#4 Men's Hockey Battles UMass.-Lowell (Fri - 7 p.m. - Whittemore Center), UMass (Sat - 7 p.m. - Mullins Center)
GAME NOTES
DURHAM, N.H. -- The fourth-ranked University of New Hampshire men's hockey team will play a pair of pivotal Hockey East contests this weekend. The Wildcats entertain UMass.-Lowell on Friday (7 p.m.) at Whittemore Center before traveling to Massachusetts on Saturday night (7 p.m.) at Mullins Center.
SCOUTING THE RIVER HAWKS: UMass.-Lowell enters Friday's game with a 2-14-2 record and a 2-10-0 mark in Hockey East. The River Hawks have lost nine-straight beginning with a 2-1 loss to UNH on Nov. 6 (the teams' first meeting) and including a 3-0 loss to the 'Cats on Dec. 2. UML is lead offensively by Riley Wetmore, who has 14 points on seven goals and seven assists. The River Hawks have a pair of freshmen in net with Doug Carr posting a 2-10-1 record with a 3.79 GAA and a .895 save percentage. Marc Boulanger is 0-4-1 in eight games with a 4.26 GAA and a .864 save percentage.
SERIES HISTORY VS. UMASS-LOWELL: The Wildcats lead the all-time series with the River Hawks at 53-30-15 in 98 all-time meetings between the two schools dating back to Dec. 6, 1983.UNH is 2-0-0 this season with a 2-1 win on Nov. 6 and a 3-0 win on Dec. 2 at Tsongas Center. Coach Umile owns a 46-19-10 all-time record against the River Hawks in his coaching career. Phil DeSimone is the active leader in scoring against the River Hawks with seven points (1g, 6a) in 11 games. Matt DiGirolamo is 2-1-0 lifetime against UML with a shutout.
SCORING LEADERS VS. THE RIVER HAWKS:
Player GP G-A-P
Phil DeSimone 11 1-6-7
Mike Sislo 11 4-0-4
Blake Kessel 8 2-1-3
Greg Burke 4 0-3-3
John Henrion 3 1-2-3
Mike Borisenok 5 0-3-3
Matt Campanale 5 1-1-2
Austin Block 5 1-1-2
Dalton Speelman 5 1-1-2
Stevie Moses 7 2-0-2
Paul Thompson 11 1-1-2
Damon Kipp 7 0-1-1
Matt DiGirolamo 3 0-1-1
Jeff Silengo 2 0-1-1
Connor Hardowa 5 0-1-1
Brett Kostolansky 5 1-0-1
Mike Beck 6 0-0-0
Greg Manz 3 0-0-0
Kevin McCarey 4 0-0-0
Nick Sorkin 2 0-0-0
Scott Pavelski 1 0-0-0
Kevin Goumas 1 0-0-0
Goaltending Stats
Player GP/Min GA GAA W-L-T SV SV%
DiGirolamo 3/179:57 9 3.00 2-1-0 76 .894
DiGirolamo Game-by-Game vs. the River Hawks
Date Min Res. Svs. GA Shots
11-14-08 59:57 L 27 8 35
11-6-10 60:00 W 24 1 25
12-2-10 60:00 W 25 0 25
Totals 179:57 2-1-0 76 9 85
LAST TIME THESE TEAMS MET (12/2/10 AT MASS-LOWELL): Matt DiGirolamo turned aside 25 shots including 12 in the third period to register his second career shutout and dished out an assist to lift UNH to a 3-0 win over Massachusetts-Lowell in Hockey East action at Tsongas Center. Overall, nine different players recorded a point for New Hampshire, including pair of players DiGirolamo and Jeff Silengo with their first collegiate point.The Wildcats scored the game's first goal at 12:34 of the first period. Brett Kostolansky scored his third goal in the last four games on a one-timer from the right point that appeared to deflect in off a UML defender into the net for a 1-0 lead and the eventual game-winner. John Henrion and Silengo assisted on the goal. The Wildcats held a 12-6 shot advantage in the frame. UNH extended its lead as Stevie Moses scored from the center slot on a feed from Mike Borisenok, who collected the rebound of his own shot and found Moses in the slot at 11:17 of the second period to make it 2-0. DiGirolamo started the transition and was credited with his first collegiate point. New Hampshire extended the lead to 3-0 as Mike Sislo scored a fast-break goal that was setup nicely by linemates Paul Thompson and Phil DeSimone at 16:01 of the second to make it 3-0. UNH outshot UML 11-7 in the second stanza. In a scoreless third period, UML held a 12-6 shot advantage including three during over a minute of 5-3 play late in the frame.
