Friday, March 8th at Vermont (7pm)
(Gutterson Fieldhouse; Burlington, Vt.)
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Game Notes (PDF) | 90 Seconds with Norm
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Commercial Radio:
River Hawk Network: 980AM WCAP/UMass Lowell Game Day App
Talent: Bob Ellis (Play by Play); Jim Connelly (Analyst)

Non-Commercial Radio: WUML 91.5 FM
Talent: Connor Capozzi (Play by Play); Brianne Dillon (Analyst)
Producers: Tim Casagrande; Kyle Clapper
 

SCOUTING THE RIVER HAWKS:  UMass Lowell is 18-11-4/12-7-4 after earning just one-point in a home-and-home series against New Hampshire last weekend.  The club has won 11 of 17 road games, with one tie, and is 7-6-3 at home.  UMass Lowell is currently in fourth place one point behind third place Northeastern.  The team is ranked 16th in the USCHO poll.  The River Hawks were picked for a seventh place finish by Hockey East Coaches and was placed sixth in the Media Poll.  Ryan Lohin leads the team in scoring with 26-points.  Eighteen different players have scored goals, seventeen have scored more than once.  Lohin with 12 and Ryan Dmowski and Kenny Hausinger with 11 top the list of goal scoring list. Ten players have 11 points or more, six have at least 18.  Tyler Wall has started 19 of the team's 33-games and has a 2.07 goals against average and a .922 save percentage.  Christoffer Hernberg is 6-2-2 in his last ten starts and has a 1.93 GAA and .931 Sv.% over his last eleven appearances. Both Wall and Hernberg have multiple shutouts to their credit.

SCOUTING THE CATAMOUNTS:  Vermont is 12-19-2 / 5-16-2 after dropping a 5-1 decision at UConn last Friday.  The Catamounts have dropped five in a row, scoring just four goals during that stretch.  Vermont was picked to finish tenth in the Coaches' Pre-Season Polls and ninth in the Media Pre-Season Poll.  They currently reside in tenth place.  Twenty different players have scored goals, fifteen have more than one.  Freshman Joey Cipollone leads the team with nine-goals and sophomore Max Kaufman tops the scoring chart with 20-points.  Stefanos Lekkas is the only goalie to have protected the nets for Vermont this season.  His 1996:56 in goal is the fourth highest in the country.  Lekkas has a 2.28 goals against average and a .930 save percentage.

ALL-TIME SERIES VS. VERMONT:  This is the 55th meeting between the two schools in a series that dates back to 1972.  UMass Lowell leads the all-time series, 30-17-7.  UMass Lowell won the first two meetings this year and the River Hawks took two of three games from Vermont a year ago, but the Catamounts did end a ten game winless streak in the process.  Since Vermont joined Hockey East for the 2005-06 season, UMass Lowell has held a 25-11-7 edge in play.  Twenty-four of the 43 games have been decided by one goal or less.  The River Hawks have won five of six Hockey East tournament meetings between the two and have eliminated Vermont from the post season on three occasions.

THIS YEAR vs. VERMONT:  UMass Lowell swept a weekend series from Vermont January 18 and 19, 6-5 and 2-0. The River Hawks got goals from six different players and scratched out a 6-5 win, in the Friday night game, at the Tsongas Center.  Ryan Dmowski broke a third period tie with his sixth goal of the season.  Saturday night UMass Lowell got first period goals from Dmowski and Mattias Göransson.  That was all that was needed as Tyler Wall made 25 saves to pick up the shutout.

LAST YEAR vs. VERMONT:  UMass Lowell took two of three games against the Catamounts last season.  Six different players scored goals and Christoffer Hernberg stopped 21 shots as UMass Lowell defeated Vermont, 6-0, on January 5, 2018 at the Tsongas Center.  The two teams split as pair of games at the Gutterson Fieldhouse, January 19th and 20th.  The River Hawks overcame a two-goal third period deficit to win in overtime, 3-2 on the Friday night.  Vermont took the Saturday night game 6-3.

ELEVEN! GOALS:  When UMass Lowell and Vermont combined for eleven goals on January 18th, it was the highest scoring game between the two teams in more than three-decades.  The last time the two teams combined for more than 11 goals was on February 21, 1984 when UMass Lowell defeated Vermont 9-4.  It is the highest scoring one-goal game ever played by the two-teams.

ALLOWING FIVE, BUT WINNING:  The January 18th 6-5 win against Vermont was just the second time since Norm Bazin took over behind the River Hawk bench for the 2011-12 season that UMass Lowell has allowed five goals in a game and came away with a victory.  The one previous occasion when UMass allowed five goals and won was October 14, 2016 when the River Hawks defeated Colorado College 8-5.  During the almost eight year Bazin Era UMass Lowell is 2-27-1 when allowing five or more goals.  The team is 29-0-0 when scoring six or more.

