University of Massachusets Athletics
University of Massachusetts
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Union
No. 4 Hockey Set To Host Union For Two This Weekend
October 17, 2019 | Hockey
The Minutemen will square off against the Dutchmen on Friday and Saturday at the Mullins Center.
| University of Massachusetts Hockey Game Notes | |
| Games 3-4 | #4 Massachusetts Minutemen (1-1-0, 0-1-0 HEA) vs. Union Dutchmen (0-4-0, 0-0-0 ECAC) |
| Dates | Times | Friday, October 18, 2019 - 7 p.m. & Saturday, October 19, 2019 - 7 p.m. |
| Location | Amherst, Mass. (Mullins Center - 8,096) |
| Series History | Massachusetts leads 8-3-1 |
| Live Statistics | Sidearm |
| Watch Live | NESNÂ (Friday) | CBS All-Access |
| Listen (Radio) | WHMP AM 1400/1240 FM 101.5/107.5 |
| Listen (Online) | WHMP Streaming Player | TuneIn App (mobile devices) |
| Game Notes | Massachusetts | Union | Hockey East |
| Team Records | Massachusetts | Union |
| @UMassHockey | @UMassAthletics | |
| UMass Hockey | UMass Athletics | |
| Tickets | Friday | Saturday |
| Game Promotions | Friday: AHA Night Saturday: Fall Fest - Presented by UMassFive College Credit Union, $500+ for Chuck-A-Puck |
Quick Hits: #4 UMass Nipped At Northeastern, 3-1
- No. 4 University of Massachusetts hockey made a third period push to rally from a two-goal deficit, but was unable to complete the comeback, dropping its Hockey East opener to No. 15/14 Northeastern on Tuesday night.
- After an extended stretch where the Minutemen were unable to clear the puck from the defensive zone, Northeastern capitalized with Matt Demelis lifting a rebound over Matt Murray from John Picking and Matt Thompson to open the scoring at the 11:37 mark of the second period.
- Northeastern then made it a 2-0 margin when Jordan Harris converted on a penalty shot attempt at 14:30 of the stanza.
- At the 6:48 mark of the third period, UMass cut the Huskies' lead to 2-1. Freshman Jeremy Davidson dug the puck out along the wall and fed classmate Matthew Kessel at the blue line. Kessel ripped a shot that found the inside of the far post for his first collegiate tally, the helper was Davidson's first collegiate point, as well.
- A power-play chance followed shortly after the goal in which the Minutemen rifled off nine shots. Another man advantage opportunity came for UMass late after a five-minute major was called on Brendan vanReimsdyk, but the Minutemen were unable to solve Craig Pantano a second time.
- Zach Solow added an empty net goal in the closing seconds to complete the scoring for Northeastern.
- The Minutemen ended the night with a 35-23 shot advantage and were 0-for-7 on the power play, while the Huskies were 0-for-5. Pantano registered 34 saves and Murray totaled 20 stops for UMass.
A Great First Impression
- Freshmen Zac Jones, Cal Kiefiuk and Reed Lebster all scored in UMass' season opening win over RPI, marking the first time in the Minutemen's Division I era that three rookies have scored their first collegiate goals in an opener.Â
- Two more freshmen found their way onto the scoresheet for the first time at Northeastern this past Tuesday with Matt Kessel scoring the squad's lone goal, set up by Jeremy Davidson's first collegiate assist.
- In total, freshmen combined for seven of UMass' 11 points over the squad's two games thus far, including four of six goals.
Home Is Where The Wins Are
- UMass is 23-3-0 in its last 26 games at the Mullins Center, 19-1-0 in its last 20 at home. The Minutemen have won 10 straight in Amherst dating back to Jan. 11, 2019 against Vermont.Â
We're Bringing Scoring Back (Yeah)
- Despite the loss of their top two point scorers from last season in Hobey Baker winner Cale Makar (49 points) and senior Jacob Pritchard (47 points), the Minutemen have no shortage of returning offense.
- UMass brings back its leading goal scorer in 2019 First Team All-American Mitchell Chaffee who led the Minutemen with 18 in 2018-19, two 40-point scorers in Chaffee (42) and junior John Leonard (40) and three more 20-point scorers: Marc Del Gaizo (29), Bobby Trivigno (28) and Jake Gaudet (22).Â
- In total the Minutemen return 105 goals, which alone would have put them 29th of 60 teams in 2018-19 overall. UMass finished third in the nation goals last season with 151, the highest total in the program's Hockey East era and its third-highest total all-time.
