SCOUTING THE RIVER HAWKS: UMass Lowell is 13-7-5 / 7-4-4 after earning just one of four points in a home-and-home weekend with Boston university, January 24th and 25th. The River Hawks are currently in a four way tie for the final home ice playoff spot with Providence, UConn and Maine. The group is just two-points out of first place and holds a one-point lead over eighth place Northeastern. The team is ranked 14th in both the USA Hockey Magazine Poll and the USCHO Poll. The River Hawks were picked for a sixth place finish in both the Hockey East Coaches' and the Media Pre-Season polls. Seventeen players have scored goals this season, five have five or more. Carl Berglund leads the team with ten.  Connor Sodergren and Andre Lee have seven. Kenny Hausinger has six. Matt Brown has five. Brown leads the team with 21-points. The top three point scorers, Brown, Berglund and Lee, are freshmen. Goalie Tyler Wall has started twenty-three of the team's twenty-five games with a 2.06 goals against average and a .934 save percentage. Wall has authored two of his nine career shutouts this season.
SCOUTING THE EAGLES: Boston College is 16-7-1 / 10-5-0 after a weekend win, 3-0, at Massachusetts and a Monday Beanpot loss to Boston University, 5-4, in double overtime. Under NCAA rules that Beanpot game goes in the books as a 4-4 tie against BU. The Eagles are 6-4-0 at home and 10-3-0 on the road. They are part of a two-way tie for first place in Hockey East, one point ahead of Boston University and two points ahead of four teams tied for four place. The team was picked to finish first in the Coaches' Pre-Season Poll. The Media Poll pegged BC for third place. Boston College did return its top three 2018-19 scorers. The roster shows a dozen players who have been picked in the NHL draft. Eighteen different players have scored goals, six have seven or more. Junior Logan Hutsko leads the team with 15-goals, Julius Mattila tops the scoring list with 33-points, including a team best 26-assists. Freshman goalie Spencer Knight has started 23 of the Eagles' 24 games this season. He's got a 2.03 goals against average and a .928 save percentage.
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. BC: This is the 118th meeting between the two teams in a series that dates back to 1978. Boston College leads the all-time series 66-41-10. UMass Lowell took five out of six points a year ago and holds a 6-3-1 edge in the last ten. They have met nine times in the Hockey East Tournament with BC winning five. UMass Lowell defeated Boston College in the 2017 Tournament Championship Game and grabbed the title with a 4-3 win. They have met once in the NCAA Tournament with BC winning, 4-3.Â
PLAYOFFS VERSUS BC: UMass Lowell and Boston College have met seven times in the Hockey East Tournament for a total of nine games. Only one meeting was in the Final. That was in 2017 and the River Hawks finished on top, 4-3, to earn their third Hockey East Tournament Championship in five years. UMass Lowell has advanced only once in the preliminary rounds. That was in 1988 when UMass Lowell won a two-game total goals series, 8-5. Â
THREE WEEKS AGO: UMass Lowell and BC met just 21 days ago at the Tsongas Center in a game that went to the visitors, 3-2. The River Hawks scored twice in the first 71-seconds of hockey and then never scored again as Boston College came from behind to top the River Hawks, 3-2. Logan Hutsko's third period goal proved to be the difference. The River Hawks got goals from Carl Berglund and Charlie Levesque. The Eagles also got goals from Marc McLaughlin and Alex Newhook.
LAST YEAR VERSUS BC: UMass Lowell took five out of six points from Boston College a year ago. The River Hawks won at BC, 3-1, getting two-goals from Reid Stefanson and the game winner from Ryan Dmowski. Dmowski starred the following night with two-goals including the game tying goal with 2:01 remaining on the clock in a 4-4 final. Two weeks later UMass Lowell topped the Eagles, 3-0, with three second period goals. Dmowski had the game winner in that one as well. Tyler Wall was in nets for the two wins.
LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION: UMass Lowell and Boston College have played each other in nine different buildings, matching the greatest number of venues for the River Hawks against any Hockey East opponent. UMass Lowell and BC have faced off at Tully Forum (Billerica, Mass.), McHugh Forum (Chestnut Hill, Mass.), Providence Civic Center (Providence, R.I.) Matthews Arena (Boston, Mass.), Walter Brown Arena (Boston, Mass.), Conte Forum (Chestnut Hill, Mass.) Tsongas Arena/Center (Lowell, Mass.), FleetCenter/TD Garden (Boston, Mass.) and the DCU Center (Worcester, Mass.) UMass Lowell has also played Maine and New Hampshire in nine different buildings. UMass Lowell has played Clarkson in ten different buildings.