WORKING OVERTIME AGAINST VERMONT:  When these two teams meet, overtime is a distinct possibility.  Eleven of the last 33 games (33.3%) between UMass Lowell and Vermont have required extra time.  Thirteen of the 54 games (24.1%), all-time, between the two have gone into overtime.  Vermont has won three in OT, UMass Lowell has won three and seven have gone into the books as a tie.

ONE-GOAL GAMES:  Twenty-five of the 54 games (46.3%) played between the two teams have been decided by one-goal or less.  Lowell has won ten, Vermont has won eight, seven have ended as a tie.  UMass Lowell has played 18 one-goal games this year, Vermont 19.

1-0:  UMass Lowell and Vermont have played four 1-0 games since 2008.  Vermont won the first of those 1-0 games, UML won the remaining three including one in overtime on a Joe Houk goal with 15-seconds remaining on the clock.

1-0, PART II:  UMass Lowell and Vermont have been involved in seven 1-0 games this year and for the most part it has not worked out well.  UMass Lowell beat Maine, 1-0, but has lost to Providence and New Hampshire by the 1-0 score.  Vermont has lost four 1-0 games this season.  UConn, Northeastern, New Hampshire and Boston University have turned the trick on the Catamounts.

1-0, PART III:  UMass Lowell has lost 1-0 twice in the last five games.  The River Hawks were victimized by Providence, 1-0, on February 16th, and March 1st by New Hampshire.  The last time the River Hawks lost two 1-0 games in the same season was during the 2011-12 campaign and both times the opponent was Providence.  The Friars turned the trick on January 24, 2012 and again on March 11th.

AT THE GUT:  UMass Lowell has been no stranger to the Gutterson Fieldhouse or to success in the building.  The River Hawks are 15-11-4 all-time at The Gut including an 12-9-4 record against Vermont.  They are 3-2-0 when the facility is a neutral site.   Norm Bazin led teams are 9-4-0 in the building.

A WIN TONIGHT WOULD...  ...give UMass Lowell home ice for the quarterfinal round of the Hockey East Tournament.  With a win, UMass Lowell will finish in either third or fourth place.  The exact finish is dependent upon the results of other games.

FIGHTING FOR HOME ICE:  UMass Lowell can clinch home ice for the Hockey East Quarterfinals with a win tonight.  A Boston University loss against Maine on Saturday would also do the trick.  UMass Lowell, earning four-points with wins against Boston College and UMass four weeks ago, clinched a spot in the Hockey East playoffs.  The River Hawks can finish anywhere from third to fifth place.  It is the 31st time in 35 years that the River Hawks have made the playoffs.  They have won the Hockey East Tournament three times.

TIEBREAKERS:  There are a variety of tiebreaking possibilities, most do not favor UMass Lowell.  If UMass Lowell and Northeastern tie at 29 or 30 points, Northeastern claims third place and UMass Lowell fourth.  If UML, Northeastern and BU tie at 29 points, the River Hawks finish fifth.  If UMass Lowell and BU tie at 29-points, BU takes fourth, but if the two tie at 28-points, UML finishes fourth.

AT HOME IN THE PLAYOFFS:  UMass Lowell, during the "Norm Bazin Era," has never played a road playoff game.  All post season, Hockey East or NCAA Tournament games have been played at either the Tsongas Center or a neutral site.

NEXT WEEKEND:  The River Hawks will begin post-season play.  It will be a best of three Hockey East Quarterfinal series.  That much is known, but at the moment the opponent and the location of the games are a mystery.

IT HAPPENED LAST WEEKEND:  UMass Lowell managed only one of four points last weekend in a home-and-home series against New Hampshire.  Jackson Pierson scored the Friday night game's only goal at the 17:07 mark of the second period as UNH went on to defeat UMass Lowell, 1-0, at the Whittemore Center in Durham.  The River Hawks, Saturday night in Lowell, got goals from Kenny Hausinger and Connor Wilson in a game that ended as a 2-2 tie.

THE 2019 SENIOR CLASS: UMass Lowell, last Saturday, held its Senior Night ceremonies prior to the game against UNH.  The five-member UMass Lowell senior class has accumulated a record of 87-51-12, a .620 winning percentage.  The class ranks second in Hockey East in both wins and 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 in wins and in winning percentage, among UML teams.  The 2016 senior class tops the list with 100 victories.