Year Three For 21
- Junior co-captain Mitchell Chaffee is coming off a breakout sophomore season in 2018-19 which saw him garner CCM/AHCA Hockey First-Team All-America honors and earn the title of Hockey East Scoring Champion, in addition to receiving the Herb Gallagher Award (New England's best forward) and earning New England All-Star and Hockey East First-Team All-Star recognition.
- In Hockey East action, Chaffee totaled 31 points over 23 league contests for an average of 1.35 points per-game. The Rockford, Michigan native also led Hockey East in assists in league play with 22, to go along with his nine goals. He became the second Hockey East Scoring Champion in program history.
- Overall Chaffee registered 42 points over 40 contests on a team-high 18 goals with 24 assists and a plus/minus rating of +21. He finished fourth overall in Hockey East in points, third in goals, tied for eighth in assists, tied for sixth in power-play points (14), tied for third in power-play goals (7) and tied for sixth in plus/minus. He amassed 12 multi-point games, as well.
- Thus far in a UMass uniform over two-plus seasons Chaffee has seen action in 81 games and has logged 33 goals and 36 assists for 69 points. His 69 points tie him for 39th on UMass' all-time points list.
- Chaffee is one of two First Team All-Americans from 2018-19 to return to college in 2019-20, the only other being goaltender Hunter Shepard of Minnesota Duluth.
We're The Three Best Friends That Anybody Could Have
- Juniors Mitchell Chaffee, Jake Gaudet and Oliver Chau have skated together as linemates in 60 of a possible 82 games since arriving in Amherst as freshmen. The trio has combined for 105 points as a unit on 48 goals and 57 assists.Â
- Chaffee, Gaudet and Chau have a combined 142 points over 236 career games to date.
Leno Leads The Way
- Junior John Leonard entered 2019-20 as UMass' active leader in career scoring with 68 career points on 29 goals and 39 assists.
- Last season he became the 20th player in program history to post a 40-point season and was named a Hockey East Second Team All-Star.Â
- The Amherst native ranked fourth on the team and fifth in Hockey East in scoring in 2018-19, tied for sixth in the league in goals (16), tied for eighth in assists (24), finished third in Hockey East with 18 power play points and tied for third in power-play goals (7).
- In Hockey East play last season, Leonard was third in Hockey East in points with 29 on 11 goals and 18 assists. He also tied for fifth in league action in assists, tied for third in goals and tied for third in power-play points (13).
- Leonard scored in each of UMass' three wins in the NCAA Tournament last season, finishing the Tournament with four points (3g, 1a).
Name A More Iconic Duo
- The Minutemen return arguably the top goaltending tandem in the country as both sophomore Filip Lindberg and junior Matt Murray finished the 2018-19 season among the NCAA leaders, including both ranking in the top 15 nationally in goals-against average and winning percentage.
- Murray was the NCAA statistical champion for winning percentage with a record of 20-5-0, a mark that also surpassed a program record for wins previously held by former Minuteman and NHL veteran Jonathan Quick.Â
- Lindberg, who started all four of UMass' NCAA Tournament games, ended his freshman campaign second in the nation with a 1.60 goals-against average and a .934 save percentage. He is the top returning goaltender in the nation statistically in both categories for 2019-20. The Espoo, Finland native ranked fourth nationally in winning percentage (.733) with a record of 11-4-0 and tied for 10th nationally in shutouts with four.
- As a rookie, Lindberg set a new program single-season record for goals-against average and tied Murray's record for single-season shutouts. His save percentage was the highest by a UMass netminder since 1969-70, second all-time.
- Murray and Lindberg tied the program's shutout record (5) from 1913-14 and served as the backbone of a UMass defense that allowed the fewest goals in the team's Division I era (83).
Watch Out For Marc Del Gaizo
- While many know Marc Del Gaizo for scoring the overtime game winner that sent UMass into the 2019 National Championship game, that was merely the exclamation point on one of the best rookie seasons by a Minuteman defenseman in program history.Â
- Del Gaizo received Hockey East Third Team All-Star and Hockey East All-Rookie Team accolades and earned an All-CHN Rookie Team nod, as well.
- One of seven Minutemen to see action in all 41 games, Del Gaizo ranked 17th in the nation for points per-game by a freshman (0.71), and third in Hockey East with 29 points on 13 goals and 16 assists.