SCOUTING THE MINUTEMEN: UMass enters the weekend 3-9-3 overall with a 2-4-3 mark in Hockey East. After a 3-3 tie with UNH on Nov. 13, the Minutemen rattled off three-straight wins against Vermont, Quinnipiac and Mass.-Lowell before losing three-straight most recently. UMass is coming off a pair of losses at Wisconsin. The Minutemen will play host to Northeastern on Friday night before hosting UNH on Saturday. Freshman Michael Pereira is the team's leading scorer with 13 points on seven goals and six assists. Senior netminder Paul Dainton is 3-4-2 with a 2.79 GAA and a .917 save percentage.
SERIES HISTORY VS. MASSACHUSETTS: UNH has a 78-18-8 lifetime record vs. Massachusetts in 104 all-time meetings dating back to Feb. 13, 1926. UNH is 1-0-1 with a win (3-0) and a tie (3-3) in a two home series back on Nov. 12-13 at Whittemore Center. UNH is 8-1-3 in the last 12 meetings with the Minutemen. Coach Umile owns a 39-10-7 all-time record against UMass in his coaching career. Senior Paul Thompson is the active scoring leader against the Minutemen with 10 points in eight games. Matt DiGirolamo is 1-0-1 in two career games against UMass. He collected his first career shutout against UMass on Nov. 12.
SCORING LEADERS VS. THE MINUTEMEN:
Player GP G-A-P
Paul Thompson 8 2-8-10
Mike Sislo 13 5-4-9
Blake Kessel 8 2-6-8
Stevie Moses 8 3-1-4
Phil DeSimone 13 1-5-6
Brett Kostolansky 5 0-3-3
Greg Burke 2 0-2-2
Kevin McCarey 5 1-1-2
Mike Beck 6 0-1-1
Damon Kipp 8 1-0-1
Mike Borisenok 7 0-0-0
Greg Manz 4 0-0-0
Matt Campanale 6 0-0-0
Austin Block 4 0-0-0
Connor Hardowa 4 0-0-0
John Henrion 4 0-0-0
Scott Pavelski 2 0-0-0
Dalton Speelman 3 0-0-0
Nick Sorkin 2 0-0-0
Kevin Goumas 2 0-0-0
Jeff Silengo 2 0-0-0
Goaltending Stats vs. Massachusetts
Player GP/Min GA GAA W-L-T SV SV%
DiGirolamo 2/124:22 3 1.44 1-0-1 48 .941
DiGirolamo Game-by-Game vs. the Minutemen
Date Min Res. Svs. GA Shots
11-12-10 59:57 W 19 0 19
11-13-10 64:25 T 29 3 32
Totals 124:22 1-0-1 48 3 51
LAST TIME THESE TEAMS MET (11/13/10 VS. MASSACHUSETTS): Blake Kessel scored with 42 seconds remaining to lift UNH to a 3-3 tie against the University of Massachusetts in front of a sellout crowd at the Whittemore Center. Trailing 3-2 with 42 seconds on the clock, the Wildcats evened the score when Kessel crashed the net and finished off a pass from Phil DeSimone, who had circled around on the right end line before dishing the puck to the front of the net. UNH drew first blood 4:17 into the opening period off a great defensive play from Paul Thompson. As the UMass defender at the right point attempted to swing the puck across the blue line to the left, Thompson stuck his stick out and intercepted the pass. Thompson split the two converging defenders and put a shot on net that was saved by UMass goaltender Paul Dainton as he dove to his right. Mike Sislo, who was trailing the play, collected the puck on the doorstep and easily slid it into the vacant net to put his team up 1-0. The Minutemen gained the equalizer just under two minutes later when Adam Phillips' shot from the right circle was stopped by goaltender Matt DiGirolamo, but the puck trickled through his pads and was cleaned up at the far post by Branden Gracel. The Wildcats went back on top on the power play with just 4:01 to play in the period. At the bottom of the left circle, DeSimone wheeled around a defender and sent a backhanded pass across the slot that Stevie Moses buried in the top right corner of the net to make it 2-1. Thompson earned his second assist of the game on the play. UMass tied the game at two with 7:03 remaining in the third period