AT BEANPOT TIME: When UMass Lowell plays a Beanpot team during the week between Beanpot games, the River Hawks are 4-14-2. They are 4-5-1 when playing at home. UMass Lowell is only 2-8-0 when playing a team that has earned a spot in the Championship Game. They have played Boston College three times between Beanpot games and won only once. The win was at the Tsongas Center, the losses were in the Conte Forum. UMass Lowell is only 7-17-2 against Boston University, Boston College and Northeastern when playing them before the first Beanpot game.
SCOUTING THE WARRIORS: Merrimack is 6-18-3 / 4-10-3 after dropping a pair of games at Maine last weekend. The Warriors are 3-9-2 at home and 3-9-1 on the road. They are in tenth place in the Hockey East standings, six points behind Northeastern in the eighth and final playoff spot. The team was picked to finish dead last, 11th, in both the Coaches' Pre-Season Polls and in the Media Pre-Season Poll. Merrimack, whose roster shows 16 freshmen, did return seven of its top nine 2018-19 scorers. Nineteen different players have scored goals, six have five or more. Tyler Irvine leads the squad with ten-goals and 22-points. Chase Gresock has eight goals. Freshman Declan Carlile is second in points with 18, including a team leading 16-assists. Three freshmen goalies have seen time in nets, two have started games. Jere Huhtamaa has started fifteen of the team's 27 games. He carries a 3.52 goals against average and an .856 save percentage into tonight's contest. Troy Kobryn, who faced the River Hawks earlier this season, has made 12 starts and has 3.45 / .881 numbers.
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. MERRIMACK:  This is the 134th meeting between the two schools in a series that dates back to 1971 when both were playing at a Division II level. Merrimack won the first ten games between the two schools, but UMass Lowell leads the all-time series, 81-40-12 and holds a 59-21-10 advantage since Merrimack became a member of Hockey East. The River Hawks have lost just four of the last 19 meetings. The two team have met twice in the Hockey East post season with each advancing once.
EARLIER THIS SEASON vs. MERRIMACK: UMass Lowell has taken the first two games between these two teams this year. The River Hawks beat Merrimack, 3-1, on January 4 at the Lawler Rink. Kenny Hausinger, Andre Lee and Connor Sodergren scored goals for the winners. Griff Jeszka picked up the lone marker for the home team. Goalie Tyler Wall kicked aside 24 shots to pick up the win. UMass Lowell got goals from six different players in a 6-4 win on January 18th at the Tsongas Center. Trailing 6-1 Merrimack rallied for three power play goals late in the third period. Sami Tavernier scored twice in the contest for the visitors.
LAST YEAR VS. MERRIMACK: UMass Lowell took three out of four points from Merrimack in a pair of late season games. The River Hawks got goals from six different players in a 6-3 win on February 22 at the Tsongas Center. Reid Stefanson broke a 3-3 tie with a goal late in the second period. The following night Chase Gresock scored with 48-seconds remaining in regulation as the two teams battled to a 3-3 tie.
PLAYOFFS VERSUS MERRIMACK: UMass Lowell and Merrimack have met just twice in the Hockey East Tournament for a total of four games. In 1994 UMass Lowell, the second seed, defeated Merrimack 7-1 in the first game of their best-of-three series. Ian Hebert had a goal and an assist to reach the 100-point mark. The River Hawks eliminated the Warriors 24 hours later with a 3-0 shutout by Dwayne Roloson and a hat trick by Norm Bazin. In 2018 the story was very different. Ludvig Larsson scored the game winner at 18:01 of the first overtime in a 2-1 victory. Jace Hennig had tied the game with less than five-minutes remaining in the third period. Hennig proved to have overtime magic the second night as he provided the game winner at 13:59 of the first overtime. The two teams did meet on numerous occasions during their Division II days with ULowell holding a 5-4-0 post-season edge.
AT THE LAWLER RINK:  The Lawler Arena, home of Merrimack College hockey and where the two teams play tonight, holds a special place in UMass Lowell hockey history. It was on that ice surface that UMass Lowell won its first Division II National Championship. In 1979 the Chiefs defeated Illinois-Chicago, 10-6, and Mankato State, 6-4, to claim the trophy. Two years later ULowell grabbed its second title beating Mankato State, 8-7 in OT, and Plattsburgh State, 5-4, at the Lawler Rink. The River Hawks are 35-25-5 all-time at the Lawler Rink.
