Non-Commercial Radio: WUMLÂ 91.5 FM
Talent: Connor Capozzi (Play by Play); Brianne Dillon (Analyst)
SCOUTING THE RIVER HAWKS: UMass Lowell is 8-7-1/4-4-1 after a weekend split with Boston University, December 7 & 8, the final weekend prior to the holiday break. The River Hawks have won four of their last six games. UMass Lowell was picked for a seventh place finish by Hockey East Coaches and was placed sixth in the Media Poll. Ryan Lohin leads the team in goals with six and points with 12. Seventeen different players have scored goals, fourteen have scored more than once. Tyler Wall has started eleven of the team's 16-games and has a 2.05 goals against average and a .925 save percentage. Both Wall, with two, and Christoffer Hernberg have thrown shutouts.
SCOUTING THE PIONEERS:  Denver is 8-4-2 / 4-4-0 after a weekend split with North Dakota. The Pioneers were picked to finish fifth in the Media Pre-Season Poll. Thirteen different players have scored goals, eleven have more than one. Jarid Lukosevicius leads the team with nine-goals. Lukosevicius and freshmen Emilio Petterson top the team scoring chart with 15-points apiece. Devin Cooley has started 12 of the team's 14 games in nets and has a 2.16 goals against average and a .928 save percentage. He has two shutouts to his credit.
ALL-TIME SERIES vs. DENVER: This is only the 11th meeting between the two schools in a series that dates back to 1984 when Hockey East and the WCHA had an interlocking schedule. Denver leads the series 8-2-0. They have not played one another since December of 2012, DU won that meeting 5-1. That game was also the collegiate debut for former UMass Lowell goalie, now Winnipeg Jet, Connor Hellebuyck. UMass Lowell has twice faced Denver in the Championship Game of the Denver Cup. The Pioneers won both of those meetings by a 2-1 score. UMass Lowell's last win in the series came in the only overtime game played between the two. That was on December 5, 1986. Randy LeBrasseur had the OT game winner in a 5-4 victory.
NON-CONFERENCE, NO PROBLEM: UMass Lowell has more than held its own in non-conference play over the last seven-plus years. UMass Lowell is 80-33-6 (.698) in non-conference games since the 2011-12 season. The River Hawks were 6-4-0 playing out of conference during the 2017-18 season and are 4-3-0 this year.
VERSUS THE NCHC: UMass Lowell has had success against the National Collegiate Hockey Conference since the conference began play in October of 2013. UMass Lowell is 8-4-2 all-time against the NCHC, but is 23-36-4 against teams who are currently members of the NCHC. The River Hawks split a pair of games earlier this season at Miami.
TONIGHT AT THE TSONGAS CENTER: This is the first time that the two teams have ever faced one another at the Tsongas Center. UMass Lowell and Denver split four games at the Tully Forum, but UMass Lowell have not skated as the home team against Denver since January of 1989.
LAST TIME ON THE ICE: UMass Lowell and Boston University split a pair of games, each winning on the road. The River Hawks won the series opener, 5-3, at the Agganis Arena as five different players scored goals. BU was a winner at the Tsongas Center, 5-2, as Bobo Carpenter and Shane Bowers each scored twice.
AT THE BREAK: UMass Lowell is 8-7-1 at the break. The eight wins is the fewest at the holiday break since the 2012-13 season when the River Hawks had a 6-7-1 record as they headed home for the holidays. That 2012-13 team would go on to win 22 games after the break and earn a spot in the Frozen Four. UMass Lowell has won at least a dozen games in the second half of the season 11 times in the last 31 years. A year ago UMass Lowell was 9-8-0, but would only win 8 of their remaining 19 games.
TWO GAMES IN 32 DAYS: Tonight's game against Denver ends a stretch of 20-days between games for UMass Lowell and a period of 32 days during which the hockey team played just twice. The last time UMass Lowell had only two games in 32-days was in 2013. During the 2010-11 season the hockey club had a 26-day stretch between games.