- The Basking Ridge, New Jersey native tied for third in the nation in plus minus at +31, tied for ninth in Hockey East in power-play points (14), power-play goals (6) and ranked fourth in defenseman scoring.
- Del Gaizo was the first rookie defenseman in Hockey East history to score 10 goals in league play, which tied for fifth overall on the Hockey East list for goals by a defenseman in a single season all-time.Â
Full Wagon
- In 2018-19, 8,7776 fans came through the turnstiles at the Mullins Center for UMass hockey, the third-highest attendance total in program history. UMass ranked 12th in the nation and had the highest average attendance (4,876) last season of any team east of State College, Pennsylvania.
- The sellout against No. 8 Quinnipiac on Dec. 8, 2019 was the fourth sellout in program history at the Mullins Center and first since Feb. 5, 2010 against Boston College. The crowd of 8,412 set a new Mullins Center attendance record for hockey. Overall (including both away and neutral site games), it was the 19th largest crowd to ever witness a UMass hockey game.Â
- The 2018-19 campaign marked the first time the Minutemen had multiple home sellouts in the same season in program history.Â
- UMass packed the stands even on the road. There was a total of 10 sold out/capacity crowds in Hockey East arenas last season and the Minutemen played in eight of those games.Â
Top Of The Charts
- UMass entered the 2019-20 season ranked No. 4 in the USCHO.com poll and No. 5 in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Men's College Hockey Poll, which is the first time the Minutemen have opened a season ranked in either poll.
- History was made on Dec. 3, 2018 as the Minutemen earned their first No. 1 national ranking in program history, sitting at the top of the USCHO.com poll with 26 first-place votes and 964 points. UMass was ranked for 20 straight weeks to end the 2018-19 season, and earned a No. 2 ranking in the final polls.
- UMass entered the national rankings on Oct. 22, 2018 coming in at No. 16 in the USCHO.com poll. The last time the Minutemen were ranked prior to October 2018 was in the USCHO.com poll released on Feb. 15, 2010.
- On November 5, 2018 UMass moved up to No. 9 in the USCHO.com Poll and USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Men's College Hockey Poll in the No. 9 spot as well, the highest ranking for the Minutemen since November 30, 2009 (No. 9).
- UMass surpassed all previous highs in rankings this November when, on Nov. 12, 2018, the squad was sitting at No. 4 in both polls.
- Previously the highest ranking in program history came in the USCHO.com poll on Dec. 31, 2007 at No. 5. The Minutemen spent six weeks in the top-10 during the 2007-08 season.
- After sitting in the No. 4 spot for two weeks, UMass improved upon its all-time highest ranking, sitting at No. 3 in both polls on Nov. 26, 2018.
- The Minutemen earned their first-ever top-10 ranking (No. 9) on Nov. 10, 2003 and ranked as high as No. 7 that season.
- UMass collected its first-ever national ranking on Jan. 6, 2003. (No. 15 USCHO.com poll/No. 14 USA Today/American Hockey Magazine Poll).
- On Jan. 14, 2019, UMass received its first No. 1 ranking in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll.
Get Out The Red Pen
- The Minutemen re-wrote the UMass record book in 2018-19 with the team breaking program records for wins overall (31), Hockey East wins (18), home wins (17), road wins (11) and tied the all-time mark for wins over ranked opponents (10).
- UMass posted the longest win streak in program history in 2018-19 (nine games), which is also the program's longest unbeaten streak.
- The Minutemen were the most improved team in the country for a second straight year, going from five wins in head coach Greg Carvel's first year to 17 wins in 2017-18 (+12) to 31 wins in 2018-19 (+14).
- UMass also set a new program record for power-play goals (43), penalty kill percentage (86.9%), games played (41) and goals-against average (1.98).
League Things And Other Tidbits
- Anthony and Marc Del Gazio's father Anthony played college hockey at Merrimack (1983-84). They are the fourth set of siblings to play for the Minutemen in the program's modern era (James Marcou 2007-10 and Michael Marcou 2008-12; Jeff Turner 1997-2001 and Tim Turner 1999-2003; Mike Warner 2000-04 and Tim Warner 2001-05).
- Bobby Trivigno is the second member of his family to play in Hockey East, following in the footsteps of his sister Dana who was a standout forward and former captain for Boston College, where she put up 138 points in 148 career games for the Eagles (2012-16).
- Filip Lindberg first started playing goal after receiving his first set of hand-me-down pads from former Merrimack goaltender and fellow Finland native Rasmus Tirronen, who played for the Warriors from 2011-15.
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