AT THE LAWLER RINK II: UMass Lowell has played 66 games on the ice at the Lawler Rink. The River Hawks have only played in one enemy building more often. That is the Alfond Arena at the University of Maine. UMass Lowell is 36-25-5 in the Lawler Arena. Â
AT THE LAWLER RINK III:  UMass Lowell has won 36 games at the Lawler Rink, the most of any enemy building. Thirty-two of those wins have come against Merrimack, the others have come in tournament play against various teams.  The River Hawks have 30 wins at Northeastern's Matthews Arena and 26 wins on the ice at the Schneider Arena in Providence.
FAMILY TIES: Merrimack forwards Tyler and Logan Drevitch are the sons of former UMass Lowell defenseman Scott Drevitch. The elder Drevitch played for the ULowell Chiefs 1984-88 and recorded 11-goals and 72-points. His sons, Tyler, a senior, and Logan, a sophomore, have totaled 17-goals and 35-points. Scott played professionally through the 2006-07 season scoring 116 goals and 1,002-points.
TIEBREAKER: With eight teams separated by three points and only the top four getting home ice in the opening round of the Hockey East playoffs winning the season series becomes magnified. The season series is the first in a series of tiebreakers. UMass Lowell holds that first tiebreaker with Providence and with Maine, but has lost the season series to Boston University. The River Hawks trail, 0-1-1, in the season series with UConn and, 0-1-0, with Boston College but have one game remaining against each of those teams. UMass Lowell also has the tiebreaker with Merrimack and Vermont.
THE LAST TIME OUT: UMass Lowell was able to take only one of four points in a weekend home-and-home series with Boston University. Friday night Ethan Phillips broke open a scoreless tie with a goal less than seven-minutes into the third period and Boston University added four power play goals, two by Patrick Harper, as the home team cruised to a 5-0 victory. Ashton Abel made 17 saves to earn the shutout. Saturday night the River Hawks played with the lead through most of the evening, but had to settle for a 2-2 tie after BU's Patrick Curry scored with just under four-minutes remaining in regulation.
NO TIME FOR PENALTIES: No penalties, none at all. When UMass Lowell played Boston University of January 25th the River Hawks were not whistled for a single penalty in the hockey game. It is only the fifth time the team has played a penalty-free game in its history. The last time UMass Lowell played a game without a single penalty call against them was March 18, 2016 when the River Hawks beat Providence 2-1 in triple overtime in the Hockey East Semifinals.
FIVE GOALS ALLOWED: When UMass Lowell allowed five goals in a 5-0 loss to Boston University, January 24, it had been nearly a year since the River Hawks had given up that many goals in a game. The last time was February 15, 2019 when the River Hawks lost to Providence, 6-1. BU's five-goal third period was the first time that UMass Lowell has allowed five goals in a period since Minnesota State scored five times in the second period in a game on December 26, 2010.
OUTSHOT BUT NOT BEATEN: UMass Lowell was outshot by 24 (39-15) in its January 18th 6-4 win against Merrimack. The last time that UMass Lowell was outshot by at least 24 and won was January 12, 1990 when the then-Chiefs beat #8 Maine 2-1 on a Don Parsons goal with 2:12 remaining in the third period despite being outshot 41-15.   Goalie Mark Richards made 40 saves. UMass Lowell is 10-4-3 when outshot in a game this season.
WINNING THE SEASON SERIES: UMass Lowell has won the season series from Merrimack by winning the first two of three games this season. It is the 21st time in 31 years that UMass Lowell has taken the season series from their valley rivals. That 21 is the most season series wins against any opponent. The two teams will meet for a final time on February 8th at the Lawler Rink in North Andover.
200!: UMass Lowell 6-4 win against Merrimack, January 18th, was Head Coach Norm Bazin 200th win behind the River Hawk bench. It came in his 336 game at the helm. His first win at UMass Lowell came on October 14, 2011 against Minnesota State, 4-2. Bazin is the second UMass Lowell coach to reach the 200-win plateau. Billy Riley won 363 games during a career that brought the program from Division II to Division I. Riley's 200th win came in his 304th games.
900: The next win will be UMass Lowell's 900th in program history. The River Hawks will be the 32nd team in college hockey and the sixth in Hockey East to reach that number.