A WIN TONIGHT WOULD...:Â ...move UMass Lowell two games over the .500 mark for the second time this season. Â It would also be UMass Lowell's first win against a nationally ranked team this season.
GOING SOLO: This is the first time this year that UMass Lowell is playing a stand-alone game. There are three more stand-alone games on the schedule. A year ago the River Hawks split a pair of stand-alone games.
BACK-TO-BACK: There are 15 "back-to-back" series that UMass Lowell will play this year. They have played eight back-to-back series so far this season. They have one sweep on the board. That came against UConn with 5-2 and 3-0 wins. UMass Lowell is 4-3-1 on the first night and 4-4-0 on the second. The River Hawks have not been swept this season. A year ago the team played back-to-back games on 17 weekends and had four sweeps to its credit, eight splits and also were swept five times. UML was 10-7-0 on the first night, 5-12-0 on the second. In 2016-17 the River Hawks were 11-6-1/11-5-2. UMass Lowell authored seven sweeps and were swept just twice.
LOOKING FOR SOME CONSISTENCY: The River Hawks have won consecutive games just twice this season. The first time that happened was November 16 and 17 when the River Hawks defeated UConn 5-2 and 3-0. With wins against RPI (5-2, November 25th) and BU (5-3, December 7th) the River Hawks have done it for a second time. But, UMass Lowell has not won more than two straight since winning three in a row January 5, 6 and 12 of 2018. Those wins came against Vermont (6-0), Massachusetts (8-3) and Arizona State (4-0).
AFTER A LOSS: UMass Lowell has done a good job avoiding any extended losing streak. Five times this season the River Hawks have followed a loss with a win, only once has the hockey club lost consecutive games.
HOME SWEET HOME: UMass Lowell is 84-39-13 (a .665 winning percentage) at the Tsongas Center since Norm Bazin took over behind the bench for the 2011-12 season. In 2017-18 the River Hawks were 10-8-0 on home ice. They are 2-4-1 this 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: Ryan Dmowski leads a group of River Hawks who have flourished at home in the first half of the season. Dmowski has scored five of his eight points in front of the Tsongas Center faithful. Seth Barton has four of his six points at home.
ON THE ROAD: UMass Lowell is 91-55-9, a .616 winning percentage when playing away from the Tsongas Center in the seven-plus years that Norm Bazin has led the program. That .616 winning percentage is the fourth best in the nation during that period.   The River Hawks are 67-43-8, .602, as the road team and 24-11-1, .681, in games played at a neutral site.
ROAD WARRIORS: Several River Hawks appear to feel right at home when they are on the road. Sam Knoblauch has scored seven (3g, 4a) of his eight points this season on the road. Charlie Levesque scored seven of his ten points and Lucas Condotta has scored his six-points (3g, 3a) in enemy buildings. Kenny Hausinger has seen seven of his 11-points come on the road and Connor Sodergren has scored seven of eight points on the road.Â
PUTTING THE D IN THE O: The UMass Lowell defense corps has become a significant contributor to the River Hawk offense during the last eight games. After scoring just one-goal and adding ten-assists during the first eight games of the season the blueliners have contributed six-goals and 18-points to the offense in the last eight games. During that stretch the River Hawks have averaged 3.38-goals per game after averaging 2.38-goals per game during the first eight contests of the year. The UMass Lowell defense corps is fourth in Hockey East in goals and fifth in points. A year ago the UMass Lowell defensemen were among the highest scoring in the nation with 26-goals and 89-points.
LOHIN BEHOLD: UMass Lowell forward Ryan Lohin has lifted his game in the last month. Lohin has six-goals and 11-points in an eight game span. That included a career-best seven game scoring streak.
IN THE CLUTCH: Connor Wilson, Ryan Dmowski and Kenny Hausinger lead the River Hawks with three-clutch goals apiece. A "clutch goal" is defined as a goal that either ties the score or gives the team the lead in a hockey game. Three of Hausingers five goals this season have given the River Hawks the lead. Wilson and Dmowski each have two lead goals and one that tied the score. Wilson and Ryan Lohin led the team a year ago with six clutch goals each.
