University of Massachusets Athletics
University of Massachusetts
Lake Superior State
#6/5 Massachusetts Hockey Begins NCAA Quest Friday Against #13 Lake Superior State
March 24, 2021 | Hockey
The Minutemen will face the Lakers in the NCAA Tournament first round on Friday at 6:30 p.m. on ESPNU.
| University of Massachusetts Hockey Game Notes | |
| Game 26 | #6/5 Massachusetts Minutemen (16-5-4) vs. #13 Lake Superior State Lakers (19-6-3) |
| Date | Time | March 26, 2021 - 6:30 p.m. |
| Location | Bridgeport, Conn. (Webster Bank Arena) |
| Series History | First Meeting |
| Live Statistics | NCAA Live Stats |
| Watch Live | ESPNU |
| Listen (Radio) | WHMP AM 1400/1240 FM 101.5/107.5 |
| Listen (Online) | WHMP Streaming Player | TuneIn App (mobile devices) |
| Game Notes | Massachusetts | Lake Superior State |
| Team Records | Massachusetts | Lake Superior State |
| @UMassHockey | @UMassAthletics | |
| UMass Hockey | UMass Athletics | |
Last Time Out: #6/7 UMass Earns First-Ever Hockey East Tournament Title
- For the first time in program history, the Massachusetts Minutemen captured the Hockey East Tournament title on Saturday night at the Mullins Center with a 1-0 shutout of UMass Lowell.
- The Minutemen were backstopped by 16 saves from junior goaltender Filip Lindberg and senior captain Jake Gaudet scored the lone goal of the contest.
- Lindberg and Gaudet, along with Zac Jones and Bobby Trivigno, were named to the Steve Nazro Hockey East All-Tournament Team, while Trivigno was named the Tournament MVP after posting two goals and four assists during postseason play.
- Lindberg and the Massachusetts defense kept the River Hawk attack off balance for much of the night en route to just the seventh shutout in a Hockey East championship game in league history.
- UMass, which was making its second-ever appearance in the Hockey East title game and first since 2004, got on the board with 4:28 remaining in the opening period when Oliver Chau created a turnover in the defensive zone to send the Minutemen up ice three-on-two in transition. There, Gaudet and Carson Gicewicz played catch up ice before Gaudet tossed a low shot that caught the side of the net. Gaudet stuck with it, corralling the rebound from below the goal line and throwing the puck off UMass Lowell goaltender Henry Welsch to put the hosts up 1-0.
- The teams went back and forth from there, with each squad earning a pair of power play opportunities over the final 40 minutes. The River Hawks nearly leveled the score late in the second period when Andre Lee rifled a shot that caught the pipe, but Lindberg and the Minuteman defense clamped and completed the kill.
- UMass Lowell continued to push into the third period in search of the tying goal, but Lindberg was there to make seven third period stops, including a pair in the final two minutes of regulation after the River Hawks pulled Welsch in favor of the extra attacker before Chau came up with a huge shot block in the final seconds.
Massachusetts Hockey In The NCAA Tournament
- The Minutemen are making their second-straight NCAA Tournament appearance, third overall and first as the automatic qualifier as 2021 Hockey East Tournament Champions.
- UMass made a historic run through the 2019 NCAA Tournament, winning the Northeast Regional Championship with a pair of 4-0 victories over Harvard and Notre Dame and opening its first Frozen Four appearance with a 4-3 overtime thriller over Denver before falling to Minnesota Duluth, 3-0, in the National Championship game.
- The Minutemen's first NCAA appearance came back in 2007, which opened with a 1-0 win over Clarkson in Rochester, New York. UMass saw its run stopped in the East Regional final that season with a 3-1 loss to Maine.
- Massachusetts is 4-2 all-time in the NCAA Tournament.
Against The Field
- Friday will mark UMass' first-ever meeting with Lake Superior State, one of nine current Division I teams the Minutemen have never faced previously, joining Alaska-Anchorage, Long Island, Miami, Michigan, Michigan Tech, Minnesota State, Penn State and Robert Morris.
- UMass is 1-1-0 all-time vs. Bemidji State with the last meeting between the schools coming at Dartmouth's Ledyard Bank Classic in 2012, a 4-3 win. The Minutemen are 0-4-0 all-time vs. Wisconsin with the teams last meeting in 2010, all four games in Madison.
How It Started, How It's Going
- The Minutemen have posted an 8-2-2 record against ranked teams this season and enter the NCAA Regional on a 10-game unbeaten streak (7-0-3), the longest unbeaten streak in school history.
