SCOUTING THE RIVER HAWKS: UMass Lowell, with a 24-10-3 / 14-7-1 record, after taking two-out-of-three to win their quarterfinal series against New Hampshire, is ranked 4th in the USCHO and 5th in the USA Hockey Magazine poll. The team was picked for a fourth place finish in the Hockey East Coaches' Pre-Season Poll and finished the Hockey East season in a three-way tie for first place and earned the number one playoff seed based on the tie-breaker system. Joe Gambardella leads the team in scoring with 48 points. Nineteen players have scored goals, five are in double digits. C.J. Smith tops the list with 20. Freshman goalie Tyler Wall has started 30 of the team's 37 games and carries a 2.11 GAA and a .916 save percentage into this afternoon's contest.
SCOUTING THE FIGHT IRISH: Notre Dame with a 21-10-5 / 12-6-4 are the fourth seed in the Hockey East Tournament. The Irish earned the trip to the Garden with a two-games-to-none sweep of Providence, 5-0, 5-2. Notre Dame was picked to finish second in the Hockey East Coaches' pre-season poll. They ended up fourth, one-point back of the three team logjam at the top of the standings. Eighteen different players have scored goals; five are in double digits. Anders Bjork and Andrew Oglevie top the list with 19-goals apiece. Cal Peterson has started all 36 games and has a 2.05 goals against average and a .930 save percentage entering this afternoon's action.
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. NOTRE DAME: This is only the 13th meeting between the two schools in a series that dates back to Notre Dame joining Hockey East in 2013. UMass Lowell leads the all-time series, 8-2-2. The two teams have met twice in the post-season. The River Hawks defeated the Irish in the 2014 semifinal, 4-0 and took two of three in the 2015 quarterfinals.
THIS YEAR VS. NOTRE DAME: UMass Lowell and Notre Dame split their two-game regular season series, one game apiece, at the Compton Family Ice Arena in South Bend. Each team won by 4-1 scores. C.J. Smith had two-goals in the River Hawk win. Bobby Nardella had a goal and two-assists in the Irish win.
PLAYOFFS VERSUS NOTRE DAME: These two teams have met twice before in the Hockey East Tournament. UMass Lowell defeated Notre Dame in the 2014 semifinals, 4-0, en route to their second Hockey East Championship. They also met in the 2015 quarterfinals. The River Hawks won that confrontation two-games-to-one, including 5-0 shutout in the opener and a 6-4 win in game three.
LAST WEEKEND: UMass Lowell defeated New Hampshire, two-games-to-one, to move on to the semifinal round of the Hockey East Tournament. The River Hawks used a six-goal first period explosion to launch the team to an 8-2 win in the decisive third game. Kenny Hausinger, Colin O'Neill and C.J. Smith each had two goals in the game.
SIX GOAL FIRST PERIOD: When UMass Lowell scored six goals in Sunday's Game Three against UNH, it was the first time in more than twenty years that the River Hawks had scored six goals in a period. The last time that was accomplished was January 25, 1994 when UMass Lowell defeated Brown 10-1. Current Coach Norm Bazin was a member of that team.
NUMBER ONE SEED: This is only the second time that UMass Lowell has been the number one seed in the Hockey East Tournament. The last time was 2013 and the River Hawks defeated BU to win its first Tournament Championship.
RIVER HAWKS IN THE TOURNAMENT: This is UMass Lowell's 29th appearance in the Hockey East Tournament and 18th visit to the semifinals. UMass Lowell has been to the tournament championship game in four consecutive seasons, winning twice (2013, 2014).
THE TOURNAMENT NORM: Since Norm Bazin took over behind the bench, UMass Lowell is 22-11-0 in the post season, including both the Hockey East and NCAA Tournament play. Bazin is 5-4-0 in the NCAA Tournament and 17-7-0 in the HEA Tournament. The River Hawks won the Hockey East Tournament in both 2013 and 2014 and reached the NCAA Frozen Four in 2013.