ANOTHER SENIOR NIGHT: Tonight the River Hawks will witness their sixth different senior night celebration.  They have been on hand for senior night festivities as the visiting team against Bentley, Providence, Merrimack and New Hampshire.  UMass Lowell honored its seniors last Saturday and tonight Vermont gets its turn.

BIG ICE:  The Norm Bazin led River Hawks have played well on "Big Ice."  The River Hawks are 43-19-5 on ice sheets larger than the standard/NHL 200 x 85 during Bazin's nearly eight years behind the bench.  They are 13-4-1 on the Olympic, 200 x 100 and 24-13-3 on ice sheets measuring 200 x 90 such as the Gutterson Fieldhouse.  UMass Lowell is 9-4-0 at the Gutterson Fieldhouse during the Bazin years. 

THE CENTURY CLUB: Seven members of the UMass Lowell roster have played more than 100 games in their collegiate careers.  Nick Master leads the group with 146 games in a River Hawk uniform.  Connor Wilson (130), Ryan Dmowski (128), Ryan Lohin (106), Mattias Göransson (105) and Colin O'Neill (104) joined the club earlier this season.  Kenny Hausinger (101) played in his 100th game last Friday.  A year ago UMass Lowell had six players on the roster with more than 100 games played in their collegiate careers. 

TAKING A STEP: Several River Hawk Players have surpassed last year's point totals.    Ryan Lohin, Connor Sodergren, Mattias Göransson and Charlie Levesque have all exceeded the numbers they put up a year ago.  Lohin leads UMass Lowell is both goals and scoring with 12-goals and 26-points.  A year ago he finished the season with nine-goals and 25-points.  Sodergren has five-goals and 20-points compared to four and ten.  Göransson has four-goals and 18-points after posting four-goals and thirteen last season.  Levesque has 15-points and putting up a dozen a year ago.

PLUS/MINUS: Two River Hawks show double digit pluses when it comes to the plus/minus rating.  Connor Sodergren is at a team leading +16.  Freshman Chase Blackmun is second on the team at a +10.  Twenty-two UMass Lowell players are at a plus or even on the season.  

2019: The calendar year 2019 has been a good one for UMass Lowell.  Since January 1, 2019 the River Hawks are 10-3-3, .719.  That .719 winning percentage is the best in Hockey East and fifth in the country.  The three losses are the fewest of any club in Hockey East and third in the nation.  The 1.81 goals against average is also the best in Hockey East and third in the nation.  The penalty killing unit, with an 87.3% success rate is third in Hockey East and ninth in the country.

IN THE NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT:  For the seventh week in a row UMass Lowell has earned a spot in the USCHO poll.  The club is currently ranked 16th.  Although missing from the polls for 28 weeks, UMass Lowell is no stranger to the polls, the team had been nationally ranked for 116 consecutive polls between January 7, 2013 and October 23, 2017.

FLYING SOLO:  UMass Lowell has played only three stand-alone games this season, tonight is the fourth.  The team is 2-1-0 in the solo scenario.  The River Hawks lost to Denver, 4-1, on December 29th, defeated Massachusetts, 2-1, on January 4th and topped Northeastern 3-1 last Friday. A year ago the River Hawks split a pair of stand-alone games.

BACK-TO-BACK:  There have been fifteen "back-to-back" weekend this season.  UMass Lowell is 9-5-1 on the first night and 7-5-3 on the second.  They have four weekend sweeps on the board.  The sweeps have come against UConn, Colgate, Vermont and BC/UMass.  The River Hawks have been swept once this season (Providence.) 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.

ON THE ROAD: UMass Lowell is 11-5-1, a .676 winning percentage when playing away from the Tsongas Center this season.  The eleven wins are the third most in the country and that .676 road winning percentage is seventh best in the country.  The River Hawks lead Hockey East in both categories.

ON THE ROAD, AGAIN: UMass Lowell is 96-57-10, a .620 winning percentage when playing away from the Tsongas Center in the nearly eight years that Norm Bazin has led the program.  That .620 winning percentage is the second best in the nation during that period.  The River Hawks are 72-46-9, .602, as the road team and 24-11-1, .681, in games played at a neutral site.

ON THE ROAD, AGAIN AND AGAIN: The loss, February 16th, in Providence ended UMass Lowell's eight-game road winning streak.  It was their longest road winning streak since taking a school Division I record nine in a row in 2013.  The school record is 20 straight road wins set over two seasons beginning in January of 1981 and ending more than a year later.