- Three UMass' five losses this season have been one-goal games, with just four regulation losses on the year. Three of five losses came prior to December 7 when the Minutemen were without the services of veteran defensemen Marc Del Gaizo and Ty Farmer for the November 27-28 setbacks to Boston College due to injuries.
- UMass has won 10 games where the margin was three goals or more, compared to one loss (the 6-3 loss to Boston College on Nov. 28).
- The Minutemen have allowed one goal or less in 52% of its games this season (13 occasions in 25 games) and two or fewer goals in 17 of 25 games.
UMass Collects Host Of Postseason Awards from Hockey East
- Five University of Massachusetts hockey student-athletes were named Hockey East All-Stars, the league announced on March12. Junior forward Bobby Trivigno earned his first career honor as a First Team All-Star, while junior goaltender Filip Lindberg and sophomore defenseman Zac Jones were tabbed Second Team All-Stars and junior defenseman Marc Del Gaizo and sophomore defenseman Matthew Kessel received Third Team All-Star nods.
- It marked the second highest total of league all-stars in program history, trailing only 2018-19's total of six.
- Lindberg became just the second UMass goaltender to garner a Hockey East All-Star selection, joining Jonathan Quick who earned a spot on the second team in 2006-07.
- Del Gaizo is a third team Hockey East All-Star for the second time in his career after first collecting the award as a freshman in 2018-19.
- Jones and Kessel both earned their first career accolades. Jones was an all-rookie honoree last season as a freshman.
- Freshman Josh Lopina was named the Co-Hockey East Rookie of the Year and to the Hockey East All-Rookie Team. He is the first player in program history to earn a Rookie of the Year nod and the fifth Minuteman to earn an all-rookie accolade during head Coach Greg Carvel's tenure, joining Jones (2019-20), Del Gaizo (2018-19), Mario Ferarro (2017-18) and Cale Makar (2017-18).
- As a team the Minutemen took home the 2020-21 Charlie Holt Team Sportsmanship Award. Established in 1992, the Charles E. Holt Sportsmanship Award, named after the former University of New Hampshire head coach, is given to the team which receives the lowest average penalty minutes per-game over the course of regular season Hockey East play. The Minutemen have garnered the award for the third time in program history, previously receiving the distinction in 2001-02 (11.8 PIM/gm) and 2006-07 (10.8 PIM/gm).
- During the 2020-21 regular season, UMass averaged a league-low 9.5 penalty minutes per-game over 22 contests. The Minutemen had a league-high 174 penalty minutes through the first 15 games (11.6 PIM/gm), but took just 18 penalties over the final seven games of the regular season, a 5.14 PIM/gm average, 3.16 less than any other team in the league from January 22 to the conclusion of the regular season.
Trivigno Named Recipient Of 69th Walter Brown Award
- UMass junior assistant captain Bobby Trivigno has been named the recipient of the 69th Walter Brown Award, presented annually to the best American-born college hockey player in New England, the Gridiron Club of Greater Boston announced on Monday.
-Trivigno, a forward from Setauket, New York, is the first-ever UMass player to earn the honor.
- Trivigno helped UMass to its first Hockey East Tournament Championship, leading the squad with six points over three tournament games on two goals and four assists and was +6, to garner Tournament MVP recognition along with a spot on the Steve Nazro Hockey East All-Tournament Team.
- The 2021 Hockey East First-Team All-Star leads the Minutemen in scoring to date with 10 goals and 20 assists for 30 points. He is currently tied for 10th nationally in points and points per-game (1.20), tied for 10th in assists and seventh in assists per-game (0.80).
- Of the 16 forwards and defensemen among the 19 semifinalists for this year's Walter Brown Award, he had the highest plus-minus rating, with +17. Trivigno has three game winners, one power-play goal and one shorthanded tally through 25 contests and has helped Massachusetts to a 16-5-4 record to date.
Lindberg Rakes In Hockey East Honors
- After stellar weekends against #18 Providence and #16 UMass Lowell, junior goaltender Filip Lindberg collected Hockey East Defensive Pla-er of the Week back-to-back weeks to end the month of January. He was then tabbed the Hockey East Goaltender of the Month for January on February 4.
- Lindberg started four of nine games for UMass in January and went 2-0-2 with a shootout win and a shootout loss, all against ranked foes.
- He posted the best goals-against average (0.48) and save percentage (.980) in the nation in January, letting up just two goals on 98 shots over 250 minutes of action and logged two shutouts last month to lead the league.