FINALLY: Sophomore Austin O'Rourke scored his first collegiate goal January 18 in UMass Lowell's 6-4 victory against Merrimack. The goal came in O'Rourke's 25th collegiate game. Two games later he added his second career goal
A WIN TONIGHT... ...could move UMass Lowell into first place tie, with Massachusetts and Boston College, in Hockey East. At the very least it would keep the River Hawks in no worse than a tie for the final home ice spot. If Tyler Wall is in nets the win would be his 54th. He is the River Hawks Division I career leader. A win would also be the 900th in the history of the UMass Lowell Hockey program.
BACK-TO-BACK: UMass Lowell has sixteen "back-to-back" weekend series this season. Twelve have been played, this is the thirteenth. The team is 6-3-3 on the first night and 6-4-2 on the second. They have swept both Alabama Huntsville and Vermont and had a sweep weekend by beating both Rensselaer and Penn State on consecutive nights. A year ago the River Hawks were 9-6-1 on the first night and 8-5-3 on the second. They had four weekend sweeps. The sweeps came against UConn, Colgate, Vermont and BC/UMass. The River Hawks were swept just once (Providence.)
NEXT WEEKEND: The River Hawks face Northeastern for the first and only times during this regular season. The two will meet in a home-and-home series; Friday they play at the Tsongas Center, Saturday at the Matthews Arena. The River Hawks hold the edge in the all-time series, 62-48-10, but are 3-6-1 in the last ten. Nine of the last 22 have gone into overtime.
THE ROAD AHEAD: There are nine games against six different teams left on the UMass Lowell regular season schedule and that road ahead will not be easy. Two games are against teams (Merrimack and UConn) with records that are under .500, the other seven games are against teams at .500 or better (BU, BC, Northeastern, UMass and UNH). The River Hawks remaining opponents have a combined record of 121-91-20 and a winning percentage of .565.
ON THE ROAD: UMass Lowell is 7-3-1, .682, playing away from the Tsongas Center this season. That .682 winning percentage is the ninth best in the country.
ON THE ROAD, AGAIN: UMass Lowell is 103-60-12, a .623 winning percentage when playing away from the Tsongas Center in the eight-plus years that Norm Bazin has led the program. That .623 winning percentage is the second best in the nation during that period. Only Quinnipiac, at 101-57-19, .624, has better numbers. The River Hawks are 79-49-11, .608, as the road team and 24-11-1, .681, in games played at a neutral site.
HOME SWEET HOME?: UMass Lowell has won six of fourteen with four ties at the Tsongas Center this season and is 97-47-19 (a .653 winning percentage) at the Tsongas Center since Norm Bazin took over behind the bench for the 2011-12 season. In 2018-19 the River Hawks were 8-8-3 on home ice. The last time the River Hawks had a losing record at home was 2010-11 when the home team went 4-12-0.
AFTER A LOSS: UMass Lowell did a terrific job avoiding any extended losing streak a year ago and appear to be doing the same this year. Seven times, a year ago, the River Hawks followed a loss with a win or a tie, only on three occasions did the hockey club lose consecutive games and never dropped three in a row. They have lost consecutive games only twice this season. They have followed losses with wins three times and twice with ties.
TWENTY-FIVE GAMES IN:  Twenty-five games into the season and UMass Lowell appears to slipped behind last year's pace. The River Hawks are 13-7-5 after being 15-8-2 a year ago. The team is 7-4-4 in league play compared with 9-3-2 a year ago.
AT THE BREAK: The River Hawks reached the winter break with double digit wins for the ninth time in 36 years of Division I hockey. UMass Lowell is 10-4-4. The most wins the team has ever had at the break is 12. That was done twice, 1986-87 and 2001-02.
A CHILD SHALL LEAD:  Freshmen Matt Brown, with 21-points, Carl Berglund, with 19, and Andre Lee, with 18, lead UMass Lowell in scoring. They are three of the top eight point producing rookies in Hockey East. UMass Lowell is the only team in the country whose top three scorers are freshmen.
BY THE CLOSEST OF MARGINS: UMass Lowell is 61-48-31, .546, in one-goal games since the 2011-12 season. The team is 6-5-5 this season and was 4-7-5 last year and 10-13-5 over the last two years in one-goal games.
THREE IS THE MAGIC NUMBER: When UMass Lowell scores three or more goals in a game it is 168-25-10, .852 during the last eight-plus years. The River Hawks were 13-3-2 last season and 53-10-3, .826 over the last three seasons. When scoring two goals or less in a game the River Hawks are 32-82-21, .315, since 2011-12.