when T.J. Syner received a feed at the top of the right slot from Michael Marcou and wristed a shot into the right corner of the net. The Minutemen then grabbed their first lead of the night with 1:02 to play when Graciel's shot from the left circle was saved by DiGirolamo, but the rebound caromed to DiGirolamo's left as he slid to the right and Michael Pereira buried the puck in the open net to give UMass what would be a brief 3-2 lead. Marcou also earned an assist on the play. DiGirolamo made 29 saves, including 11 in the opening period, while Dainton stopped 43 shots – 18 of them in the final period. UNH outshot UMass, 46-32, including 19-9 in the third period and 4-1 in the extra session.
LAST TIME OUT (JAN. 2, 2011 VS. ST. LAWRENCE): Aaron Bogosian scored 29 seconds into overtime to lift the St. Lawrence University men's ice hockey team to Sunday afternoon's 2-1 non-conference victory against second-ranked University of New Hampshire at the Whittemore Center. UNH goaltender Matt DiGirolamo made 28 saves, including 13 in the third period and two in the extra session. Saints counterpart Matt Weninger was credited with 32 saves, including 10 in the second stanza and 15 in the final frame; he did not face a shot in OT. Bogosian's goal, which was assisted by Greg Carey, came on the rebound of his own shot from the left point. The puck trickled behind DiGirolamo and was chased down by Bogosian and tapped in. The Saints netted the game's first goal at 4:42 of the second period to take a 1-0 lead. In the defensive zone, Pat Raley chipped the puck up the boards and Mark Armstrong carried the puck through the neutral zone on the left side to create a 2-on-1 odd-man rush. Armstrong rifled a shot from the left faceoff circle inside the far post for his first goal of the year. UNH had a two-skater advantage for 42 seconds (due to overlapping minor penalties to St. Lawrence at 11:53 and 13:11) but recorded just one shot in that time. With 2:30 remaining in the second stanza, the 'Cats had a quick counterattack in which Paul Thompson entered the offensive zone on the left wing and dropped the puck at the faceoff dot for Phil DeSimone He quickly sent a diagonal pass to Mike Sislo but SLU goalie Matt Weninger slid across the crease to the right post to deny Sislo. New Hampshire tied the score, 1-1, at 14:53 of the third period. Austin Block moved the puck from the left corner to John Henrion in the near circle and his low shot sailed past Weninger. Damon Kipp was also credited with an assist.
DIGIROLAMO NAMED HOCKEY EAST GOALIE OF THE MONTH FOR DECEMBER: Junior goaltender Matt DiGirolamo was named Hockey East Pure Hockey Goalie of the Month for December. The announcement was made Tuesday afternoon by the league office. DiGirolamo, who earned HE Defensive Player of the Week honors on Dec. 6, becomes the first UNH player to earn the league's goalie of the month honor since Brian Foster did so in January 2010.DiGirolamo was a perfect 3-0-0 in the month with a 1.35 GAA and a .950 save percentage. He opened the month with a shutout against UMass-Lowell, allowed a goal in a 5-1 win over Vermont and closed out the month with 27 saves in a 4-3 win over Maine. Overall DiGirolamo turned away 76 of 80 shots in the month.
RIGHTEOUS KILLS: The New Hampshire penalty kill was 2-2 on the kill on Sunday against St. Lawrence marking the fourth straight game they have not allowed a power play goal.
HENRION ON A ROW: John Henrion scored a goal late in the third period to force overtime. Henrion has registered a point in back-to-back games and three out of the last four.