THE WAITING IS OVER: It took a while, but Anthony Baxter finally scored his first collegiate goal. The goal came December 7th, on a wrist shot in the second period, against Boston University in what was Baxter's 45th game. It made the score 3-1 in an eventual 5-3 UMass Lowell win. Only five River Hawk skaters have had to wait longer for their first career goal. Steve Capraro tops the "wait List." The defenseman scored his first and only collegiate goal in his 103rd game. Defenseman Seth Barton also picked up his first collegiate goal, it was the game winner, in the third period against the Terriers. It was his 15th game.
PROTECTING THE NET: UMass Lowell goalie Tyler Wall has allowed no more than two goals in eight of his eleven starts this season. Over the last seven Wall has a goals against average of 2.09 and a .917 save percentage.
NEXT WEEKEND: After playing just one game this weekend, UMass Lowell will do the same thing next weekend. The River Hawks visit Massachusetts and the Mullins Center on Friday January 4th. The River Hawks and Minutemen split a pair of games last season. The Massachusetts win ended an eight-game River Hawk winning streak in the series. UMass Lowell holds the all-time edge, 48-26-7.
FIVE GOALS: The five goal total on the UMass Lowell side of the scoreboard November 16th against UConn was the largest scoring output so far this season. The River Hawks then matched that total nine days later with a 5-2 win at Rensselaer and then again December 7th against BU. The last time UMass Lowell scored five goals in a game was in last season's regular season finale, a 5-0 win against Merrimack. The last time the River Hawks scored more than five-goals in a game was January 6, 2018 in an 8-3 win against UMass. The River Hawks are 60-0-1 when scoring five goals in a game since Norm Bazin took over the coaching reins.
LICENSE TO KILL: The UMass Lowell penalty killing unit has been playing some of its best hockey of late. Over a nine-game stretch the PK unit has successfully killed off 28 of 33 (84.8%) man down situations and has come up with a shorthanded goal. The River Hawks are 5-3-1 over those nine games. Â
MAN DOWN AND DANGEROUS: Colin O'Neill has been a key part of the River Hawk penalty killing unit since freshman year and the junior has been an offensive cog when down a man. Four of O'Neill 11 career goals have come while shorthanded.
FLUXUATIONS IN THE POWER GRID: The UMass Lowell power play has been on on-again off-again proposition. The River Hawks scored three times on the power play November 10th at Northeastern. That snapped an oh-for-21 power outage. The River Hawks also picked up a power play goal in the following game against UConn, but is currently on an 1-for-17 stretch over its last five games. The PP Unit has scored in just four of its last 13 games and has an 16.2 success rate for the season.
DOMINATING THE DOT: After a slow start, UMass Lowell is now dominating at the faceoff circle. The River Hawks have won 512 of 997 puck drops, a winning percentage of 51.4%, fifth best in Hockey East. The turnaround has come during the last ten games. UMass Lowell has won 335 of 619 faceoffs, 54.1%, the best in Hockey East and eighth in the country since November 2nd. Top performances at the dot have come from Charlie Levesque and Lucas Condotta. During the ten game stretch Levesque has won 80 of 132 draws, 60.6%, and Condotta has won 71 of 118, 60.2%.
GETTING IN THE WAY: UMass Lowell is second in Hockey East in total blocked shots and blocked shots per game. The River Hawks have blocked 191 shots in 16-games this season, an average of 11.94 shots blocked per game. Defenseman Mattias Göransson leads the team with 23 blocks. He is eighth in Hockey East. Defensemen Anthony Baxter, Croix Evingson, Seth Barton, Jon McDonald, Avni Berisha and Forwards Ryan Lohin, Connor Wilson and Charlie Levesque are all in double digits as well.