THE SEMIS: This is UMass Lowell's 18th appearance in the semifinal round of the Hockey East Tournament. Six times in the past the team has moved on to the Championship Game. It is the fifth consecutive year that the River Hawks have gotten to the TD Garden.
A YEAR AGO: UMass Lowell won its semifinal match with Providence College, 2-1, in triple overtime. The game was the longest in UMass Lowell history spanning 112:27.
AT THE GARDEN: UMass Lowell is 7-9-1 at the building known as the TD Garden, but has won six of eight in the building since Norm Bazin took over behind the bench. The River Hawks are 4-0-0 in the semifinal and 2-2-0 in the Championship Game under Bazin's watch. The team was 4-5-0 in the old Boston Garden and a combined 11-14-1 on ice with a Causeway Street address.
CEGLARSKI AWARD: UMass Lowell Senior forward and alternate captain Joe Gambardella was named the recipient of the Len Ceglarski Individual Sportsmanship Award for the second consecutive season. The award is voted on by the league's 12 head coaches. Gambardella has played in all 37 games for the River Hawks this season and has posted a career-high 48 points. He has been whistled for only 11 penalties all season for 22 minutes. His 17 plus/minus rating is also tied for the team lead.
ROOKIE HONORS: UMass Lowell freshman Forward Kenny Hausinger was named the Hockey East Rookie of the Week after scoring two goals and adding an assist in the River Hawks quarterfinal series clinching win against New Hampshire on Sunday. Hausinger broke a 1-1 first period tie with two goals as UMass Lowell exploded for six first period markers and a decisive 8-2 win.
GAME THREE(S): Last Sunday's match against UNH was the ninth time that UMass Lowell has played a decisive game three in the Hockey East Tournament. The River Hawks are now 6-3-0 is such game threes. It is the second time that the have played and defeated New Hampshire in a game three.
DOWN A GAME: History has not been on the side of UMass Lowell when it drops the first game of a best-of-three quarterfinal series, but this year was different. This was the tenth time the River Hawks have lost the first game. Six times they have lost the series in two games. This is the fourth time they have extended the series to a deciding third game and only the second time they won the game and advanced to the semifinal round. That other time was in 2001 when they lost the series opener to UNH but won games two and three by identical 2-1 scores.
IT'S BEEN A WHILE: When C.J. Smith scored two goals Sunday in the River Hawks 8-2 win against UNH, he became the first UMass Lowell player to score 20-goals in a season since Ben Walter scored 26 during the 2004-05 season.
ON THE NATIONAL STAGE: UMass Lowell has been nationally ranked, in either the USCHO or the USAHockey Magazine poll, for 113 consecutive weeks. The stretch began when UMass Lowell appeared at #20 in the USCHO Poll on January 7, 2013. Of those 113 weeks more than half, 80, have been spent in the top ten.
20 WINS AGAIN: For the first time in the program's history UMass Lowell has won 20-games in a season for six consecutive years. The six straight puts UMass Lowell in an exclusive club. Only six schools in the country have more twenty or more in each of the last six seasons. Joining the River Hawks are Minnesota, Boston College, Denver, Quinnipiac and North Dakota.
SIX YEARS AMONG THE ELITE: UMass Lowell has the fifth most wins in the country over the last five-plus seasons. Since Norm Bazin took over the coaching responsibilities for the 2011-12 season the River Hawks have won 148 games. Their .672 winning percentage is the fourth best in the country trailing only Boston College, Quinnipiac and North Dakota.
HOME IN THE PLAYOFFS: UMass Lowell has now hosted 11 quarterfinal series, seven at the Tsongas Center, and has moved on to the semifinals in ten of those 11 years. They have advanced in six of the seven series played at the Tsongas Center. They have won five of six quarterfinal series played at home since Norm Bazin took over the coaching responsibilities.
