Analyst)
Saturday, December 30th vs. St. Lawrence (4pm)
CATAMOUNTÂ CUP
(Gutterson Fieldhouse; Burlington, Vt.)
Watch Live | Listen Live | Live Stats | Buy Tickets | Saturday Game Notes
Follow on Twitter: @RiverHawkNation @RiverHawkHockey Â
Commercial Radio:
River Hawk Network: (WCAP 980AM)/UMass Lowell Game Day App
Talent: Bob Ellis (Play by Play); Andy Merritt (Analyst)
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SCOUTING THE RIVER HAWKS: UMass Lowell is 9-8-0/6-6-0 after finishing off the first half of the season with a weekend split with Boston University. The River Hawks have won five of their last seven games. The River Hawks are 5-5-0 at the Tsongas Center and 4-3-0 on the road. UMass Lowell, currently sitting in fifth place, was picked for a second place finish in the Hockey East Coaches' Pre-Season Poll. Kenny Hausinger and Ryan Lohin leads the team in scoring with 14-points. Hausinger tops the goal scoring chart with six, Lohin, John Edwardh and Jake Kamrass have five apiece. Seventeen different players have scored goals, thirteen have more than one. Christoffer Hernberg has started in eleven games and played in fourteen and has a 1.85 GAA and a .931 save percentage.
SCOUTING THE CRIMSON:  Harvard is 4-5-1/4-3-0 after defeating Quinnipiac and Princeton before going into the break. They are 2-4-1 playing seven of their ten games on the road. Harvard sits sixth in the ECAC after being tabbed as the preseason favorite by both the ECAC Coaches and the media. Thirteen different players have scored goals, seven have more than one. Ryan Donato leads the team with eight-goals and 15-points. Merrick Madsen has started eight of the team's 10 games in nets. He has a 2.49 goals against average and a .906 save percentage.
ALL-TIME SERIES vs. HARVARD: This is only the fourth meeting between the two schools in a series that dates back to 2001. UMass Lowell holds a 2-1-0 edge. Their first meeting was in the opening round of the Denver Cup in 2001, a 2-0 River Hawk win. The two other meetings are far more recent. UMass Lowell defeated Harvard, 5-0, in Allston in 2012 and Harvard got the upper hand, 4-2, two years later.
CATAMOUNT CUP: This is the second time that UMass Lowell has participated in the Catamount Cup. That previous appearance was as part of the 2013-14 edition. UMass Lowell defeated Canisius, 5-2, and Clarkson, 3-1, but was awarded second place based on the tiebreaker system. Vermont took the title.
AT THE GUT: UMass Lowell has been no stranger to the Gutterson Fieldhouse or to success in the building. The River Hawks are 13-9-4 all-time at The Gut including an 11-8-4 record against Vermont. They are 2-1-0 when the facility is a neutral site.
NEUTRAL SITE: This is the first time that UMass Lowell has played a game at a neutral site this season. The River Hawks are 23-10-1, .691, at neutral sites since Norm Bazin took over behind the UML bench for the 2011-12 season.
GRABBING THE HARDWARE: UMass Lowell has enjoyed a good deal of success in in-season tournaments in recent years. The River Hawks have appeared in the Championship Game in seven straight tournaments winning five. They took the trophy at the Toyota UConn Holiday Classic, the Frozen Holiday Classic, the Mariucci Classic, the Friendship Four Tournament and the Ledyard Bank Classic. During that time UMass Lowell has had a 12-1-1 record in tournament play and also won a tiebreaking shootout.Â
WINNING THE OPENER: UMass Lowell has won the opening round game in the last nine in-season tournaments that it has been part of. The streak started with a 3-0 win against St. Lawrence in the Icebreaker Invitational to start the 2009-10 season. There last opening round loss was a 2-1 setback at the hands of Minnesota-Duluth in the Shillelagh Tournament hosted by Notre Dame during the 2008-09 season.