ROAD WARRIORS: Several River Hawks appear to feel right at home when they are on the road.  Ryan Lohin has scored 14 of his 26-points and seven of his 12-goals on the road.    Connor Sodergren has scored 12 of his 20-points in enemy rinks.  Sam Knoblauch has scored seven (3g, 4a) of his eight points this season on the road.  Charlie Levesque scored nine of his 15-points and Lucas Condotta has scored seven-points (3g, 4a) of his eight points in enemy buildings.  Kenny Hausinger has seen ten of his 18-points come on the road.  Reid Stefanson has accumulated eleven of his 18-points away from the Tsongas Center. 

HOME SWEET HOME: UMass Lowell is 89-41-15 (a .666 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 7-6-3 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 the team with six-goals and 13-points in sixteen home games.  Kenny Hausinger has six Tsongas Center goals. Ryan Lohin has 12-points at the Tsongas Center.

AT THIS POINT:  UMass Lowell has 18 wins through 33 games this season and that is on the lower end of the Bazin Era Spectrum.  In five of the last eight years UMass Lowell had 20 wins or more, including four seasons with 21+ wins.  In two other years they had 16 or 18 wins.  For the third time in the Bazin Era UMass Lowell has at least 12 wins in its first 23 Hockey East Games, they had 15 in 2011-12.

BONUS TIME - NO BONUS: Overtime has not been kind to UMass Lowell over the last two-plus seasons.  The River Hawks are 1-9-7 in their last 17 overtime games (0-2-4 this season) dating back to the start of the 2016-17 season.  The one win came on a Connor Wilson goal, Jan. 19, 2018, 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.

FLUXUATIONS IN THE POWER GRID:  The UMass Lowell power play has been on on-again off-again proposition.  After scoring power play goals in four straight games and eight of eleven, the River Hawks have scored power play goals (3) in just two of the team's last seven games.  The PP Unit has a 16.9% success rate for the season.

PENALTY KILLING?: The UMass Lowell penalty killing unit has been playing some of its best hockey after a rough stretch.  The PK unit has killed 37 of the last 42 shorthanded situations over an eleven-game period, an 88.1% success rate.

WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES:  UMass Lowell forward Connor Sodergren has four-goals and twenty-points in 33-games.  A year ago Sodergren did not get to 20.  He finished the year with four goals and ten points. His fourth goal and tenth point came in his 32nd, the team's 35th, game.  Defenseman Mattias Göransson has also surpassed last year's totals.  Göransson has four goals and 18-points.  A year ago he finished with four-goals and 13-points.

CLEAN SHEETS:  UMass Lowell goalies have combined for seven shutouts this season.  Tyler Wall has four and Christoffer Hernberg has three.  Only in 2001-02 did the River Hawks chalk up more shutouts as a team, eight.  Cam McCormick had six, Jimi St. John had one and the two goalies combined for an eighth.

DOMINATING THE DOT: UMass Lowell is dominating at the faceoff circle.  The River Hawks have won 1051 of 1,999 puck drops, a winning percentage of 52.6%, second best in Hockey East.  Charlie Levesque, Lucas Condotta, Nick Master and Connor Sodergren are all at .520 or better.  Levesque leads the team with a .568 percentage.

GETTING IN THE WAY:  UMass Lowell is third in Hockey East in blocked shots per game.  The River Hawks have blocked 395 shots in 33-games this season, an average of 11.97 shots blocked per game.  Defenseman Mattias Göransson leads the team and his seventh in Hockey East with 53 blocks.  Seven players have 20 or more blocks.

STINGY D:  UMass Lowell held opponents to one goal or fewer in eleven of its last 16 games.  That stretch includes four shutouts.  The River Hawks have a 1.81-goals against average during the 16-game span.  Those numbers are the best in Hockey East in the new year.

BY THE CLOSEST OF MARGINS: UMass Lowell is 55-43-25, .549, in one-goal games since the 2011-12 season.  The team is 4-7-4 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.

THREE IS THE MAGIC NUMBER: When UMass Lowell scores three or more goals in a game it is 154-23-8, .854 during the last seven-plus years.  The River Hawks are 13-3-2 this season and 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 29-74-17, .313, since 2011-12.

PROTECTING THE LEAD: Since Norm Bazin took over the coaching reins at UMass Lowell, the River Hawks are 142-9-9 when leading after two-periods.  They are also 32-20-11 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 15-2-0 this season.

MAKING A DIFFERENCE:  Ryan Dmowski has eleven game winning goals in his career.  That ranks him first in Hockey East and second in the nation among active players.  Denver's Jarid Lukosevicius leads the country with 18, three others also have 11.  His six game winning goals this season is tied for the national lead.