PROTECTING THE LEAD: Since Norm Bazin took over the coaching reins at UMass Lowell, the River Hawks are 154-9-11 when leading after two-periods. That includes an 11-0-2 mark this season. They are also 33-22-14 when the score is tied after two periods. The River Hawks were 16-2-0 when leading after two periods during the 2018-19 season and 50-5-2 during the last three seasons. The River Hawks were also 2-0-3, a year ago, when tied after two periods.
THE WORST LEAD IN HOCKEY?: Not when Lowell is involved. Since Norm Bazin became head coach, when Lowell has a 2-goal lead at any point in a game, they are 162-11-4, 77-5-3 at the Tsongas Center. The club is 9-1-0, this season, with a two-goal lead. Last season, they were 17-3-0, 7-1-0 at Tsongas. When Lowell trails by 2 goals at any point in a game, they are 6-68-7, 2-31-4 at Tsongas. Last year, they were 0-7-2, 0-6-2 at Tsongas.
WHEN THE GAME IS ON THE LINE:  UMass Lowell goalie Tyler Wall has been at his best when the game is on the line. He is third in the country in saves in the third period and overtime. Wall has stopped 263 of 284 shots (.919) in the final 25 minutes of hockey.
PROTECTING THE NET: UMass Lowell is one of the top defensive team in Hockey East. The River Hawks have a 2.28 goals against average. That's 13th in the country and fourth in Hockey East. UMass Lowell has allowed no more than two-goals in 15 of its 25 games.
RIVER HAWK STRONG AT EVEN STRENGTH: UMass Lowell has outscored their opponents by a significant margin when playing even strength hockey. The River Hawks have scored 46-goals while allowing just 32 while the teams have been playing with five skaters apiece.
DOMINATING THE DOT: UMass Lowell has been dominant in the faceoff circle this year and the year before. The River Hawks have won 806 of 1,501, 53.7% of the puck drops. That figure leads Hockey East and is the seventh best in the country. Charlie Levesque (201/323, 62.2%), Lucas Condotta (199 of 341, 58.4%), Sam Knoblauch (32/55, 58.2%), Brian Chambers (35/63, 55.6%) and Kenny Hausinger (36/69, 52.2%), lead the way. Levesque is third in Hockey east and seventh in the country. A year ago UMass Lowell won 1,179 of 2,240 puck drops, a winning percentage of 52.6%, the best in Hockey East and 54.0% in conference play. Levesque led the team with a .568 percentage.
FLUXUATIONS IN THE POWER GRID: The UMass Lowell power play is beginning to put it together. The River Hawks have scored a power play goal (15-60, 25.0%) in thirteen of its last eighteen games. The team is just 17 for 88, 19.3%, on the season. That's after starting the year 2-for-28, 7.1%.
PK OK?: The UMass Lowell penalty killing unit hit another couple of bumps in the road. After killing off 19 consecutive shorthanded situations the River Hawks allowed seven power play goals in a two-game stretch. The team followed that with a game in which it did not take a single penalty. On the season UMass Lowell has successfully killed 80 of 98 man down situations. With an 81.6% success rate the PK Unit is fifth in Hockey East and 25th in the nation.
NON-CONFERENCE: The games on January 10 and 11 at R I T wrapped up the River Hawks non-conference schedule for the 2019-20 regular season. UMass Lowell finished the run at 6-3-1 in ten non-conference games. The .650 non-conference winning percentage is 14th best in the country.
NON-CONFERENCE, NO PROBLEM: The River Hawks have more than held their own in non-conference games over the eight-plus years that Norm Bazin has been behind the bench. UMass Lowell is 89-39-7 (.685) in non-conference games since 2011-12. The team is 6-3-1 this year and was 6-4-0 a year ago.
CAREER WIN 52:  Goalie Tyler Wall picked up his 52nd career win January 10 at RIT. That moved Wall to the top of the list as the winningest goalie in UMass Lowell's Division I history. Dwayne Roloson had held the record, at 51, since wrapping up his collegiate career in 1994. Marty Fillion who's playing days ended in 1998 is now third with 50 career wins. Wall has now upped his win total to 53.
94 AND COUNTING: UMass Lowell's visit January 10th and 11th to the Gene Polisseni Center in Rochester, a building that opened for business during the 2014-15 season, pushed the number of buildings in which UMass Lowell has played hockey to at least 94. Visits last season to Bentley and Colgate pushed the number to 92 and 93. The long list includes stops stretching from Alaska to Belfast, Northern Ireland and from Arizona to Maine.