BACK-TO-BACK FOR KIPP: Damon Kipp assisted on Henrion's game-tying goal, he's scored in back-to-back games.
8-0-1 WHEN LEADING AFTER TWO: UNH is now 8-0-1 when leading after two periods.
COLLEGEHOCKEYNEWS.COM'S PAIRWISE RANKINGS (1/4)
Rk Team PCWs W-L-T Win % Rk RPI Rk
1 Yale 24 12-1-0 .9231 1 .6242* 1
2 North Dakota 22 14-5-2 .7143 4 .5923 2
3t New Hampshire 20 10-3-4 .7059 5 .5575 6
3t Denver 20 13-5-4 .6818 8 .5750 4
3t Boston College 20 13-5-0 .7222 3 .5703* 5
6 Minn.-Duluth 19 13-4-3 .7250 2 .5795 3
7 Rensselaer 18 11-4-3 .6944 6 .5534* 7
8t Michigan 17 12-5-4 .6667 9 .5523 8
8t Neb-Omaha 17 12-7-1 .6250 12t .5500 9
10 Miami 16 11-6-3 .6250 12t .5465 11
11 Notre Dame 15 12-7-3 .6136 16t .5492 10
12 Wisconsin 13 12-7-3 .6136 16t .5429* 12
13 Alaska 12 9-6-3 .5833 22 .5382 13
14t Colorado College 11 12-9-1 .5682 24 .5382 14
14t Maine 11 9-5-4 .6111 18t .5358 15
16t Union 8 11-6-3 .6250 12t .5356* 16
16t Merrimack 8 9-4-4 .6471 11 .5332* 17
18t Princeton 6 10-5-1 .6562 10 .5327 18
18t Boston Univ. 6 8-5-6 .5789 23 .5326 19
18t Dartmouth 6 7-4-2 .6154 15 .5270 20
21 Western Mich. 5 10-6-4 .6000 21 .5255 21
22t Minnesota State 2 8-8-4 .5000 32t .5177 22
22t Minnesota 2 9-8-3 .5250 29 .5174 23
22t Northern Mich. 2 9-9-4 .5000 32t .5167 24
25 Clarkson 0 10-6-2 .6111 18t .5144 25
'CATS EXTENDS WHITTEMORE CENTER UNBEATEN STREAK TO 25 AGAINST HOCKEY EAST FOE: With a 5-1 win over Vermont, UNH is 18-0-7 in the last 25 Hockey East contests at Whittemore Center. New Hampshire's last home league loss came on Jan. 24, 2009 against BU.
FIRST ONE GOAL LOSS: Sunday's 2-1 loss to St. Lawrence was the first one-goal loss of the season for UNH. The 'Cats were 4-0-0 in one-goal games prior to Sunday.
'CATS DROP FIRST IN OT THIS SEASON: Sunday's 2-1 overtime loss was the first overtime loss of the season. New Hampshire is now 1-1-4 in six overtime games.
THOMPSON FIRST IN HOCKEY EAST IN SCORING; LINEMATES RIGHT BEHIND: Paul Thompson ranks first in Hockey East in scoring with 25 points, while his linemates Mike Sislo (24 pts) and Phil DeSimone (20 pts) rank second and fifth, respectively.
TOP LINERS APPROACHING CENTURY MARK: All three members of UNH's top line have a chance to capture 100 points during their season season. Mike Sislo is now just eight points away.
Player G-A-P Points to 100
Mike Sislo 44-48-92 8
Phil DeSimone 24-64-88 12
Paul Thompson 40-45-85 15
DeSIMONE; SISLO FIRST IN HOCKEY EAST IN ASSISTS: Phil DeSimone and Mike Sislo are tied for first in Hockey East with 16 assists this season.
'CATS OFF TO BEST START SINCE 2006-07: UNH is off to its best start at 10-3-4 (.706) since the 2006-07 season when it was 13-3-1 (.794). The Wildcats have won 10 or more games through their first 17 games in three of the last five seasons.