HOME: UMass Lowell is 11-5-2 at home this season and won its six of its last seven at the Tsongas Center. The River Hawks have averaged 3.67 goal per game at home while allowing only 2.22 GPG. This is the sixth consecutive season in which the River Hawks have recorded at least ten wins at home.
HOME COOKING: There is nothing like home cooking for several of the UMass Lowell River Hawks. Defenseman Dylan Zink has scored 23 of his 35 points and 18 of his 25 assists in just 18 home games. Zink is second in the country in home scoring among defensemen. Joe Gambardella (8g, 11a, 19pts.) and C.J. Smith (8g, 13a, 21pts) are averaged more than a point a game at home.
PLUS-81: UMass Lowell Head Coach Norm Bazin is 81 games over .500 behind the River Hawk bench in five-plus seasons and that has moved the program above the .500 mark for the first time in the school's 34-year Division I history. UMass Lowell is 587-580-109 since beginning Division I play in 1983-84. Bazin has a record of 148-67-21 at the reins in Lowell.
NCAA TOURNAMENT: UMass Lowell is one of only seven teams in the country to go to the NCAA Tournament at least four times in the last five years. Boston College, North Dakota and Denver have made five visits while Quinnipiac, St. Cloud and Minnesota have also earned a spot in the tournament four times.
PUTTING THE "POWER" IN POWER PLAY: After being shut out in three straight games, the UMass Lowell power play got back on track with a pair of goals in the quarterfinal finale against UNH. The River Hawks had gone 28-for-76 (36.8%) over its previous 19 games. The power play remains one of the best in the country. The River Hawks have scored 45 goals in 164 man advantage opportunities for a 27.4% success rate, the third best in the country and number two in Hockey East. Twelve different players have scored with the man advantage; C.J. Smith leads the team with eight PPGs. Joe Gambardella has seven and Jake Kamrass has five. Mattias Göransson leads the blueliners with four PP goals. Michael Kapla has 14 PP assists and Dylan Zink has 13 and Smith have added eleven.
PENALTY KILLING: UMass Lowell Penalty Kill Unit has been on a bit of a roller coaster ride. The unit has gone 29-for-30 over its last eight games after allowing eight goals in its previous 24 man down situations. And that's after a stretch of 13 games during which the PK unit killed 53 of 56, (94.6%) opposing power plays. The PK is 149-for-174, 85.6%, for the season.
A WIN THIS AFTERNOON WOULD: If UMass Lowell wins today the River Hawks would move on to the Hockey East Championship Game for the fifth consecutive season, Saturday night, at the TD Garden. It would also be the program's 588th win as a Division I program, putting the program eight-games over the .500 mark for the first time in school history.
WHO'S NEXT?: If UMass Lowell defeats Notre Dame to advance to the Hockey East Championship Game it will play the winner of the Boston University/Boston College match up..
THE SENIOR CLASS: This UMass Lowell Senior class is one of three in Hockey East with 90 wins or more. The four River Hawks seniors have a record of 96-42-18 and a .673 winning percentage. Only Providence (97) and Boston College (97) have more. The senior class, with the third most wins in the Division I era, has a shot at the school record set by the 2016 seniors who accumulated 100 wins over a four year period.
ATTENDANCE LEADERS: UMass Lowell leads Hockey East in average attendance drawing 5,542 per game. The River Hawks closed out the regular season with crowds of 6,000 or better in each of its last six home games. Prior to this stretch UMass Lowell had never had more than three-consecutive home games with crowds of more than six-thousand. The River Hawks averaged nearly 900 more people than its nearest competitor.
PROTECTING THE NET: UMass Lowell goalie Tyler Wall is among the best in the Hockey East at keeping the puck out of the net. Wall ranks third in the league in goals against average (2.11) and fifth in save percentage .916. His .712 winning percentage is the best in the league.
WINS ON THE WALL: With 23 wins to his credit UMass Lowell goalie Tyler Wall has broken the school record for wins by a Division I freshman goalie. Connor Hellebuyck set the record with 20 wins during his freshman campaign, the 2012-13 season. The 23-wins is the most by a freshman goalie in the country.