YOUTH MOVEMENT: The UMass Lowell freshmen class has been key to the River Hawk offense. The group, with 13-goals and 36-points, is the top scoring of the four classes. The class is second in Hockey East in goals and in points. Sam Knoblauch is sixth in the league in goals by a freshman with four.
WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES: UMass Lowell forward Connor Sodergren has two-goals and eight-points in 16-games. A year ago Sodergren did not get his eighth point until the 24th game of the season. Goalie Tyler Wall has also made a jump. A year ago he showed an 0-5-0 record with a 4.99 Goals Against Average and an .825 save percentage. This year Wall is 5-5-1 with a 2.05 GAA and a .925 Sv%.
PROTECTING THE LEAD: Since Norm Bazin took over the coaching reins at UMass Lowell, the River Hawks are 133-9-9 when leading after two-periods. They are also 31-20-9 when the score is tied after two periods. The River Hawks were 12-2-0 when leading after two periods during the 2017-18 season and were 22-1-2 when leading after two periods two years ago. They are 6-2-0 this season.
BY THE CLOSEST OF MARGINS: UMass Lowell is 53-41-22, .552, in one-goal games since the 2011-12 season. The team is 2-5-1 this year in one-goal games. The River Hawks played 12 one-goal games a year ago. The results were split down the middle 6-6-0.Â
THREE IS THE MAGIC NUMBER: When UMass Lowell scores three or more goals in a game it is 147-23-6, .852 during the last seven-plus years. The River Hawks were 15-4-0, last season, and were 25-3-1 two years ago. When scoring two goals or less in a game the River Hawks are 27-70-16, .310, since 2011-12.
GIVING UP THREE AND WINNING: The December 7th 5-3 win against Boston University was the first time this season that UMass Lowell has allowed three or more goals and won a hockey game. The team is 1-4-0 when allowing three or more goals in a game this season. The last time UMass Lowell won a game in which it allowed three goals was January 6, 2018 when the River Hawks beat UMass, 8-3.
A GOOD START: UMass Lowell has allowed just 11 first period goals 16 games into the season. That's an average of 0.69 goals per first period. Only two Hockey East teams have better numbers. UMass and Providence have allowed 0.44 first period goals. The River Hawks have outscored opponents 14-11 in the first period.
THE FINAL THIRD: Sixteen games into the season and the River Hawks have outscored their opponents 18-goals to 14 in the third period of play. That continues a trend seen a year ago. UMass Lowell outscored opponents by 15-goals in the third period during the 2017-18 season. That was the sixth highest goal differential in the country. Only four of eleven Hockey East teams have outscored their opponents in the third period this season.
THE 2019 SENIOR CLASS: The five-member UMass Lowell senior class has accumulated a record of 77-47-9, a .613 winning percentage. The class ranks second in Hockey East in wins and third in winning percentage. The class which includes forwards Ryan Dmowski, Connor Wilson and Nick Master and defenseman Avni Berisha and goalie Christoffer Hernberg has won one HEA regular season title, a tournament championship, four in-season tournaments and made two appearances in the NCAA tournament. The class ranks fifth among UML teams. The 2016 senior class tops the list with 100 victories.
FRESH FACES: The River Hawk recruiting class of 13 is the largest in the country and the second largest during the Norm Bazin era. Walk on Derek Osik earned a spot on the roster during the pre-season tryouts. Twelve of the thirteen have played, only goalie Eric Green is still waiting to see action. UConn, Niagara and Quinnipiac also have 12 freshmen on the roster. Bazin's largest freshman class was during the 2014-15 season when UMass Lowell welcomed 14 freshmen. A year ago the freshmen class numbered just a half dozen.
POINTS OF ORIGIN: The 2018-19 UMass Lowell hockey roster is made up of players from four countries, nine states and five Canadian provinces. Massachusetts, Michigan and Pennsylvania top the list of states with three players each calling those states "home." Five players are from the Province of Ontario.  Â
BORN TO PLAY THE GAME: River Hawk freshman Michael Dill is from Windsor, Nova Scotia. It is Windsor, Nova Scotia which claims to be the birthplace of ice hockey. The game evolved on the lakes and ponds in the Windsor area from "ice hurley", an ice version of the Irish sport of hurling.