Year Record (Pct.) Final Record
2010-11 10-3-4 (.706) ---
2009-10 8-6-3 (.558) 18-14-7
2008-09 8-6-3 (.558) 20-13-5
2007-08 11-5-1 (.676) 25-10-3
2006-07 13-3-1 (.794) 26-11-2
SCORING BY CLASS: 2010-11 breakdown of scoring by class.
Class G-A-P G-A-P %.
Seniors: 23-49-72 40-51-46
Juniors: 15-22-37 26-23-24
Sophomores: 17-23-40 29-24-26
Freshmen: 3-3-6 5-3-4
TO THIS POINT LAST YEAR: A comparison through 17 games between this season and last season.
09-10 10-11
Record 8-6-3 10-3-4
HE Record 8-2-2 8-1-2
Goals scored 57 58
Goals scored/PG 3.35 3.41
Goals Allowed 59 41
Goals Allowed/PG 3.47 2.41
Shots 488 613
Shots Allowed 555 521
Power Play 16.0% 19.8%
(12-75) (16-81)
Penalty Kill 75.0% 84.5%
(54-72) (49-58)
Top 3 Scorers Butler Thompson
13-11-24 11-14-25
Kessel Sislo
5-13-18 8-16-24
Thomp. DeSimone
8-9-17 4-16-20
WHERE IS UNH RANKED?: Here is a week-by-week look at the 'Cats in the national polls and the HE standings:
Date USA TODAY USCHO HE
9/27 8th N/P 3rd (pre)
10/4 N/P 10th 3rd (pre)
10/11 9th 9th 4th
10/18 7th 7th 6th
10/25 10th 10th 7th
11/1 10th 10th 9th
11/8 8th 9th 4th
11/15 8th 7th 3rd
11/22 6th 6th 3rd
11/29 5th 5th 3rd
12/6 3rd 3rd 2nd
12/13 2nd 2nd 1st
12/20 2nd NP 1st
12/27 NP NP 1st
1/3 4th 4th 1st
THE NATIONAL POLLS:
USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Men's Hockey Poll (Jan. 3)
Rk. Team, Points (FPV) Last Week Record Weeks
1 Yale University, 510 (34) 1 12-1-0 13
2 North Dakota, 467 5 14-5-2 13
3 Boston College, 428 4 13-5-0 13
4 New Hampshire, 404 2 10-3-4 13
5 Minnesota Duluth, 356 3 12-4-3 13
6 University of Denver, 352 7 13-5-4 13
7 University of Michigan, 297 10 12-5-4 13
8 Miami University, 288 6 11-6-3 13
9 Rensselaer, 202 13 11-4-3 5
10 Nebraska Omaha, 164 9 12-7-1 11
11 University of Maine, 162 8 9-5-4 13
12 Notre Dame, 129 12 12-7-3 10
13 University of Wisconsin, 117 15 12-7-3 8
14 Union College, 72 14 11-6-3 10
15 Boston University, 42 11 8-5-6 13
Others receiving votes: University of Alaska, 36; Colorado College, 27; Merrimack College, 23; Ferris State University, 1; Princeton University, 1; Robert Morris University, 1; Western Michigan University, 1.
USCHO.com Division I Men's Hockey Poll (Jan. 3)
Rk. School (FPV) Record Points Weeks
1 Yale (45) 12-1-0 991 1
2 North Dakota (2) 14-5-2 938 3
3 Boston College (3) 13-5-0 881 5
4 New Hampshire 10-3-4 853 2
5 Minnesota-Duluth 12-4-3 782 4
6 Denver 13-5-4 752 7
7 Miami 11-6-3 688 6
8 Michigan 12-5-4 658 11
9 Maine 9-5-4 539 9
10 Rensselaer 11-4-3 496 14
11 Notre Dame 12-7-3 454 12
12 Nebraska-Omaha 12-7-1 421 8
13 Wisconsin 12-7-3 408 15
14 Boston University 8-5-6 353 10
15 Union 11-6-3 321 12
16 Alaska 9-6-3 266 16
17 Merrimack 9-4-4 250 17
18 Colorado College 12-9-1 156 20
19 Princeton 10-5-0 60 NR
20 Ferris State 9-8-4 46 18
Others Receiving Votes: Western Michigan 45, Clarkson 40, Dartmouth 26, Minnesota 26, Robert Morris 23, Minnesota State 15, Bemidji State 4, Ohio State 2, Quinnipiac 2, St. Lawrence 2, Niagara 1, Providence 1
Wildcats Among National leaders (THRU 1/6): Below is a list of where UNH players and team rank nationally.