28 DAYS: It was 28 days between games when UMass Lowell played Merrimack January 4. That break, December 7 to January 4, is the longest in the school's Division I history. It should be noted that UMass Lowell did play an exhibition game, a 3-1 win, on December 29th against the CCHL All-Stars. The River Hawks did have a 27-day break during the 2010-11 season.Â
FLYING SOLO: The January 4th game at Merrimack, a 3-1 win, was the first time this year that UMass Lowell played a stand-alone game. The only other stand-alone game on the River Hawk schedule is the season finale against UConn on March 6. A year ago UMass Lowell was 2-2-1 in five stand-alone games.
DEFENSE: Over the past eight-plus seasons, UMass Lowell has allowed just 2.27 goals per game and has a .920 save percentage. Those number are among the best in the country. Only three teams, (Cornell 2.17, Quinnipiac 2.22 and Minnesota State 2.22), have a better goals against average and just one, (Denver .922) has a higher save percentage.
ON TARGET: UMass Lowell has scored on 10.3% of its shots on goal during the eight-plus years that Norm Bazin has been behind the bench. Only four teams show greater accuracy. St. Cloud tops the lists at 11.2%. Boston College is at 10.6% and Northeastern is at 10.5%. Minnesota is at 10.3%.
ON THE EDGE OF YOUR SEAT: UMass Lowell has played sixteen games decided by one-goal or less. Seven of those came consecutively and is the most one-goal games in a row the River Hawks have ever played in their 53 years of hockey. The team was 3-2-2 in that stretch and is 6-5-5 in one-goal games this season.
EXTRA TIME:  Eight of the River Hawks 25 games have gone into overtime. That's one away from equaling the school record. The most overtime games that the River Hawks have played in a year is nine. That's happened three times. The most recent was during the 2015-16 season when the club went 3-1-5 in overtime. UMass Lowell is 2-1-5 in overtime this season.
OT AGAIN:  UMass Lowell has played eight overtime games this season, only two teams have played overtime more often. St. Lawrence has played in ten and New Hampshire has played in nine overtime games. Seven other teams have played in eight.
FIT TO BE TIED:  The January 25th 2-2 tie with Boston University was the River Hawks fifth tie of the season. That is fourth in the nation. UMass Lowell is one of six teams with five ties on their record. Only Boston University, with seven, and Colgate and Alaska Anchorage, with six, have more.
A RED LIGHT AT THE END OF THE OT TUNNEL:  The long wait is over. UMass Lowell finally won an overtime game when it defeated Providence 3-2, October 26, with a goal from Carl Berglund at the 4:20 mark of overtime. The win ended a streak of 13 overtime games (0-6-7) without a win. It had been 645-days since the River Hawks defeated Vermont 3-2 in overtime, on a Connor Wilson goal, January 19, 2018. The hockey club had been held off the score sheet for some 78-minutes and 22-seconds of overtime hockey.
BONUS TIME - NO BONUS: Overtime has not been kind to UMass Lowell over the last three seasons, but that may very well be changing. The River Hawks are 3-10-13 in their last 26 overtime games (0-2-5 last season) dating back to the start of the 2016-17 season. The three wins have come against Vermont in January, 2018, Providence October 26 and Penn State on November 30. The Providence win ended a 13 game (0-6-7) overtime winless stretch. Their longest winless OT streak is 18 games running from January 21, 2006 through January 11, 2008. UMass Lowell is 2-0-4 in its last six overtime games. The two wins have come in the last five overtime games.
WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES: Things have changed for River Hawk defenseman Chase Blackmun. A year ago Blackmun had just two-goals and five-points through 25 games. This time around he's got four-goals and 14-points.   Two of his goals have been game winners.
BACK IN THE NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT:  UMass Lowell is receiving recognition in the polls for the 14th straight week. The team is slotted at number 14 in the USA Hockey Magazine poll and in the USCHO Poll. It is the 14th week in a row and the 15th time this season that UMass Lowell has appeared in at least one of the two polls. The team closed out the 2018-19 season earning a spot in the USCHO poll in each of the final eleven weeks of the season and finished the year at number 19. The River Hawks are no stranger to the polls, the team had been nationally ranked for 116 consecutive polls between Jan. 7, 2013 and Oct. 23, 2017.