A YEAR AGO AT THE LEDYARD BANK CLASSIC: UMass Lowell won the Ledyard Bank Classic, in Hanover, N.H., a year ago. They stopped Colgate, 3-2, in the opener and then topped Dartmouth, the host school, 7-4 in the Championship Game. Joe Gambardella was the Tournament MVP.Â
NON-CONFERENCE, NO PROBLEM: UMass Lowell has more than held its own in non-conference play over the last six-plus years. UMass Lowell is 73-26-6 (.724) in non-conference games since the 2011-12 season. The River Hawks are 19-7-3 against ECAC schools since Norm Bazin took over behind the River Hawk bench.
VERSUS THE ECAC: UMass Lowell has played more non-conference games against members of the ECAC than any other conference. The River Hawks hold an edge 106-78-12 against schools representing the ECAC. That number includes schools that have since moved to other conferences. They are 89-60-10 against current members of the ECAC.
FACING THE IVIES: UMass Lowell has a winning record against Ivy League schools. The River Hawks are 26-15-5 all-time against the Ivies and 6-2-1 under Head Coach Norm Bazin. They have a winning record against five of the six Ivy League schools that play hockey topped by a 9-4-0 record against Yale. Only Brown holds the edge against UMass Lowell with a 4-2-5 advantage.Â
A WIN TONIGHT WOULD... give the River Hawks a chance to win the Catamount Cup. It would also give UMass Lowell it's tenth win of the season. A year ago UMass Lowell also put win number ten on the board in its 18th game.
WHO's NEXT?: UMass Lowell will play St. Lawrence Saturday at 4:00 p.m. It will be the second time these two teams have met this season. The River Hawks defeated the Saints, 5-0, in Canton, N.Y. in October. UMass Lowell leads the all-time series 13-8-1.Â
NEXT WEEKEND: UMass Lowell returns to the Tsongas Center and Hockey East play January 5th and 6th with games against Vermont and Massachusetts. The game with Vermont will be the first of three games between the two teams this year. UMass Lowell holds a 26-16-7 edge all-time. The River Hawks also hold a 47-25-7 edge against UMass whom they will play just twice this year.
AT THE BREAK: The River Hawks have nine wins at the break. That comes after four years of double digit wins during the first half of the season.  The most wins UMass Lowell has ever had going at the break was 12. The River Hawks did that in both 1986-87 and 2001-02. The last time the River Hawks did not reach double digits was 2012-13 when UML was 6-7-1 at the break. That River Hawk team proceeded to go 22-4-1 after the break and earned a spot in the Frozen Four.
LET'S PLAY HOCKEY: This afternoon's game against Harvard comes after a 20-day break.  This will be just the fourth game to be played during a 40-day period. UMass Lowell defeated UConn on November 18th, lost to Bentley ten days later and after a nine-day break split a pair of games against BU.
BACK-TO-BACK: This is the ninth of 16 regular season weekends during which the River Hawks will play back-to-back games. The River Hawks have three sweeps to their credit, three splits and also have been swept twice this season. UMass Lowell is 5-3-0 on the first night, 4-4-0 on the second. A year ago the River Hawks went back-to-back 18 times. The River Hawks were 11-6-1 on the first night and 11-5-2 on the second. UMass Lowell authored seven sweeps and were swept just twice.
ON THE ROAD: UMass Lowell is 82-44-9, a .641 winning percentage when playing away from the Tsongas Center in the six-plus years that Norm Bazin had led the program. That .641 winning percentage is the best in the nation during that period.   The River Hawks are 59-34-8, .624, as the road team and 23-10-1, .691, in games played at a neutral site.
ROAD WARRIORS: UMass Lowell forwards Ryan Lohin and Kenny Hausinger appear to be comfortable on foreign ice. Five of Hausinger's six goals and ten of his 14-points have come on the road. Ten of Lohin's 14-points (3g, 7a) have come on the road. Lohin and Hausinger are tied for third in Hockey East in scoring on the road.
HOME SWEET HOME: UMass Lowell is 77-32-12 (a .686 winning percentage) at the Tsongas Center since Norm Bazin took over behind the bench for the 2011-12 season. The last time the River Hawks had a losing record at home was 2010-11 when the home team went 4-12-0.