Individual Rank Stats
Points Per Game:
Paul Thompson 10th 1.47 ppg
Mike Sislo 14th 1.41 ppg
Phil DeSimone 34th 1.18 ppg
Goals Per Game:
Paul Thompson 13th 0.65 gpg
Mike Sislo 57th 0.47 gpg
Assists Per Game:
Phil DeSimone 11th 0.94 apg
Mike Sislo 11th 0.94 apg
Paul Thompson 24th 0.82 apg
Power Play Goals:
Paul Thompson 6th 6 ppg
Short-Handed Goals:
Dalton Speelman 21st 1 shg
Stevie Moses 21st 1 shg
Game-Winning Goal:
Paul Thompson 3rd 3 gwg
Mike Sislo 23rd 2 gwg
Defensemen Scoring:
Blake Kessel 26th 0.71 ppg
Goals Against Average:
Matt DiGirolamo 20th 2.32 gaa
Save Percentage:
Matt DiGirolamo 18th .923
Winning Percentage:
Matt DiGirolamo 11th .706
Team
Scoring Offense 16th 3.41
Scoring Defense 12th 2.41
Scoring Margin 7th 1.00
Penalty Minutes 54th 9.4
Power Play 22nd 19.8
Penalty Kill 18th 84.5
Combined Special Teams 46th 46.8
Winnning Percentage 5th .706
Among the League Leaders (THRU 1/6): Where some of the Wildcats rank in Hockey East.
Player All Games HE Games
Points Paul Thompson 2nd (25 pts) 1st (20 pts)
Mike Sislo 4th (24 pts) 5th (15 pts)
Phil DeSimone 7th (20 pts) 10th (11 pts)
Goals Paul Thompson 2nd (11 g) 2nd (9 g)
Mike Sislo 8th (8 g) 26th (3 g)
Stevie Moses 18th (6 g) 47th (2 g)
Assists Mike Sislo 1st (16 a) 1st (12 a)
Phil DeSimone 1st (16 a) 6th (9 a)
Paul Thompson 5th (14 a) 4th (11 a)
Blake Kessel 19th (9 a) 32nd (4 a)
PP Points Paul Thompson 1st (12 pts) 1st (10 pts)
Mike Sislo 3rd (10 pts) 3rd (7 pts)
Phil DeSimone 12th (7 pts) 8th (5 pts)
Blake Kessel 12th (7 pts) 13th (4 pts)
PP Goals Paul Thompson 1st (6 ppg) 2nd (4 ppg)
Mike Sislo 9th (3 ppg) 19th (1 ppg)
Phil DeSimone 17th (2 ppg) 5th (2 ppg)
Brett Kostolansky 17th (2 ppg) 5th (2 ppg)
SH Points Four Tied 7th (1 shp) n/a
SH Goals Dalton Speelman 5th (1 shg) n/a
Stevie Moses 5th (1 shg) n/a
GW Goals Paul Thompson 1st (3 gwg) 1st (3 gwg)
Mike Sislo 4th (2 gwg) 7th (1 gwg)
Def. Scoring Blake Kessel 3rd (12 pts) 6th (6 pts)
Brett Kostolansky 4th (10 pts) 3rd (7 pts)
GAA Matt DiGirolamo 3rd (2.32) 1st (1.62)
Save % Matt DiGirolamo 4th (.923) 1st (.944)
Win % Matt DiGirolamo 2nd (.706) 1st (.818)
Saves Matt DiGirolamo 1st (480) 6th (301)
Minutes Matt DiGirolamo 1st (1034:06) 3rd (664:44)
Wins Matt DiGirolamo 2nd (10) 2nd (8)
WHERE UNH IS RANKED IN HOCKEY EAST (THRU 1/6):
Overall HE games
Goals/per game 3.41/2nd 3.00/3rd
GAA 2.41/3rd 1.64/1st
Power Play 19.8/2nd 22.0/2nd
Penalty Kill 84.5/3rd 91.2/2nd
Special Teams Net +6/2nd +6/2nd
1st Period Scoring 13/7th 10/3rd
2nd Period Scoring 25/2nd 14/3rd
3rd Period Scoring 19/3rd 8/7th
Overtime Scoring 1/2nd 1/1st
UNH HOCKEY ON TELEVISION: UNH will have nine games broadcast live on TV in 2010-11. NESN will air five games, three will air on CBS College Sports, while one will air locally on ONN (Ohio).