- The Espoo, Finland native did not allow more than one goal in any of his four starts. In back-to-back overtime games against #18 Providence, Lindberg allowed just one goal in 130:00 of work and secured a shootout win for the Minutemen, denying each of the Friars' five shot attempts.
- He posted his second shutout of the month with 16 saves in a 5-0 win over #16 UMass Lowell and followed up with 28 stops in a 2-1 victory against the River Hawks in Lowell, UMass' first win in the Tsongas Center since 2011.
- Lindberg then repeated as Hockey East Goaltender of the Month for February after going 2-0-0 last month with a pair of road wins against ranked opponents.
- He stopped 59 of 62 shots for a .952 save percentage and a 1.44 goals-against average in the month of February.
- The Espoo, Finland native made 30 saves in an 8-1 win at #14 Providence and followed up with a 29 save performance in a 3-2 victory at #1/2 Boston College.
- Lindberg picked up his third Hockey East Defensive Player of the Week honor this past Monday after he made 16 saves and collected his ninth career shutout, 1-0, in the Hockey East Championship game against the River Hawks. He had 20 stops in the 5-2 semifinal win over the Friars for a 2-0-0 record, a 1.00 goals against average and a .947 save percentage on the week.
- He is now 7-0-3 since returning from injury in mid-January with a .955 save percentage and a 1.07 GAA during that span.
- Currently Lindberg leads Hockey East with a 1.46 goals-against average and a .940 save percentage, first nationally in save percentage, second in GAA. He is tied for seventh nationally in winning percentage (.750) and shutouts (3).
Strictly Numbers
- Sophomore Matthew Kessel leads all defensemen nationally in goals (9) goals per-game (0.38), and power-play goals (5). He is tied for fifth in points (20) and tied for seventh points per-game (0.80) by defensemen.
- Sophomore Zac Jones is tied for second nationally in goals by defensemen (8), tied for second goals per-game by defensemen (0.32), tied for fifth in points by defensemen (20) and tied for eighth in points-per game (0.80) by defensemen.
- Redshirt senior Carson Gicewicz is tied for 17th nationally in goals per-game (0.52) and tied for 12th in goals (13).
- Freshman Josh Lopina is tied for ninth nationally in points among freshmen (20), tied for 11 nationally in points per-game among freshmen (0.80), tied for 10th in goals, tied for 15th in goals per-game (.32), tied for 11th in assists (12) and tied for 17th in assists per-game (0.48).
Special Teams Success
- As of March 23, UMass' penalty kill ranks third (90.4%) in the nation, first in Hockey East, and its power play sits 12th nationally (22.9%) while the squad is tied for 10th in the nation in shorthanded goals with three. The Minutemen lead the nation in combined special teams at 56.3%. UMass is a net +14 on special teams this season, tops in Hockey East.
- To date, 25 of the team's 86 goals have come in special teams situations, 29.1% of the squad's scoring.
- UMass has 22 power-play goals through 25 games, compared to 16 in 34 games in 2019-20 and is 10th in the nation in power-play goals.
Quick Draw
- One of the Minutemen's biggest strengths thus far has been the team's success over the faceoff dots. As of March 23, UMass is fifth nationally with a 53.9% faceoff percentage, 830 of 1539. Individually, Carson Gicewicz ranks tied for 16th (58.3%, 56 of 96).
- Josh Lopina ranks 10th nationally in faceoffs wins (271), 60 more than the next closest rookie.
Immediate Impact
- UMass' newcomers have combined for 79 of the team's 232 points through 25 games or 34.1% of the scoring. Five newcomers have provided a combined 33 of UMass' total of 86 goals or 38.4%.
- Four of the team's top 10 providers through 25 games are new additions to the Minutemen roster for 2020-21 with redshirt senior Carson Gicewicz leading the team in goals (13) and tied for third on the team in points (20), while freshman Josh Lopina also has 20 points to date (8g, 12a) and junior Garrett Wait follows with 16 points (8g, 8a).
- Freshman Aaron Bohlinger rounds out the team's top-10 scorers with 10 points on 10 assists.
And The Beat Goes On
- From current NHLers 2019 Hobey Baker winner, 2020 Calder Trophy winner Cale Makar and 2019 Hockey East All-Star Mario Ferraro, UMass' hallmark has been its talent on the blueline during head coach Greg Carvel's tenure.
- UMass' defensemen scored 21 goals last season, which ranked eighth nationally, while the squad's 90 points by defensemen ranked ninth. Minutemen blueliners averaged 12.06 shots per-game, which led the nation in 2019-20.