HOME COOKING: UMass Lowell forward John Edwardh has scored all of his five goals and seven of his nine points at the Tsongas Center this season. Defenseman Tommy Panico has scored all of his points, three-goals and added six-assists, at home. Defenseman Tyler Mueller has scored both of his goals at home and Nick Master has added both of his goals and five assists on home ice as well.
LAST TIME OUT: The last time UMass Lowell was on the ice it split a weekend series with Boston University. The River Hawks won the weekend opener, 3-2, on a Ryan Collins third-period goal but was handed its worst loss of the season the following night, 9-3, at the Agganis Arena.Â
GIVING UP NINE: When UMass Lowell gave up nine goals in the December 9th loss to BU, it was the most goals the River Hawks had allowed in a single game in more than a decade. The last time an opponent hit that number was November 11, 2005 in a 9-2 loss against Maine. The last time UMass Lowell allowed more than nine in a game was December 29, 2002 when the team fell to Dartmouth, 10-2.
FINDING THE TWINE: UMass Lowell forward Kenny Hausinger broke a ten game goal scoring drought with a third period marker December 9 at Boston University. Hausinger leads the River Hawks with six goals but had not scored since October 21st at St. Lawrence. The right hand shot had scored five goals in the team's first six games.
ON TARGET: Kenny Hausinger leads UMass Lowell in shooting percentage. He has scored six goals on just 21 shots on goal, a percentage of 28.6%. Connor Wilson is second with four goals on 19 shots, 21.1%. As a team UMass Lowell scores on 11.2% of its shots. The River Hawks are third in Hockey East in shooting percentage, but are last in the league in shots on goal. A year ago UMass Lowell led Hockey East scoring on 12.6% of its shots.
MORE THAN ONE: Six different UMass Lowell players have had multi-goal games this season. Tommy Panico, Ryan Dmowski, Kenny Hausinger, Jake Kamrass, John Edwardh and Ryan Lohin have each found the back on the net twice in a game.
HEATING UP: UMass Lowell junior center Nick Master has been turning up the heat with some offensive contributions. Master has seven points, two-goals and five-assists, in his last seven games. That's after earning just a single assist in the team's first eight games.
FIRST 5/LAST 5?: UMass Lowell has finished periods far better than they have started them. The River Hawks have outscored their opponents 17-11 during the final five minutes of a period. The 17 goals in the final 5:00 is the third most in Hockey East and 12th best in the country. The 17 goals represent 34.7% of the River Hawks offense this season. Conversely, UMass Lowell has been outscored 13-7 in the first five minutes of a period. The seven goals in the first five minutes is 51st in the country.
LAST CHANCE: UMass Lowell has been a strong third period team this season. The River Hawks have outscored opponents 20-9 in the final 20-minutes. Four of UMass Lowell's last six wins have come on third period goals.
OFFENSE FROM DEFENSE: UMass Lowell is second Hockey East in goals from the defense with 12 in the team's first 17 games. Their 45-points from the blue line is fourth in the league. Six different Dmen have scored goals, four, Tommy Panico, Tyler Mueller, Mattias Goransson and Chris Forney have two or more. Mueller leads River Hawk defensemen with ten-points while Forney and Panico lead with three-goals apiece.
STINGY STARTS:Â UMass Lowell has allowed only 12 first period goals in 17 games this season, an average 0.71 goals per game. That puts the River Hawks second in Hockey East and 12th in the country.
GETTING OFF TO A GOOD START: UMass Lowell has scored first in just under half of its 17 games this season. That has not always translated into a win. The River Hawks have only won five of those eight games.
BY THE CLOSEST OF MARGINS: UMass Lowell is 49-33-21, .578, in one-goal games since the 2011-12 season. Also, during that time period the River Hawks are 12-11-21 in games decided in overtime.
PROTECTING THE LEAD: Since Norm Bazin took over the coaching reins at UMass Lowell, the River Hawks are 120-5-9 when leading after two-periods. They are also 30-19-9 when the score is tied after two periods. The River Hawks were 22-1-2 when leading after two periods a year ago.
THREE IS THE MAGIC NUMBER: When UMass Lowell scores three or more goals in a game it is 134-20-6, .857 during the last six-plus years. The River Hawks were 25-3-1 a year ago. When scoring two goals or less in a game the River Hawks are 25-56-15, .339, since 2011-12.