DATE GAME Channel RES.
Oct. 8 at Miami CBS-College Sports L, 3-6
Oct. 9 at Miami ONN (OHIO) W, 6-3
Nov. 19 Boston U. NESN W, 5-2
Dec. 10 at Maine CBS-College Sports W, 4-3 OT
Jan. 22 Boston U. NESN
Feb. 4 Maine NESN
Feb. 5 Maine NESN
Feb. 18 at Vermont CBS-College Sports
March 4 at Boston College NESN
ALL IN THE FAMILY: UNH junior defenseman Blake Kessel is the younger brother of Toronto Maple Leafs forward Phil Kessel, while sophomore forward Scott Pavelski is the younger brother of Joe Pavelski of the San Jose Sharks.
WILDCATS PICKED THIRD IN HOCKEY EAST PRESEASON POLL:
Rk. Team (FPV) Pts.
1. Boston College (9) 90
2. Maine (1) 80
3. New Hampshire 76
4. Boston University 59
5. Northeastern 54
6. Vermont 53
7. Merrimack 48
8. UMass-Lowell 33
9. Massachusetts 26
10. Providence 21
THE DICK UMILE ERA: Dick Umile, a six-time Hockey East Coach of the Year, enters his 21st season as the head coach of the UNH Wildcats. He passed both Jerry York and Jack Parker in becoming the first coach in league history to six coach of the year honors. After signing a long-term contract in 2008, Umile will conclude his coaching career at his alma mater.
During his time spent at UNH, Umile has molded UNH hockey into one of the top programs in all of Division I hockey, guiding the Wildcats to four Frozen Four appearances, 16 NCAA tournament appearances and 20 Hockey East championship tournament showings in his 20-year career in Durham.
In addition, Umile has posted 17 20-victory campaigns over the span of 20 seasons. Umile is now the winningest coach in the history of UNH hockey with 462 career victories. He surpassed legendary coach Charlie Holt on Feb. 16, 2005 in a 6-1 victory at Merrimack at Thom Lawler Arena in North Andover, Mass. Umile ranks fifth among active NCAA coaches with a .645 winning percentage and on the active victories list his 462 victories ranks seventh among NCAA coaches. He has been named Coach of the Year a total of 11 times in his career, including New England honors four times and Hockey East Coach of the Year six times Last year, Umile guided the Wildcats, who were picked fourth in the Hockey East Preseason Poll, to their eighth regular season championship including the third in the last four years. The Wildcats led the Hockey East standings for an eye-popping 16-straight weeks, taking over the league lead Nov. 23, 2009 and never relinquishing that position. UNH went unbeaten at home in Hockey East play for the first time since the 1999-00 season and won the regular season series with six of nine league foes. Umile helped guide a team that lost 10 players, including Hockey East All Star and leading scorer James van Riemsdyk, from the 2008-09 squad to its 22nd straight trip to the Hockey East playoffs and home-ice advantage in the quarterfinals for a league-best 14th-straight season. After going just 2-6-2 over its first 10 games, Umile's Wildcats responded with a 10-1-2 mark over the next 13 games, including a 12-game unbeaten streak in Hockey East play. Umile's run in the regular season was capped by a dramatic 3-3 come-from-behind deadlock with Boston College that clinched the league's crown in front of the home fans on Senior Day at the Whittemore Center. The 'Cats earned an at-large bid in the NCAA tournament for the ninth-straight season and captured a convincing 6-2 win over favored Cornell in the opening round, advancing to the regional final for the second-straight season.