- Individually, Matt Kessel led all rookie defensemen nationally last season with seven goals and is UMass' top returning goal scorer from the blueline for 2020-21. He was selected in the fifth round of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft (150th overall) by the St. Louis Blues this fall. He is one of three draft picks patrolling the UMass blueline this season along with 2019 New York Rangers third round pick Zac Jones (68th overall) and 2019 Nashville Predators fourth round pick Marc Del Gaizo (109th overall).
- Jones, a Hockey East All-Rookie Team selection in 2019-20 is UMass' top returning point scorer (23 points). He was the top scoring rookie defenseman in Hockey East last season, Jones finished the year 16th in the nation in freshman scoring at .72 points per-game, third for the Minutemen overall with three goals and 20 assists and was +12 on the year. The two-time Hockey East Rookie of the Week became the first UMass defenseman during the program's Division I era to post 20 assists in his rookie season.
- As a team, UMass was sixth in the nation in scoring defense (1.97) in 2019-20 after ranking seventh (2.02) the season prior. The 2019-20 squad set a program record for the fewest goals allowed in a season, 67.
- Through 25 games this season, the Minutemen blueliners lead the nation in points per-game (3.04), goals per-game (.92) by defensemen and goals (23), tied for second in power-play goals (7), third in shots on goal per-game (11.32), tied for third in power-play points (24), tied for third in points (76), tied for fifth in assists (53) and sixth in power-play assists (17).
- The Minutemen currently rank second in the nation in scoring defense at 1.80 goals per-game.
Home Is Where The Wins Are
- UMass is 45-9-3 in its last 57 games at the Mullins Center and went 29-5-1 over the previous two seasons (2018-19 and 2019-20) for an .842 winning percentage. This stretch included a 16-game unbeaten streak (15-0-1) began on Jan. 11, 2019 against Vermont and came to an end on Nov. 30, 2019 with a 2-1 loss to Quinnipiac. UMass went 11-2-2 at home this season, tying for first in the nation for home victories and finishing sixth in home winning percentage at .800.
- The Minutemen's home winning percentage the last two years ranked second nationally behind only Minnesota State's .918. UMass' home wins total from October 2018 to March 2020 was good for third nationally, trailing only Minnesota State (39) and North Dakota (30).
Name A More Iconic Duo
- The Minutemen have returned arguably one of the most experienced goaltending tandems in the country in junior Filip Lindberg and senior Matt Murray. Both finished the 2019-20 campaign among the NCAA leaders, including both ranking in the top 10 nationally in goals-against average (Murray seventh, Lindberg eighth), while Murray finished 10th in winning percentage (13-6-0, .684) and Lindberg ranked 15th in the nation in save percentage (.927) last season.
- Murray was the NCAA statistical champion for winning percentage in 2018-19 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.
- Lindberg, who started all four of UMass' NCAA Tournament games in 2018-19, ended his freshman campaign second in the nation with a 1.60 goals-against average and a .934 save percentage. The Espoo, Finland native ended his rookie season fourth nationally in winning percentage (.733) with a record of 11-4-0 and tied for 10th nationally in shutouts with four.
- As a freshman in 2018-19, 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 in 2018-19.
- Lindberg is currently the program's all-time career leader in save percentage (.933) and goals-against average (1.67), while Murray ranks third (.915) in save per-centage and second in goals-against average (2.21) in school history. Murray is also the program all-time leader in career wins (51) and shutouts (11), while Lindberg ranks second in career shutouts with nine.
- Murray entered the season tied for fourth among active NCAA netminders in shutouts, ninth in saves (1,527) and fourth in wins.
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.
- 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.
- Though hampered with injuries through much of the first half of the 2019-20 season, the now junior assistant captain still managed to put up 15 points in 22 games last season on four goals and 11 assists and was +9.
- Del Gaizo is currently the program's all-time leader in career plus-minus at +57.
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 was the first time the Minutemen opened a season ranked in either poll. Thus far in 2020-21, the Minutemen have been ranked in the top-15 every week. The squad has been nationally ranked in 67 straight poll weeks since October 22, 2018 after previously not being ranked in either poll since February 2010.
- 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 on Nov. 12, 2018 when 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, moving up to 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.
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.
- Matthew Kessel is the third member of his family to play college hockey. His brother Will played at Western Michigan from 2011-15 and captained the Broncos in 2014-15, while his brother Peter plays at Holy Cross and is in his junior season with the Crusaders.
- Linden Alger's father Richard played for UMass in the program's inaugural Division I season (1993-94) and then played the next two campaigns at Boston University (1995-97).