DOWN BUT NOT OUT: The December 6th come-from-behind, 3-2, win at Providence was the first time UMass Lowell has won a game in which it trailed by two-goals since defeating Vermont, 3-2, in overtime on January 19, 2018. The River Hawks are 1-1-1 in games in which they have trailed by two goals this season. It was also the first time this season that UMass Lowell won a game when trailing entering the third period.Â
A CLASS ABOVE: The UMass Lowell rookie class is one of the highest scoring freshmen class in the country. River Hawk freshmen, in 25 games, have scored 27-goals and 45-assists for 72-points. That ranks UMass Lowell fifth in the country. Merrimack, with 16 freshmen, tops the charts with 90-points. Boston University is second with 89. Providence is third with 76-points and Minnesota, with 72, is fourth. Matt Brown and Carl Berglund with 21 and 19-points respectively are 11th and 17th in scoring among first year player in the country and just seven and nine-points behind the national leaders. Carl Berglund, with ten-goals, is fifth among rookie goal scorers.
111 GAMES:  UMass Lowell forward Colin O'Neill has skated in 111 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. Sophomore Defenseman Chase Blackmun is second on the consecutive games list with 52. Michael Kapla is the River Hawk record holder with 161 consecutive games played.
THE CENTURY CLUB: Only two members of the UMass Lowell roster have played more than 100 games in their collegiate careers. Colin O'Neill (133) and Kenny Hausinger (126) joined the Century Club late last season. Charlie Levesque (95), Tyler Wall (94), Connor Sodergren (92) and Anthony Baxter (91) are next on the list.Â
THE 2020 SENIOR CLASS: The three-member UMass Lowell senior class has accumulated a record of 76-50-13, a .594 winning percentage. The class ranks third in Hockey East in both wins and winning percentage. The class which includes forwards Kenny Hausinger and Colin O'Neill and goalie Tyler Wall has won one HEA regular season title, a tournament championship, earned home ice for the Hockey East playoffs three times and made one trip to the NCAA Tournament. The class ranks sixth in wins and in winning percentage, among UML teams. The 2016 senior class tops the list with 100 victories.
JUST THREE: The UMass Lowell senior class is one of the smallest in the country. They are one of nine teams with just three seniors, no school has fewer. Boston College's roster shows 11 seniors.
THE LEADERSHIP:  The UMass Lowell leadership includes six Alternate Captains, but no Captain. Seniors Kenny Hausinger, Colin O'Neill and Tyler Wall along with juniors Charlie Levesque, Connor Sodergren and Anthony Baxter all have an "A" on the front of their jerseys. Wall is the first goalie to wear either an "A" or a "C" on the uniform since Dwayne Roloson during the 1993-94 season.
TAKING ONE FOR THE TEAM: UMass Lowell is right in the middle in Hockey East when it comes to blocking shots. The River Hawks are ranked fourth in the league with 301 blocked shots, an average of 12.04 shots blocked per game.
ANOTHER BRICK IN THE WALL: When UMass Lowell beat Rensselaer 4-0, November 29th, it was the ninth shutout of Tyler Wall's career. He is fourth on the school's career shutout list moving ahead of Cam McCormick and Christoffer Hernberg who had eight. The all-time leader is Connor Hellebuyck who blanked opponents 12 times. Carter Hutton and Kevin Boyle are second with ten.
THE GREAT WALL:  UMass Lowell goalie Tyler Wall is among the nation's leaders in goals against average and save percentage. Wall has a 2.06 GAA. That's number eleven in the country and his .934 save percentage ranks seventh. He is second in Hockey East in save percentage and fourth in goals against average.
A GOOD START: UMass Lowell allowed just twelve first period goals in 25 games this season. That's just 0.48 goals per first period and that's ranks the River Hawks 8th best in the country and number three among Hockey East teams. On the other side of the equation UMass Lowell has scored just 17 first period goals and that ranks the team 32nd in the country. The team is 6-1-1 when leading after one period.
THE FIRST 5:  UMass Lowell has scored a goal in the first five minutes of play in eight of their first 25 games this season. That's second in the country. They did it in victories against Alabama Huntsville twice, Minnesota Duluth, Vermont, Rensselaer and Merrimack but lost after taking a 1-0 lead at the 4:40 mark of the first period against Colgate and lost after scoring twice in the first 71-seconds against Boston College. Twenty-four of the River Hawks 68 goals this season have come in the first five-minutes of a period. That number, twenty-four, is fourth in the nation.
THE FINAL THIRD: The River Hawks outscored their opponents 37-goals to 26 in the third period of play a year ago. The 0.30 per game margin was third best in Hockey East and is 11th in the country. No Hockey East team gave up fewer third period goals. This season has been a bit different. UMass Lowell has been outscored, 27-23, in the third period this season.