AMONG THE NATIONAL LEADERS: Joe Gambardella is among the top scorers in the nation. Gambardella is 10th with 48 points (17g, 29a). His 31 assists is 12th in the nation. Gambardella is fifth in scoring among Hockey East players and C.J. Smith is 13th in the country and seventh among Hockey East players with 46 points (20g, 26a). Defenseman Dylan Zink is second in the nation and Hockey East among defensemen with 35 points (10g, 25a). His ten goals from the back line is second the country. Mattias Göransson is the second highest scoring freshman defenseman in Hockey East and is seventh in the nation with 22 points (5g, 17a). Michael Kapla and Zink with 25 assists respectively rank sixth among the nation's defensemen and third among Hockey East defensemen.
GAME-WINNING JOE: Joe Gambardella has six game winning goals this season, the second most in the country, and an even dozen in his career. He is second, all-time, among UML Division I players. Only Kory Falite with 13 has more.
125 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. He, now, has 46 goals and 79 assists in 146 games. Gambardella currently ranks 9th among DI players and 24th all-time. Gambardella has 12 points (6g, 6a) in his last 11 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.
JOE PLAYOFFS: Joe Gambardella has been a point-a-game scorer in Hockey East Tournament games during his career. He has scored seven goals and 15 points in 15 playoff games. C.J. Smith scored at a similar rate with seven-goals and 13-points in Twelve tournament games.
120 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 120 points on 53-goals and 67-assists in just 116 games. Smith is the 44th player in program history to reach the milestone and the 24th in the Division I era. He ranks 27th all-time and 12th among Division I players at UMass Lowell. He has five-goals and 14-points in his last eight 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.
120 x TWO: The last time UMass Lowell had two active players with 120 or more points was during the 1995-96 season. They were Christian Sbrocca (171) and Jeff Daw (141).
53 GOALS AND COUNTING: Forward C.J. Smith scored the 50th goal of his collegiate career February 18 against Massachusetts. He is the 28th player to reach 50 and the 13th to do so during the Division I era. He is just the fourth to do so in the last 15 years. Smith is one of just a 15 players in the country with 50 or more career goals and he is the only non-senior in the group.
40 POINTS..!: Joe Gambardella, earlier this season, became the first River Hawk to score 40 points in a season since Elias Godoy totaled 41 during the 2003-04 season. His current point total, 48, is the most by a UML player since Greg Bullock set the school's Division I record with 65 points during the 1994-95 season.
TWO WITH 40..?: For the first time since the 1995-96 season UMass Lowell has two players with 40 or more points in a single season. Joe Gambardella leads the team with 48-points and linemate C.J. Smith reached the 40-point marker when he scored a goal and added three assists in the River Hawks 5-2 win at Massachusetts February 18. He has now brought that number to 46 points. The last time UMass Lowell had two 40-point scorers in the same season was 1995-96. That year the River Hawks had five led by Brendan Concannon with 62 points.
HOT SHOT JUNIOR: UMass Lowell forward C.J. Smith leads all juniors playing college hockey in career scoring with 53-goals and 120-points. Brady Ferguson, playing at Robert Morris is second with 115 points. Ferguson is second in goals with 45. Smith's 67 assists finds him three behind Ferguson.
GOOD CHEMISTRY: The UMass Lowell line of C.J. Smith, Joe Gambardella and John Edwardh has been hot. The line has played together in 35 of the River Hawks' 37 games this season accounting for 53-goals and 127 points. That's 39.3% of the River Hawks goals and 35.2% of the team's total offensive output. They have been held off the score sheet just twice. Since being united for the final regular season game a year ago the trio has 63-goals and 149 points in 42 games and average of 3.5-points per game.
73 ASSISTS AND COUNTING: With an assist Saturday night, UMass Lowell defenseman Michael Kapla has 73 in his collegiate career. That number breaks the school's record for a Division I defenseman. The old record was held by Mike Nicholishen (1994-98) at 72.
