Saturday at AIC: Live Stats | Watch (FloHockey, $) | Listen | Game Notes
 
LOWELL, Mass.—The UMass Lowell men's hockey team (10-8-1, 5-4-1 Hockey East) drop the puck on 2023 and close out the non-conference slate this Saturday, January 7, with a road tilt against American International College (10-8-5, 8-5-2 Atlantic Hockey) at the MassMutual Center in Springfield, Mass. Game time for the matinee matchup is set for 1 p.m.
 
SCOUTING THE RIVER HAWKS
Eyeing a bounce back from last weekend, the River Hawks open 2023 with a 10-8-1 (5-4-1 HEA) mark after dropping two games to Alaska Anchorage to close out 2022. Despite the stumble, several skaters found the back of the net for memorable weekends. Notably, freshman Owen Fowler put up a two-point night on Friday to set a new career-high and net his first multi-point game. Senior Brian Chambers returned to the lineup after the holidays to tally a goal and an assist, and defenseman Isac Jonsson finished the two-game stretch with a goal and an assist. Despite only scoring one last weekend, Carl Berglund continues to lead the team in points with 15 off seven assists and a team-high eight goals. Just four points behind, Chambers and defenseman Ben Meehan are tied for second with 11 points off three goals and eight assists each. Chambers and Meehan, along with Jonsson and Jon McDonald, all lead the squad in the assist column with a team-high eight each. Along with being a major catalyst for the River Hawks this year, McDonald and his fellow defenseman Brehdan Engum have been major assets on the blue line. Two big presences in front of the net, the pair have combined for 65 blocked shots this year. Engum, boasting a team-high 35, is tied for third in the conference and 21st in the country in the statistical category. The duo also contributes major minutes to the River Hawks' nationally ranked penalty kill unit, which sits in a tie for fourth overall with a .891 kill rate. The penalty kill unit isn't the only UMass Lowell special teams crew seeing success as of late. The River Hawks' faceoff unit has been excelling all season long at the dot. Just last weekend against the Seawolves, the River Hawks won 81 of their 124 faceoffs to finish the weekend with a .653 success rate. Leading the charge, Jake Stella ended Friday with a .800 win rate after winning 15 of his 19 faceoffs. On Saturday, freshman Jack Collins stunned with nine wins out of his 10 attempts for a .917 win rate.
 
Between the pipes, Gustavs Davis Grigals and Henry Welsch continue to share minutes, splitting last week's results. Even with the loss, Grigals maintained his spot amongst the nation's top five in both save percentage (T-1st; .931) and goals against average (4th; 1.84).
 
SCOUTING THE YELLOW JACKETS
An NCAA Tournament contender last season, the Yellow Jackets are sitting at a 10-8-5 mark heading into Saturday's tilt. This weekend's nonconference matchup marks AIC's first game of the New Year, and the team's first time back at the MassMutual Center since December 8-9. Jordan Biro sits atop the leaderboard for the Yellow Jackets in points with 23 off nine goals and a team-best 14 assists. Hot on his heels, Blake Bennett has been a scoring force for AIC with a team-high 12 goals in his 22 games played this season. Between the pipes, the Yellow Jackets have relied heavily on senior Jarrett Fiske, earning him 13 starts and 16 appearances to start the season. With a 6-4-4 record, Fiske owns a 2.44 GAA and a .916 save percentage so far this year. Most recently, in his last five games, Fiske posted a 2-1-2 record, earning wins over Bentley and Niagara. As a unit, the Yellow Jackets have proven to be especially hot on the power play, leading the nation with 25 so far this season. With a .245 success rate on the man advantage, AIC ranks 13th amongst all Division I programs. With a highly productive offense, AIC ranks amongst the top 10 in points (5th) and assists (4th). The Yellow Jackets also own the nation's twelfth-best scoring offense with 3.43 goals per game.
 
SCORING AGAINST THE YELLOW JACKETS
Though this River Hawk crew has yet to see any scoring against the Yellow Jackets, Head Coach Norm Bazin has been behind the bench of three of UMass Lowell's most recent clashes with the nonconference foe. In his three games at the helm against AIC, Bazin led the River Hawks to three high-scoring victories dating back to 2013. In their last three meetings with the Yellow Jackets, the River Hawks have outscored AIC 15-5, shutting them out, 4-0, in their most recent meeting in 2018.
 
FRESH FOES
Although Jake Stella is very familiar with the Yellow Jackets after his three seasons, he will be the only one on the ice with any familiarity with AIC. None of the current rostered River Hawks have ever faced off against AIC during their collegiate careers. Behind the bench, however, Head Coach Norm Bazin is no stranger to the Yellow Jackets. During his tenure at the helm for UMass Lowell, Bazin owns a 3-0 mark against AIC dating back to 2013.
 
FROM BEHIND ENEMY LINES
Senior Jake Stella will be seeing some very familiar faces on the ice this Saturday in Springfield. Last season, Stella suited up for the Yellow Jackets and Head Coach Eric Lang, appearing in 37 games and finishing fifth on the team in points with 28 off 12 goals and 16 assists.
 
LAST TIME
It's been five years since the River Hawks and the Yellow Jackets met on the ice. The last time the two teams clashed was in 2018 when UMass Lowell handed AIC a 4-0 loss at the Tsongas Center on February 6. Goaltender Christoffer Hernberg notched 23 saves en route to his fourth career shutout. On the scoring end, four difference River Hawks lit the lamp in the win: Chris Forney, Kenny Hausinger, Colin O'Neill and Nick Marin.
 
PK POWERHOUSES
UMass Lowell's penalty kill unit ranks amongst the nation's best through the team's 19 games. With just 7 goals allowed in 64 opponent power play opportunities, the River Hawks are currently tied for fourth in the country and first in Hockey East alongside UConn with a .891 PK percentage.
 
AT THE DOT
The River Hawks continue to be an imposing presence at the dot this season. With 646 wins in their 1168 faceoffs, UMass Lowell ranks fourth in the nation with a .553 success rate. Senior transfer Jake Stella continues to lead the River Hawks' efforts on the draw. With 189 wins and 141 losses, Stella owns a .573 faceoff win percentage across his 19 games played.
 
A WIN THIS WEEKEND
A win this weekend against the Yellow Jacket would extend the River Hawks' current winning streak to six games. The five-game stretch, going back to December 6, 1980, marks UMass Lowell's longest unbeaten streak against AIC in program history. A victory would also keep River Hawks' Head Coach Norm Bazin undefeated against the Yellow Jackets during his coaching tenure behind the bench in the Mill City. A win in the one-off non-conference matchup would move UMass Lowell to a 4-1-1 mark in standalone games this season and an 11-8-0 record all-time against AIC.
 
UP NEXT
The River Hawks restart conference play next weekend, Jan. 13-14, with a two-game road trip against the Maine Black Bears. Puck drops for the two-game series are set for 7 p.m.
 

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