CLUTCH AND IMPORTANT GOALS: Sophomore Ryan Lohin leads the River Hawks in clutch goals. All five of his goals are defined as "clutch" either tying the score or giving the UML the lead. Lohin has four tying goals and one that gave UML the lead. Jake Kamrass has four clutch goals. John Edwardh, and Connor Wilson have three and Kenny Hausinger has two clutch goals this season. Edwardh led the team a year ago. Thirteen of his 19-goal came in the clutch.
100 GAMES CLUB: Three members of the UMass Lowell hockey team have played at least 100 games in their collegiate careers. Tyler Mueller (135), John Edwardh (118) and Chris Forney (117) have all reached the century mark. Mueller is tenth in the country among active players in games played and number one in Hockey East.  Tommy Panico (96), Nick Master (94) and Jake Kamrass (92) are next on the list.
BONUS TIME - NO BONUS: It has been a while since UMass Lowell won a game in overtime. The River Hawks' last OT win came on March 26, 2016 when they defeated Yale, 3-2, in the NCAAs, a span of 59 games. UML is 0-3-3 in OT since then.
ON THE PP AGAIN: UMass Lowell has the second busiest power play in Hockey East. The River Hawks have been on the power play 82 times in their first 17-games. That's an average of 4.82 power plays per game. Only Providence averages more man advantage situations per game, 5.33. Â
THE POWER PLAY: The UMass Lowell power is looking to find a bit of consistency. The River Hawk power play scored power play goals in consecutive games for the first time in more than a month when they did so December 8 and 9 against BU. UMass Lowell was three-for-nine during the weekend series after scoring with the man advantage in just one of its previous five games. On the season the River Hawks are 14-for-82, 17.1%, with the man advantage.
OK ON THE PK: UMass Lowell penalty killing unit has been consistently inconsistent. It has surrendered power play goals in ten of 17 games. The unit has an 80.3% success rate for the season.
GOING TO THE BOX, OR NOT: UMass Lowell has spent less time, on average, in the penalty box than any other team in Hockey East. The River Hawks have been whistled 75 times for an average of 9.47 minutes per game. UMass Lowell is the seventh least penalized team in the country. Harvard is the tenth least penalized team in the country averaging 9.90 minutes in the box per game.Â
THAT'S A LOT OF RUBBER: Boston University fired 24 shots on goal in the first period of the December 9th game between the two teams. That most the most shots on the UML net in a single period in six years. The last time a team had more was December 3, 2011 when UNH fired 29 shots on goal in the first period of a game played in Durham. Doug Carr stopped 28 of the 29 shots and the River Hawks won the game, 5-3.
THAT'S A LOT OF RUBBER II: When Northeastern fired 21 shots on goal during the second period in the November 11th game it matched the most shots on goal surrendered during a single period at the Tsongas Center. The 20 saves by River Hawk goalie Chris Hernberg is the record for one period at the Tsongas Center.  Â
NO SHOT: UMass Lowell held Bentley without a shot in the third period November 28. It had been more than four decades since that had happened. The last time the River Hawks held a team without a shot on goal for a period was the second period of a 10-1 win against Bridgewater State, January 1, 1976. Mason Leggee was the UML goalie. The River Hawks nearly did it last season holding UNH to just one shot in the first period of a 3-1 win in the second game of the Hockey East quarterfinals, March 11, 2017.
BIG ICE: The Norm Bazin led River Hawks have played well on "Big Ice." Including the November 10th win at UNH, the River Hawks are 38-13-5 on ice sheets larger than the standard/NHL 200 x 85 during Bazin's six-plus years behind the bench. They are 12-3-1 on the Olympic, 200 x 100, sheet including a 6-3-0 record at the Whittemore Center.Â
AMONG THE NATIONAL LEADERS: UMass Lowell goalie Christoffer Hernberg is seventh in the nation in goals against average, 1.85, and fifth in save percentage, .931. Hernberg has started 11 and appeared in 14 of the River Hawks 17 games this season and leads Hockey East in both categories.