'CATS SELECTED IN THE NHL DRAFT: Four current UNH players have been selected in the National Hockey League draft...Greg Burke (Washington), Phil DeSimone (Washington), Blake Kessel (N.Y. Islanders) and Eric Knodel (Toronto) have all been taken.
UNH HOCKEY ON THE RADIO: In the summer of 1999, the University of New Hampshire Athletic Department formed the "UNH Sports Network" — the largest network ever to broadcast UNH sporting events. Wildcats Sports Properties has added WGIN-AM 930 (Rochester) and WQSO-FM 96.7 (Portsmouth) as affiliate stations on the Wildcat Sports Network, joining flagship WGIR-AM 610 (Manchester), which was added in 2008. All three stations are part of the Clear Channel family. These three aforementioned stations -- along with WUVR-AM 1490 (Lebanon), WNTK-FM 99.7 (New London), WASR-AM 1420 (Wolfeboro) and WCNL-AM 1010 (Newport) -- will carry the following: all UNH football & men's hockey broadcasts and weekly coaches' shows, a select number of men's basketball, women's basketball and women's hockey broadcasts. Dan Parkhurst will be handling the play-by-play for the fourth-straight season, while Pete Webster will once again be doing the color commentating. Webster has been announcing Wildcat hockey since the 1993-94 season.ouncing Wildcat hockey for 16 years since the 1993-94 season.
LISTEN LIVE ON THE INTERNET: UNHWildcats.com via Stretch Internet Broadcast will carry all of the UNH men's ice hockey action again this season. If you can not attend Wildcat hockey, you can still tune into the game from anywhere you can gain access to the internet. Fans can get to the UNH men's ice hockey broadcast site by going to the men's hockey schedule page at www.unhwildcats.com.
THE DICK UMILE SHOW ON RADIO: The Coach's Show featuring UNH men's hockey head coach Dick Umile and hosted by Mike Murphy begins its 11th season in 2010-11. The Coach's Show is broadcast Mondays beginning in January (7 p.m. to 8 p.m.) on the Wildcat Sports Network from various locations around the seacoast and features Coach Umile, as well as a student-athlete from the men's ice hockey team. In front of a live audience, Murphy and his guests talk about the latest news and notes regarding UNH hockey.
GRANITE STATE CONNECTION: The Wildcat hockey team features a pair of players from New Hampshire with Greg Burke (Lee) and Paul Thompson (Derry) all hailing from the Granite State.
WILDCAT AWARDS: Here is a list of awards that Wildcat players have won to date this season:
Player Award Date
Blake Kessel INCH Preseason All-America First Team 10/7
Blake Kessel InsideHockey.com's Hobey Watch 10/7
Matt DiGirolamo HE Defensive Player of the Week 10/18
UNH Wildcats HE Team of the Week 11/8
Matt DiGirolamo HE Player of the Week 11/8
Matt DiGirolamo INCH National Player of the Week 11/8
Paul Thompson HE co-Player of the Week 11/22
Paul Thompson HE Player of the Month (November) 12/1
Mike Sislo HE co-Player of the Week 12/6
Matt DiGirolamo HE Defensive Player of the Week 12/6
Jeff Silengo HE Rookie of the Week 12/13
UNH Wildcats HE Team of the Week 12/13
Matt DiGirolamo HE Goalie of the Month (December) 1/4
WATCH ALL THE ACTION WITH THE UNHWILDCATS.TV: UNH and Pack Network have once again partnered to provide online video streaming of UNH's seven ticketed sports for the upcoming 2010-11 season with UNHwildcats.TV.
Wildcat fans are encouraged to buy the "Wildcat All-Access Pass" which is an annual subscription for $89.95 that provides all the live coverage of UNH home athletic events. Fans can also purchase home events on a per game basis of $7.95.