FIRST NOTCH: Four UMass Lowell freshmen scored their first collegiate goals during the season's first weekend and a fifth added his name to the tally sheet in early November and sophomore got goal number one last weekend. Matt Brown, Zach Kaiser and Andre Lee all scored third-period goals on Saturday, October 5, and freshman Carl Berglund, who had two-assists on Saturday, scored the game's first goal on Sunday, October 6. Brian Chambers picked up his first collegiate goal with an empty net marker against Vermont November 2. Sophomore Austin O'Rourke added his first goal January 18th against Merrimack.
MULTI GOAL GAMES: Four River Hawks have recorded a total of five multi-goal games this season. Lucas Condotta was the first when he scored twice in the River Hawks 3-2 win at Minnesota-Duluth, October 12. It was also the first multi-goal game of his collegiate career. He added another January 10th at RIT. Chris Schutz added his name to the list with a pair of goals November 2nd at Vermont in a 5-3 win. Connor Sodergren joined the group with two-goals against Rensselaer on November 29th. Freshman Carl Berglund had a two-goal game last Friday night at RIT.
IN THE CLUTCH: River Hawk freshman Carl Berglund has stepped up in the clutch. A "clutch goal" is defined as a goal that either ties the score or gives the team the lead in a hockey game. Berglund leads the team with seven clutch goals, five have given the team the lead, two have tied the score. Matt Brown has four clutch goals and Zach Kaiser, Lucas Condotta and Andre Lee have three. Berglund also leads the team with three game winning goals. Andre Lee and Chase Blackmun have two.
Vs. BIG TIME FOOTBALL SCHOOLS: UMass Lowell is 57-25-7 against schools with big time football programs (FBS members) since Norm Bazin took over behind the bench. That includes an 9-3-2 record against Notre Dame, 4-1-0 record against Penn State and 3-1-0 against Arizona State and an 18-2-1 mark against Massachusetts. The River Hawks are also 10-10-2 against Boston College and 7-6-2 against UConn. They also have winning records against Michigan State, Wisconsin and Miami.
FACING THE BEST: UMass Lowell has responded to the challenge winning three out of five games against top-ten teams in the USCHO and USA Hockey Magazine polls. All but one of those games have been on the road. The River Hawks split a two-game series at number one Minnesota Duluth and were winners at number seven ranked Providence. UMass Lowell also defeated number seven Penn State. They also split a pair of games with then ranked 15th Providence. The River Hawks are 4-2-0 against Nationally ranked teams.
FACING THE CHAMPIONS: After splitting a pair of games, October 11 and 12, UMass Lowell is 16-14-1 all-time when facing the defending National Champ. That includes a 10-7-0 record on the road. All but two of those opponents have been Hockey East schools. The exceptions are a 6-4 win in Grand Forks against North Dakota, the 1987 NCAA Champ, and the 3-2 win in Duluth in October.
FACING NUMBER ONE: Until UMass Lowell's 3-2 win against Minnesota Duluth, October 11, the team had never beaten a team ranked number one in the USCHO Poll. The USCHO Poll dates back to the 1997-98 season. UMass Lowell is now 1-18-2 against the top ranked team in the Poll. The River Hawks have had some success against team placed number one in other polls. The last win against a number one team was a 4-1 win against Boston College, part of a sweep weekend, in February of 2005.Â
TIME IS ON OUR SIDE, YES IT IS: UMass Lowell has played 24 hockey games and has only trailed for 274:12 (17.9%) of a total of 1,532-minutes and 12-seconds of hockey. The River Hawks have skated with the lead for 641:16 or 41.9% of the time. The two teams have been tied for 563:42 or 36.8% of the time.
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 38 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 1,443 games including 1,377 Division I games. He has missed only one game. Poitras is working on a consecutive games streak that has now reached 968. He is the only trainer in College Hockey to work games at both Northern Arizona and Arizona State.
ATTENDANCE NUMBERS: UMass Lowell is fourth in average attendance among Hockey East schools. The River Hawks are averaging 4,185 fans per game after fourteen home games. Boston College leads the conference drawing 5,974 after ten home games, New Hampshire is second with an average of 4,627 after eleven home games and Massachusetts is third, twelve home games into the season, averaging 4,384. After leading Hockey East in average home attendance for three years, UMass Lowell finished second in total attendance, 87,682, and third in average attendance, 4,615, during the 2018-19 season.