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PLUS-84: UMass Lowell Head Coach Norm Bazin is 84 games over .500 behind the River Hawk bench in six-plus seasons and that has moved the program above the .500 mark for the first time in the school's 35-year Division I history. UMass Lowell is 599-589-109 since beginning Division I play in 1983-84. Bazin is 160-76-21 in Lowell.
ATTENDANCE LEADERS: UMass Lowell is second in Hockey East in average attendance. The River Hawks are averaging 4,957 per game through first ten home contests. UMass Lowell led Hockey East in average attendance, a year ago, drawing 5,542 per game. The club closed out the 2016-17 regular season with crowds of 6,000 or better in each of its last six home games. The River Hawks averaged nearly 900 more people than its nearest competitor.Â
HONORS FOR HERNBERG: UMass Lowell goalie Christoffer Hernberg has been named the Hockey East Goaltender of the Month for November. Hernberg went 5-1-0, with a 1.84 goals against average and a .933 save percentage, in six starts and seven appearances during the month. The goalie has also picked up two weekly awards from Hockey East this season.
HERNBERG SPARKLES: It was 40 games between starts for goalie Christoffer Hernberg, but the junior has turned in series strong starts. He picked up his second collegiate victory in UMass Lowell's 5-2 win against Omaha and followed that up with eight more victories. Hernberg turned in shutouts against St. Lawrence (27 saves) and UConn (33 saves.) The wins were the first for Hernberg since January 29, 2016 when he beat Arizona State 4-1 making 19 saves.
WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES: Forward Kenny Hausinger has gotten off to a quick start scoring six goals and 14-points in the River Hawks first 17 games. Last year, Hausinger had just four-points, two goals and two assists, after 17 games. That is far ahead of the pace he set last year. Hausinger did not score his fourteenth point of the 2016-17 season until the team's 36th game March 12th against New Hampshire.
THE SENIOR CLASS: The six-member UMass Lowell senior class has accumulated a record of 82-41-12, a .659 winning percentage. The class ranks second in Hockey East in wins and third in winning percentage. Only Providence, 85 wins, has more victories during the period. The class which includes forwards Ryan Collins, John Edwardh, and Jake Kamrass and defensemen Chris Forney, Tyler Mueller and Tommy Panico has won one HEA regular season title, a tournament championship, four in-season tournaments and made two appearances in the NCAA tournament. The class has a shot at matching or surpassing the 2016 senior class which is the winningest in the school's Division I history with an even 100 wins.
SEEN IT ALL AND COUNTING: UMass Lowell Head Athletic Trainer Artie Poitras is the longest serving hockey athletic trainer with one team and the second longest serving in the country. Poitras has been on the bench, in his role as athletic trainer, for 37 years since starting his UMass Lowell career in 1981. He has been witness to a National Championship, three Hockey East Tournament Titles and ten NCAA Tournament visits. The athletic trainer has worked 1,363 games including 1,296 Division I games. He has missed only one game. Poitras is working on a consecutive games streak that has now reached 887.
51ST SEASON OF UMASS LOWELL HOCKEY: This is the 51st season of hockey at UMass Lowell. The program began with the 1967-68 season. That first team went 7-7-1. After winning three Division II National Championships the program moved to Division I as an Independent for the 1983-84 season and joined Hockey East for its inaugural season of 1984-85. The River Hawks are 859-710-116 all time with a winning percentage of .544 and 599-589-109 record (.504) as a Division I program.
THE LEADERSHIP: Senior defenseman Tyler Mueller has been chosen to wear the "C", as Captain, on the front of his jersey. The River Hawk leadership team also includes Alternate Captains defenseman Chris Forney and forwards John Edwardh, Ryan Lohin and Connor Wilson.
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The NHL and UML:  Former River Hawk goalies Connor Hellebuyck and Carter Hutton didn't exactly square off against one another but did throw shutouts at one another. Winnipeg and St. Louis matched up in a home-and-home series December 16 and 17. Hutton turned in a 48-save, 2-0, shutout at Winnipeg the first night and Hellebuyck matched that with a 24-save, 4-0, shutout at St. Louis the next. Each played in only one of the two games.
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