Friday vs. UNH: Live Stats | Watch (ESPN+) | Watch (STRETCH) | Listen | Game Notes
Saturday at UNH: Live Stats | Watch (ESPN+) | Watch (STRETCH) | Listen
 
LOWELL, Mass.—The No. 19/20 UMass Lowell men's hockey team (12-9-1, 6-5-1 Hockey East) continues its conference slate with a home-and-home series against New Hampshire (7-16-1, 2-11-1 HEA) this weekend, Jan. 20-21. Both games will be broadcast on ESPN+.
 
SCOUTING THE RIVER HAWKS
Coming off the split to the Black Bears last weekend, the River Hawks make their long-awaited second-half debut at the Tsongas Center this Friday for the first night of the home-and-home with UNH. After facing a 5-3 setback on Saturday, UMass Lowell's number one goal is to regain momentum and hoist themselves back up the Hockey East standings this weekend. With six points on the line, the River Hawks will likely look to their leading scorer and Hobey Baker nominee Carl Berglund to get the gears turning on offense against the Wildcats. The Swedish-born forward leads the team with 20 points off eight goals and 12 assists. With three assists across the two-game stretch, Berglund extended his active point streak to four consecutive games dating back to his goal on Dec. 31 against Alaska Anchorage. Since then, he has amassed six points across four games. Though only one of those points came off a goal, Berglund's electric presence on the ice has made him a major playmaker and offensive catalyst as UMass Lowell transitions into the back half of the 2022-23 slate. Senior Brian Chambers has also had a hot hand this season, registering his first multi-goal game last weekend in Maine. On top of his scoring luck, the senior has posted career numbers in goals, assists and points this year with 10 games left. UMass Lowell's defense has also been putting in the work on both ends of the ice. In the last five games, River Hawk defensemen have accounted for five of the last 13 tallies, with Marek Korencik and Isac Jonsson leading the way with two each across that stretch. Junior Ben Meehan, adding a power play goal of his own in that five-game window, continues to be a valuable two-way defenseman for UMass Lowell with 22 blocks and 13 points off four goals and nine assists, ranking him third on the team. Brehdan Engum and Jon McDonald are two hard-hitting presences on defense but also pose a major shot-blocking threat when they are net front. With 39 and 34 blocks, respectively, the duo have logged major minutes to help UMass Lowell maintain one of the nation's best scoring defense rates and penalty kill percentages. Engum's 39 blocked shots also tie him for fifth in the conference. Graduate student Gustavs Davis Grigals will likely earn the nod once again for UMass Lowell. The 2023 Hobey Baker Memorial Award nominee owns a 1.96 GAA (7th NCAA, 2nd HEA) and a .929 save percentage (3rd NCAA, 2nd HEA).
 
SCOUTING THE WILDCATS
New Hampshire heads to the Mill City on a hot streak, picking up three consecutive wins. Two of the Wildcats' most recent wins have come against ranked opponents on the road. On Jan. 6, New Hampshire headed to then No. 11 Providence and shut them out 2-0, and just last weekend, the Wildcats pulled together a 3-1 win over then No. 17 UMass. UNH has looked heavily to freshman Cy LeClerc to generate offense this season. With a goal in each of UNH's last three wins, LeClerc leads the Wildcats in scoring with 11 goals and six assists for a total of 17 points this season. His 11 goals rank first amongst HEA freshmen and are tied for second amongst all Hockey East skaters. Sophomore Liam Devlin is back with the Wildcats and sits just one point off of LeClerc with 16 points off eight goals and eight assists. The duo has been a major threat on the power play with four man-advantage tallies so far this year. On the defensive end of things, David Fessenden has been the go-to goaltender for the Wildcats as of late. In the last three games, he's picked up wins to improve to a 5-10-0 mark this season. He also logged his first shutout in the team's 2-0 win over Providence. He enters the weekend with a 2.53 GAA and a .914 save percentage. Fessenden's success aside, the Wildcats have looked to sophomore Alex Gagne to provide some coverage out front. Standing at 6-4 and weighing 207, Gagne leads the team with 39 blocks this season to match his rookie year number with 10 games left in the regular season.
 
SCORING AGAINST THE WILDCATS
Nine of UMass Lowell's 29 skaters have picked up points against UNH during their time in the Mill City, but only five have struck twine. Carl Berglund leads the way for the River Hawks with seven points in seven appearances. Only one of those points, however, came from a goal – the other six came thanks to helpers. In fact, no currently active River Hawk has scored more than one goal against the Wildcats. In addition to Berglund, Zach Kaiser, Marek Korencik, Jon McDonald and Blake Wells have all lit the lamp against UNH during their careers.
 
ABOUT LAST WEEKEND
Last weekend marked a weekend of first for the River Hawks with nearly the entire roster making the trek to Orono for the first time in their careers. The River Hawks took home the first of the series in their return to the Alfond for the first time since 2018. In the 2-1 win, Marek Korencik logged a career night, putting up his first multi-point effort with a goal and an assist. Korencik's linemate Isac Jonsson also lit the lamp with his third of the season. Between the pipes, Gustavs Davis Grigals picked up the 31st win of his career with 25 saves and just one goal against on night one. The Black Bears evened the weekend on night two, besting the River Hawks 5-3 in a high-scoring affair. Senior Brian Chambers came through with a career night of his own on Saturday, however, scoring two goals for his first multi-goal outing as a River Hawk.
 
#HOBEYGETSROWDY
Senior Carl Berglund and graduate student Gustavs Davis Grigals have been nominated for this year's Hobey Baker Memorial Award. The Hobey Baker Award is given annually to the nation's top Division I hockey player. The first phase of voting for the award opened on Thursday, January 19, and will run through Sunday, March 5.
 
BIG GUYS ON THE BLUE LINE
This weekend's series will mark a blue-line showdown between Alex Gagne and Brehdan Engum. The two defensemen are currently deadlocked at fifth in the conference with 39 saves each this season. The two also rank 28th in the nation in the category.
 
A WIN THIS WEEKEND
With a sweep this weekend, UMass Lowell would pick up six critical Hockey East points and extend their active unbeaten streak against the Wildcats to four straight. The River Hawks would also improve to a 14-9-1 (8-5-1 Hockey East) mark this season as well as a 49-66-18 record in the all-time series history.
 
PK POWERHOUSES
A notably difficult defense to maneuver at full strength, the River Hawks have been seemingly impenetrable on the penalty kill during the 2022-23 slate. UMass Lowell has allowed just 10 opponent power play goals in 77 opponent opportunities across their first 22 games. Heading into the back half, the tune has not changed for the River Hawks, boasting the nation's fourth-best PK percentage (.872) and the second-best percentage in Hockey East behind UConn (.878). 
 
AT THE DOT
The River Hawks have been a force to be reckoned with at the faceoff dot this season, averaging a .541 success rate on the draw. With 733 wins to their 622 losses, the River Hawks have held their opponents to just a .459 faceoff win rate through their first 22 games. Leading the charge, Jake Stella continues to be a major contender for the River Hawks on the faceoff dot, with 203 wins and 170 losses for an average individual win rate of .544. 
 
UP NEXT
The River Hawks host Kennedy Cup Rivals Massachusetts next Friday, January 27, at the Tsongas Center. Puck drop is slated for 7: 15 p.m.

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