Defense:  Over the past nearly eight seasons, UMass Lowell has allowed just 2.25 goals per game and has a .920 save percentage.  Those number are among the best in the country.  Only two teams, (Quinnipiac 2.19 and Cornell 2.23), have a better goals against average and just one, (Denver .921) has a higher save percentage.

IN THE CLUTCH:  Ryan Dmowski leads UMass Lowell with nine clutch goals.  A "clutch goal" is defined as a goal that either ties the score or gives the team the lead in a hockey game.  Seven of Dmowski's nine clutch goals have given UMass Lowell the lead.  Kenny Hausinger is second with six and Connor Wilson is third with five clutch goals. Wilson and Ryan Lohin led the team a year ago with six clutch goals each.

PUTTING THE O IN THE D: After a slow start the UMass Lowell defense corps has been a significant contributor to the River Hawk offense.  After scoring just one-goal and adding ten-assists during the first eight games of the season the blueliners have contributed 13-goals and 54-points to the offense in the last 25 games.  The 13-goals is the third most by a Hockey East defense since November 9.  The UMass Lowell defense corps is fifth in Hockey East in both goals and points.  A year ago the UMass Lowell defensemen were among the highest scoring in the nation with 26-goals and 89-points.

ON TARGET:  UMass Lowell has scored on 10.3% of its shots on goal during the nearly eight years that Norm Bazin has been behind the bench.  Only four teams show greater accuracy during that seven-plus season period of time.  St. Cloud tops the lists at 11.2%.  Boston College and Northeastern are at 10.5% and 10.4% respectively.  Minnesota is also at 10.3% (10.34%).

A GOOD START: UMass Lowell has allowed just 20 first period goals 33 games into the season.  That's an average of 0.61 goals per first period.  That ranks UMass Lowell tenth in the nation and only one Hockey East team has better numbers.  UMass has allowed 0.48 first period goals, a total of 16 in 33 games.  The River Hawks have outscored opponents 28-20 in the first period.  That goal differential, +8, is the third highest in Hockey East.

THE FINAL THIRD:  Thirty-three games into the season and the River Hawks have outscored their opponents 35-goals to 24 in the third period of play.  The plus-11 is third best in Hockey East and is 11th in the country.  Only one Hockey East team has given up fewer third period goals.  That continues a trend seen a year ago.  UML outscored opponents by 15-goals in the third period during the 2017-18 season.  That was the eleventh highest goal differential in the country.

AFTER A LOSS:  UML has done a good job avoiding any extended losing streak.  Seven times this season the River Hawks have followed a loss with a win or a tie, only on three occasions has the hockey club lost consecutive games and they have not dropped three in a row.

BROWN AND LOHIN:  Junior co-captain Ryan Lohin has been named a semifinalist for the prestigious Walter Brown Award.  Lohin is one of 20 Div. I players and one of 12 Hockey East players who were named semifinalists for the award presented annually to the best American-born college hockey player in New England.  Lohin has posted a team-high 25 points to go along with 12 goals and 13 assists, skating in 27 of 31 contests for the River Hawks to date. The Gridiron Club of Boston will announce the finalists and winner of the 67th Walter Brown Award in March.  Joe Gambardella is the only UMass Lowell player to win the award.

YOUTH MOVEMENT: The UMass Lowell freshmen class has been key to the River Hawk offense.  The group, with 24-goals and 69-points, is second in scoring of the four classes.  The class is third in Hockey East in goals and points.  Reid Stefanson, with 18-points (7g, 11a), is the top scoring River Hawk freshmen.

BEFORE AND AFTER THE BREAK:  UMass Lowell, during the Norm Bazin Era, has a better winning percentage after the winter break than before it.  The River Hawks are 74-43-12, .620, before the break and 112-55-13, .659, after the break.  BUT, the numbers can be misleading.  In five of the previous seven years the team had a slightly better winning percentage during the first half of the season.

82 GAMES:  UMass Lowell forward Colin O'Neill has skated in 82 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 66 and Charlie Levesque is third with 61.  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. 

ATTENDANCE NUMBERS:  After leading Hockey East in average home attendance for the last three years, UMass Lowell is hoping to do it again, but currently sits second.  UMass Lowell trails Massachusetts, 4,964 to 5,050.  During the last three years an average of 5,339 fans have filled the Tsongas Center nightly to watch UMass Lowell play.

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.  He has worked more games than anyone else in any capacity.  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 1,415 games including 1,348 Division I games.  He has missed only one game.  Poitras is working on a consecutive games streak that has now reached 939.  He is the only trainer in College Hockey to work games at both Northern Arizona and Arizona State.

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