Friday vs. Michigan Tech: Live Stats | Watch | Listen | Game Notes
Saturday vs. Holy Cross/Omaha: Live Stats | Watch | Listen | Game Notes
LOWELL, Mass. – After kicking off the second half of the season with a 9-2 exhibition victory against Simon Fraser on Sunday afternoon, the No. 10 UMass Lowell ice hockey team (10-4-2, 5-3-1 Hockey East) is now on the west coast to host the 2025 Coachella Valley Cactus Cup in Palm Springs, California, featuring Michigan Tech, Omaha and Holy Cross. The River Hawks will open it up against Michigan Tech on Friday at 3:30 p.m. PST, and depending on the result, will take on Omaha or Holy Cross on Saturday.
SCOUTING THE RIVER HAWKS
UMass Lowell entered the 2024-25 season coming off an 8-24-4 campaign that saw the River Hawks enter the Hockey East Tournament as the #11 seed. The team has graduate a handful of players and have bolstered their lineup of 17 returners with 15 newcomers, including seven transfers and eight freshmen. Of those transfers, five are graduate students and two are juniors. The team kicked off the 2024-25 season in the ninth spot in the Hockey East Preseason Poll with 40 points. Through 16 games this season, they hold a 10-4-2 record (5-3-1 Hockey East). Nationally, they rank #10 in both the USCHO and USA Hockey Polls.
UMass Lowell enters this tournament after a 9-2 exhibition victory over Simon Fraser on Sunday. The team had seven different goal scorers in the win, as well as seven different skaters with multi-point games.
At the moment,
Mirko Buttazzoni leads the way with 14 points (5g, 9a), while
Scout Truman is just behind him with 12 (6g, 6a), and
Owen Cole (5g, 6a) and
Ben Meehan (2g, 9a) are tied with 11 each.
SCOUTING THE HUSKIES
The Huskies enter the weekend with an 10-6-2 overall record, most recently competing in the Great Lakes Invitational and going 1-1-0, falling to Western Michigan, 4-3, before defeating Northern Michigan, 4-3.
The Huskies are coming off a successful 2023-24 season year where they finished 19-15-6 and reached the NCAA National Regional,falling to Boston College, 6-1. They return three of their top five point-scorers from 2023-24 in sophomore Isaac Gordon, sophomore Chase Pietila and sophomore Max Koskipirtti. Gordon totaled 36 points (18g, 18a) for first on the team, while Pietila finished fourth with 22 points (3g, 19a). Koskipirtti was fifth on the team with 21 points (4g, 17a). They returned one goaltender in junior Max Vayrynen, who appeared in five games last season with a 1-2-0 record, 2.40 GAA and .897 save percentage.
This season, Stiven Sardarian leads the team with 22 points (8g, 14a), while Koskipirtti is behind him with 14 (4g, 10a). Gordon sits in third with 13 points (2g, 11a).
HOT START
At 10-4-2, this is UMass Lowellís sixth-best start through 16 games in their Division 1 history. They only had better starts in 1986-87, 2001-02, 2015-16, 2014-15 and 2021-22. Their best start through 16 games was their 13-2-1 in 1986-87.
AT THE DOT
UMass Lowell currently ranks 31st in the nation at the faceoff dot going into this weekend's slate. The River Hawks have won 526 of their 1,049 faceoffs taken for a .501 faceoff win percentage through their first 16 games.
UMASS LOWELL VS. MICHIGAN TECH
The River Hawks have not seen a lot of Michigan Tech throughout program history, registering a 3-3-1 (.500) all-time mark against the Huskies. The two teams last played on November 11, 1988
when MTU picked up a 6-4 win.
UMASS LOWELL VS. OMAHA
UMass Lowell has faced Omaha in tournaments three times previously, going 0-3-0. In regular season play, UMass Lowell is 2-2 against Omaha, splitting a series at Baxter Arena in Omaha in October of 2016, and splitting a series at Tsongas in October of 2017. UMass Lowell is 11-10-2 all time against teams representing the NCHC, and 26-42-4 all-time against teams currently in the NCHC.
UMASS LOWELL VS. HOLY CROSS
UMass Lowell has a 22-5-1 all-time record against Holy Cross. Among teams that Lowell has faced 10 or more times, their .804 win percentage is their best against any active opponent, in any conference. UMass Lowell's 22 wins against Holy Cross is their most against any single opponent that is not in Hockey East.
UMass Lowell is also 19-2-1 in their last 22 games against Holy Cross, dating back to December 7, 1971. In their last meeting, UMass Lowell overcame a 3-goal deficit to win 5-4 in overtime at the Hart Recreation Center on November 1. UMass Lowell has faced Holy Cross in tournaments on three occasions, winning all three times.
IN-SEASON TOURNAMENTS
UMass Lowell has now participated in 44 in-season tournaments all-time, winning 13 of them. They have now competed in 13 of them under
Norm Bazin, winning 7 of them, and losing the title game 3 other times. The wins: 2011-12 Toyota UConn Holiday Classic (Storrs, CT) 2014-15 Frozen Holiday Classic (Bridgeport, CT) 2014-15 Mariucci Classic (Minneapolis, MN) 2015-16 Friendship Four (Belfast, UK) 2016-17 Ledyard Bank Classic (Hanover, NH) 2019-20 Turkey Leg Classic (Lowell/North Andover, MA) 2024-25 Adirondack Winter Invitational (Lake Placid, NY)
IN THE POLLS
UMass Lowell is ranked #10 in the USCHO poll and #10 in the USAHockey poll this week. In the PairWise rankings, they sit tied for 10th.
A WIN TODAY...
A win today would move the River Hawks to an 11-4-2 record on the season and a 4-3-1 record all-time against the Huskies. Head Coach
Norm Bazin would also pick up his first victory over Michigan Tech in his first game against them.
UP NEXT
The turnaround is quick when the River Hawks return to the east coast. They will take on No. 7 Maine on Friday, January 10 at 7:15 p.m., before a 6:05 p.m. puck drop the next night. Both games will take place at the Tsongas Center.