IRON MAN: UMass Lowell senior defenseman Michael Kapla has played in 157 consecutive games, the most of any active player in the country. Kapla has never missed a game in his collegiate career. He is one game short of equaling the UMass Lowell record for games played held by Christian Sbrocca (158-games, 1992-96) and has broken the record for defensemen set by Jake Suter's at 153-games.
BLASTS FROM THE BLUE LINE: Dylan Zink, with 31 goals in his collegiate career, is the top goal scoring defenseman in UMass Lowell's Division I history. He moved into the top spot with a third period power play goal, January 20th, against Providence. The goal was his 29th moving him past Maury Edwards and to the top of the list. He has added two more since that time.
25 POINTS FROM THE BLUE LINE: Only 17 defensemen in the country have 27 points or more and UMass Lowell is the only team with two. Dylan Zink, with 10-goals and 35 points leads the blue line corps; Michael Kapla has added two-goals and 25 assists for 27 points. The last UML defenseman to reach the 30-point mark was Ron Hainsey who finished with ten-goals and 36-points during the 2000-01 season.
TRIPLE DOUBLE: Dylan Zink has put together three straight double-digit goal-scoring seasons. He is the only active defensemen in college hockey who can make that claim. Zink is second among college defensemen with 31 career goals. St. Lawrence Gavin Bayruether tops the list with 35.
22 POINT FRESHMAN D: Freshman defenseman Mattias Göransson has 22-points (5g, 15a), the most by a UML freshman defenseman since Ed Campbell had 24 points (8g, 16a) during the 1993-94 season. Göransson is also just two points shy of tying the school's Division I record for points for a first year blue liner, 24, set by Ed Hodson in 1983-84 and then equaled by Ed Campbell in 1993-94.
CAREER LEADERS: UMass Lowell center Joe Gambardella, with 125 points, is 10th in career scoring among active college players. His 79-assists places him 11th on the active career list. Defenseman Michael Kapla is fourth among active defensemen in the country and first in Hockey East in scoring with 89-points and third in the nation with 73 assists. With 31 goals Dylan Zink is second among active defenseman in career goals and the leader among Hockey East Defensemen.
HITTING THE TARGET: UMass Lowell forward Joe Gambardella, with 17 goals on 73 shots, has scored on 23.3% of his shots. His shooting percentage is the second best in Hockey East. John Edwardh, with 17 goals on just 76 shots, has scored on 22.4% of his shots is second among River Hawks and third in the league.
CIRCLE OF DOMINANCE: UMass Lowell has dominated in the faceoff circle this season winning 1,288 of 2,372 puck drops. The .543 faceoff winning percentage is the sixth best in the nation and second in Hockey East. Joe Gambardella leads the team winning 382 of 676, .565. Gambo ranks eighth in Hockey East. Evan Campbell (252 of 453, .556), Nick Master (286 of 527, .543) and Ryan Lohin (281 of 540, .520) are all over the .500 mark.
PROTECTING THE LEAD: UMass Lowell is 19-1-2 when leading after two periods of play. They were 16-1-2 a year ago and since Norm Bazin took over the coaching reins at UMass Lowell, the River Hawks are 112-5-9 when leading after two-periods. They are also 28-16-9 when the score is tied after two periods.
BY THE CLOSEST OF MARGINS: UMass Lowell is 4-5-3 in one-goal games this season. A year ago UMass Lowell was 10-6-5 in one-goal games and is 44-29-21 in one-goal games since the 2011-12 season. Also, during that time period the River Hawks are 12-8-21 in games decided in overtime.
A GOOD START: UMass Lowell has outscored its opponents 49-25 in the first period this season. That's a scoring margin of plus-24 in the period and that figure is the third best in the country and number one in Hockey East.
