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LOWELL, Mass.—The No. 16/16 UMass Lowell men's hockey team (9-6-0, 5-4-0 Hockey East) is headed west this weekend to visit No. 15/15 Massachusetts (7-5-2, 3-5-0 HEA) on Saturday, December 3, at the Mullins Center. The 7 p.m. tilt will air on NESN+ and ESPN+.
 
SCOUTING THE RIVER HAWKS
UMass Lowell hopes to stay in the win column this weekend after going 1-1-0 overseas in Belfast at the 2022 Friendship Four. Falling to the Minutemen in the opening round in a hard-fought 2-1 decision, the River Hawks rebounded with a four-goal unanswered run to complete the 4-3 OT comeback victory over Dartmouth. Goals from Zach Kaiser, Nick Rhéaume and Carl Berglund clawed the team back into the game after going down 3-0 in the opening frame. Sophomore Stefan Owens net his first of the season in the OT period off a snipe of the top corner just 1:36 in. Berglund's scoring efforts keep him atop the scoreboard for the River Hawks across the first 15 games with seven goals and five assists for 12 points. The senior's seven goals currently lead the team, with Kaiser just behind him with six and Scout Truman in third with five. Kaiser's been a sneaky offensive weapon for UMass Lowell as of late, with points in six of the last seven games for the River Hawks and a team-best +10 rating. Most recently, the senior from Orangeville, Ontario, net a season-high two points off a goal and an assist in last week's win over Dartmouth. Over in the assist column, three River Hawks currently lead the team with seven this year: Brian Chambers, Owen Cole and Jon McDonald. McDonald, a co-captain for this year's squad, is also a staple on UMass Lowell's blue line and nationally ranked penalty kill unit. He sits in second on the team in blocks with 22. McDonald's teammate and fellow defenseman Brehdan Engum leads the team in blocks with 27, which also ranks him fifth in Hockey East and 23rd in the nation. Between the pipes, Gustavs Davis Grigals saw major minutes last weekend for the River Hawks, getting the start on Friday and then entering the game on Saturday at the start of the second period. Grigals' .932 save percentage ranks him eighth in the country and third in the conference, while his 1.78 GAA puts him sixth in the country and second in the conference.
 
SCOUTING THE MINUTEMEN
It's only been a week since the River Hawks and the Minutemen have last faced off. The Kennedy Cup foes met in the opening round of the 2022 Friendship Four, where the River Hawks were tripped up 2-1 in a tightly battled game at the SSE Arena. The Minutemen's current point leader Kenny Connors led the way for UMass in the victory, scoring both goals in the opening-round matchup. Connors followed up his two goals with an assist in the Championship game, where UMass drew to a 2-2 tie with then No. 4/4 Quinnipiac. The Minutemen ultimately lost their shot at the Belpot in a shootout, where the Bobcats net the only successful one-on-one goal to win it all. In his 14 games this year, Connors owns 16 points off a team-high seven goals and nine assists. Behind Connors, Reed Lebster and Ryan Ufko are in a tie for second with 13 points apiece. Lebster has five goals and eight assists to make up his 13, while Ufko has three goals and a team-best 10 assists. On top of being a threat on attack, Ufko stands as a major presence on the blue line. He leads the team with 26 blocks in his 14 appearances. Fellow defender Scott Morrow plays a similar 200-foot game with four goals and eight assists this season for 12 points. He sits second on the team in blocks with 22 so far this season.
 
SCORING AGAINST THE MINUTEMEN
Ten out of the 29 currently rostered River Hawks have picked up points against the Minutemen during their careers. Senior Carl Berglund leads the way with five points off one goal and four assists in his nine appearances. In just five games against UMass, Matt Crasa has netted a team-high four goals thus far. The most recent point against the Minutemen came last weekend in Belfast off the stick of freshman defenseman TJ Schweighardt, who netted his first collegiate goal last weekend in the team's 1-2 loss. Freshman Jack Collins and graduate student Jon McDonald were credited with the assists.
 
LAST TIME OUT
This time last week the River Hawks were readying for the second and final day of the 2022 Friendship Four. UMass Lowell squared off against ECAC opponent Dartmouth in Saturday's consolation game in what turned out to be a high-scoring affair at the SSE Arena. After a three-goal period for the Big Green sent the River Hawks to the locker room down 3-0, the team rebounded to score three unanswered, including an extra-attacker goal off the stick of Carl Berglund in the final 1:17 of play, to force OT. In the extra frame, sophomore Stefan Owens earned 'Man of the Match' honors after an impeccable snipe to the top corner secured the 4-3 OT thriller to end their weekend in Belfast.
 
IT'S BEEN A MINUTE
It's been just a quick minute since these two teams met. The Hockey East foes traveled overseas to Belfast, Northern Ireland, last week to compete at the 2022 Friendship Four tournament. The two teams were joined by ECAC foes No. 2/4 Quinnipiac and Dartmouth for the two-day tournament, with the Bobcats ringing the Belpot after taking down Dartmouth in the opening round and besting the Minutemen in the Championship game in a thrilling shootout.
 
PK POWERHOUSE
The River Hawks continue to rank amongst the nation's best on the penalty kill. Boasting a .887 success rate on the kill, UMass Lowell ranks fifth in the country and second in the conference in the special team's category. With just six successful opponent power plays in 53 chances, the River Hawks are also tied for fourth in the nation with UConn in fewest PPG against.
 
AT THE DOT
UMass Lowell stays atop the Hockey East standings at the faceoff dot. With 497 wins to 418 losses, the River Hawks boast the conference's best and the nation's ninth-best success rate at the dot with a .543 win percentage.
 
A WIN THIS WEEKEND
A win this weekend would snap the River Hawks' current nine-game winless streak against the Minutemen. The last time UMass Lowell earned a regulation win over the Minutemen was back on February 21, 2020, when the River Hawks brought down UMass, 3-2. Although UMass Lowell hasn't picked up an official W since pre-COVID, the River Hawks did 'defeat' UMass in a shootout last season. After drawing to a 4-4 tie, current senior Carl Berglund net the golden goal in a shootout to claim the 'win'.  
 
UP NEXT
The River Hawks cap their pre-holiday slate on the road next Friday, December 9. The team takes a quick trip north to Hanover, N.H., to take on Dartmouth for the second time in just two weeks.

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