Sports

Big series looms for Bears, Minutemen

Men's hockey travels to UMass for two-game set, both teams tied for seventh in HE

By Steven McCarthy

Posted on Feb. 19, 2009, at 12:00 a.m.

With their two archrivals in the rearview mirror, the University of Maine men’s hockey team shifts the focus to their neighbor in the Hockey East standings.

The Black Bears travel to Amherst, Mass. this weekend for a pivotal pair of games against the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, with whom they share the seventh spot in the conference standings. The teams have compiled identical records in Hockey East play (7-11-3), and nearly the same overall (UMass 12-15-3, UMaine 12-14-4).

UMaine took the first meeting with the Minutemen 2-1 at Alfond Arena on Feb. 1, sparked by sophomore defenseman Jeff Dimmen’s goal with 26 seconds remaining in the game. The win snapped a nine-game winless streak.

“There are two different types of rivalries; ones that are created from history and then ones that are created throughout the season,” said freshman defenseman Ryan Hegarty. “We’re neck and neck with these guys, so this weekend’s probably going to be the biggest of the year.”

Hegarty was a critical ingredient in the Black Bears defensive effort against Boston University last weekend. UMaine preserved a 2-1 advantage Saturday against the nation’s top ranked team despite missing Dimmen and freshman Will O’Neill, who served game disqualifications issued during Friday’s game. O’Neill began the season as a defenseman but has recently moved up as the third line center.

With the defensive depth lacking, junior Brett Carriere bolstered the defense after centering the fourth line on Friday.

“I think Carriere showed a lot of versatility coming back and being one of the better contributors as a defenseman,” Hegarty said. “I think we can put anyone out there, and we’ll compete with the best.”

Coach Tim Whitehead echoed Hegarty, citing Carriere’s versatility and reliability in each role.

“So much of the game is managing the puck well and he does that consistently,” Whitehead said. “He uses his mobility to defend well, whether he’s playing center or defense, and it allows him to keep a tight gap on the opponent.”

Junior goalie Dave Wilson turned in an exceptional performance between the pipes on Saturday, stopping 34 shots to counter Hockey East’s most potent offense.

“I felt very comfortable out there, which is good especially when I’m facing that amount of shots,” Wilson said.

Wilson earned the win in the first meeting with UMass, facing just 21 shots. The Black Bears were able to match the speed of the Minutemen, who are led by the No. 2 scorer in Hockey East, James Marcou, and freshman scoring leader Casey Wellman.

UMass does not stand out in any statistical category, but has proven to be the dark horse of Hockey East, mounting upsets of BU, Boston College and most recently Hockey East front-runner, Northeastern on Saturday. The win snapped a four-game losing streak.

“They’re a lot like us,” Hegarty said. “There are games where when they play the way they want to they can beat anyone, they can play with anyone, but when they don’t stick to their game plan they’re not the team that they could be.”

UMaine continues to struggle offensively, just twice scoring more than two goals in 12 games in the second half of the season. Freshman right wing Gustav Nyquist scored his team leading tenth goal against BU, but it was his first since scoring two on Dec. 13 against Union College. UMaine is 2-2-1 in February.

“I think everyone knows we’re not a goal-scoring team,” Hegarty said. “We’re not basing our game on offense. We’re a very sound defensive team when we play the right way, and we like to attribute our wins to team defense.”

The Black Bears expect to be tested by the speed of UMass on the wider Olympic-size rink. UMaine lost to the University of New Hampshire 4-1 on Feb. 6 in its last contest on the dimensions.

“They’re a dangerous opponent, especially on their own rink, where they’re comfortable on the big sheet, and we’re not as comfortable,” Whitehead said.

UMaine will return to Alfond Arena Feb. 27 to 28 for the final home weekend of the season against the sixth-ranked University of Vermont.

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 19th, 2009, 12:00 am. You can follow any responses to this article through the RSS feed.