THREE IS THE MAGIC NUMBER: When UMass Lowell scores three or more goals in a game it is 22-3-1 and 124-17-6, .864, in the last five-plus seasons. When the River Hawks keep their opponents under three goals, the team is 21-0-2. When scoring two goals or less in a game the River Hawks are 2-5-2 this season and 24-49-15, .362, since 2011-12.
WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES: One year can make a big difference and it has for a couple of UMass Lowell forwards. Through 37 games, John Edwardh has a career high 17-goals and 35-points. At the 37-game mark a year ago, Edwardh had just three-goals and ten points. He finished the year four-goals and 13-points. Jake Kamrass also has established career highs with 13-goals and 21-points. He finished the 2015-16 season with five-goals and ten-points but, at the 37-game mark he had just five-goals and nine-points.
ON THE ROAD: UMass Lowell is 13-5-1 away from the Tsongas Center this season. Their .711 winning percentage is sixth best in the country and the best in Hockey East. Their 13-wins away from the Tsongas Center is the most in the country. 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 55-31-8, .624, as the visiting team and 76-40-9, .644, including neutral site games.
ROAD WARRIOR: Joe Gambardella is second in the nation, and first in Hockey East, in scoring on the road. Twenty-nine (9g, 20a) of his 45 points have come in 19 games away from the Tsongas Center. His 20 road assists leads the nation.
RED LIGHT DISTRICT: UMass Lowell is sixth in the nation in goals scored with 135. UML is averaging 3.65-goals per game, seventh best in the country. C.J. Smith (20), Joe Gambardella (17), John Edwardh (17), Jake Kamrass (13) and Dylan Zink (10) have ten or more goals. The 135 goals is the most the team has scored in a single season since scoring 200 in the 1996-96 season.
WHEN ALL THINGS ARE EVEN: UMass Lowell is averaging 2.32 goals per game at even strength. That is 9th best in the country and third best in Hockey East. The River Hawks have scored 86 of their 135-goals this season at even strength.
PUNCHING THE CLOCK: Through 37 games, UMass Lowell has played from behind for just 316:27 and only in portions of fourteen games. UMass Lowell has held the lead for 1,192:06 of the 2,235-minutes of hockey the team has played this season.
100 GAMES CLUB: Six members of the UMass Lowell roster have played at least 100 collegiate games. Michael Kapla (157), Joe Gambardella (146), Dylan Zink (139), Evan Campbell (128), C.J. Smith (116) and Tyler Mueller (115) have all surpassed the century mark. This is the fourth consecutive season in which the roster has included at least six players with more than 100 games experience. Two more players, John Edwardh (97) and Chris Forney (96) are approaching the milestone.
MR. CONSISTENT: UMass Lowell center Joe Gambardella has been nothing if not consistent this season. He has scored points in all but ten of the River Hawks 37-games. UMass Lowell is 14-0-1 when Gambardella scores a goal and 21-4-2 when he has a point in the game. He has fourteen multi-point games.
GETTING OFFENSE FROM THE DEFENSE: UMass Lowell has the third highest scoring defense corps in the country. The River Hawks blue liners have combined for 25-goals and 113-points. The D corps also leads the country in power play points with 59.
CLUTCH AND IMPORTANT GOALS - 2017: John Edwardh leads UMass Lowell in clutch goals this season with eleven. "Clutch" goals are defined as those that either tie the score or give the team a lead. Ten of Edwardh's 17-goals have given UML the lead, another has tied the score meaning that 64.7% of his goals have been scored in clutch situations. C.J. Smith is second with seven "clutch" goals.
Mr. CLUTCH: Dylan Zink has proven to be Mr. Clutch during the last three seasons. Twenty of his 31 goals (64.5%) 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. Five of his ten goals this season are "clutch."
THE LEADERSHIP: Senior defenseman Michael Kapla has been chosen to wear the "C", as Captain, on the front of his jersey. The River Hawk leadership team also includes Alternate Captains senior center Joe Gambardella and junior defenseman Tyler Mueller.