GOOD BLOODLINES: Defenseman Nolan Sawchuk has an NHL Hall of Fame connection. His Great Great Uncle was goaltender Terry Sawchuk who played for five NHL teams during a 21-year career. The Hall of Fame goalie won three Stanley Cups with Detroit and one with Toronto.
STRIPES IN THE BLOOD: Freshman forward Austin O'Rourke has an NHL connection of a different kind. His father Dan O'Rourke is a National Hockey League referee, who has worked three Stanley Cup Finals series (2011, 2012, 2016) and has worked over 1,000 career games in the NHL.
A TIE..?:  The November 9th 2-2 tie with New Hampshire ended a streak of 69 games (703 days) without a tie. The last time the River Hawks played a game without a winner was December 4, 2016 when UMass Lowell and UConn ended the night with two goals apiece. UMass Lowell was the only team in the country without a tie during the 2017-18 season. It was only the second time in their 35-year Division I history that the team has completed a full season without at least one tie. The first occurrence was 1998-99 when the River Hawks went 17-17-0. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, as a Division II program, ULowell went more than five seasons, 177 games, without a tie.
BONUS TIME - NO BONUS: Overtime has not been kind to UMass Lowell over the last two-plus seasons. The River Hawks are 1-9-4 in their last 14 overtime games dating back to the start of the 2016-17 season. The one win came on a Connor Wilson goal, Jan. 19th, at Vermont. The last OT win before Wilson's goal came on March 26, 2016 when the River Hawks defeated Yale, 3-2, in the NCAA Regional.
DON'T SHOOT: UMass Lowell held UNH to just 11 shots on goal in 65-minutes of hockey November 9th. That's the fewest shots on goal allowed by UMass Lowell since holding Alabama-Huntsville to just ten shots on goal in a UMass Lowell 4-1 win on October 26, 2007.
THE CENTURY CLUB: Three members of the UMass Lowell roster have played more than 100 games in their collegiate careers. Nick Master leads the group with 129 games in a River Hawk uniform. Connor Wilson (114) and Ryan Dmowski (111) joined the club earlier this season. Next on the list are Ryan Lohin (89), Mattias Göransson (88), Colin O'Neill (87) and Kenny Hausinger (84). A year ago UMass Lowell had six players on the roster with more than 100 games played in their collegiate careers.Â
THE 19th MAN: College hockey teams will be allowed to dress one additional skater this season; 19 skaters instead of 18. The NCAA made the change citing a desire to give more student-athletes a playing opportunity. UMass Lowell used the rule change to dress a seventh defenseman in all but two of the team's 15 games.
ATTENDANCE NUMBERS:  After leading Hockey East in average home attendance for the last three years, UMass Lowell is currently second behind Massachusetts with average attendance coming in at 4,801. Massachusetts is averaging 5,015 per game. The River Hawks averaged 4,876 fans per game a year ago. During the last three years an average of 5,339 fans have filled the Tsongas Center nightly to watch UMass Lowell play.
65 GAMES: UMass Lowell forward Colin O'Neill has skated in 65 consecutive games. That is the longest active consecutive games streak on the River Hawk roster. O'Neill's streak began February 4, 2017, his freshman season, in an 8-2 win against UNH. Ryan Dmowski is second on the consecutive games list with 50 and Charlie Levesque is third with 45. Ryan Lohin, who had not missed a game in his collegiate career, saw his consecutive games streak end at 81 when he was sidelined with an injury earlier this season. Michael Kapla is the River Hawk record holder with 161 consecutive games played.Â
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 1,398 games including 1,331 Division I games. He has missed only one game. Poitras is working on a consecutive games streak that has now reached 922. He is the only trainer in College Hockey to work games at both Northern Arizona and Arizona State.
