Maine Comes to Town for Two Games; Alumni Day is Jan. 21

Maine (8-14-1, 4-10-1 WHEA) at UNH (9-13-1, 7-7-1 WHEA)
Friday, Jan. 20 • 7 pm • Whittemore Center • Durham, N.H.
Video • Stats • Tickets

Maine (8-14-1, 4-10-1 WHEA) at UNH (9-13-1, 7-7-1 WHEA)
Saturday, Jan. 21 • 4 pm • Whittemore Center • Durham, N.H.
Video • Audio • Stats • Tickets

Alumni Day

The UNH women's hockey program will hold its annual Alumni Day on Saturday, Jan. 21, when the Wildcats battle rival University of Maine at the Whittemore Center.
The day will feature a pre-game family skate (1:30 p.m.) and reception (2:30 p.m.) prior to the four o'clock faceoff against Maine.
This season's event will pay special recognition to the trailblazers of the program who helped make women's hockey a reality at UNH back in the 1970s.

Home Sweet Home

Including this weekend's two games against Maine, there are just four home games remaining on UNH's regular-season schedule.
The Wildcats also play host to Northeastern University on Jan. 28 (2 p.m.) in a game that is part of the Hockey East Skating Strides Against Breast Cancer initiative.
Senior Night is Feb. 10 (7 p.m.) against Boston University.

Buy Tickets

UNH women's ice hockey single-game tickets are on sale now online at www.unhwildcats.com, by calling (603) 862-4000 or in person at the Whittemore Center box office.

The Series : UNH vs. Maine

UNH has a 39-11-6 lifetime record, including a 2-2 tie at Norway Savings Bank Arena (Auburn, Maine) on Nov. 26, against Maine.
UNH has a 3-1-1 edge the past five meetings including a current three-game unbeaten streak (2-0-1).
The Wildcats have a 19-5-3 home record vs. the Black Bears, who prevailed 4-0 at the Whittemore Center in last season's only matchup in Durham (Oct. 2, 2015). Maine is 2-1-0 the past three meetings at the Whitt; both wins were by shutout.
Most recent matchup: 2-2 tie (Nov. 26, 2016) Box Score • Recap

The State of New Hampshire

UNH enters the weekend with a 9-13-1 overall record that includes 5-7-0 at home and 7-7-1 in Hockey East (4-4-0 in league home games).
New Hampshire played three games in five days Jan. 6-10 but has not played since then.
The Wildcats are coming off a 2-1 loss at Dartmouth College back on Jan. 10; the 'Cats recorded a 32-25 shot advantage, including 15-10 in the third period.
New Hampshire has lost two straight (one goal in the last 120:00) and is 1-2-0 in January.
UNH is 3-2-0 the past five games and 6-3-1 the last 10.
New Hampshire is 4-2 in games decided by one goal and that includes 2-1 in overtime.
New Hampshire is averaging 2.26 goals and 26.4 shots per game while yielding 3.09 goals and 31.0 shots per game. On special teams, the 'Cats are 11-for-91 (12.1%) on the power play and 90 of 105 (85.7%) on the penalty kill.
UNH has been shut out twice this season. The last time the 'Cats blanked an opponent was Jan. 24, 2016 (3-0 at Maine).
The Wildcats have allowed more than one goal in 22 of 23 games this season.

'Cat Nips

Freshman forward Meghara McManus (Milton, Mass.) scored UNH's only goal in the intrastate matchup at Dartmouth on Jan. 10; McManus ranks second on the team in goals (seven) and points (14).
Freshman defenseman Tori Howran (Bancroft, Ontario) sprung McManus on the breakaway to record her fourth assist of the season.
Sophomore goaltender Kyra Smith (Littleton, Colo.), in her first appearance since Nov. 19, stopped 23 of 25 shots (.920 save percentage) at Dartmouth; she held the Big Green scoreless the last two periods.
Sophomore Hilary Cashin (Fredericton, New Brunswick) had started seven consecutive games in goal prior to Jan. 10; she went 5-1-1 with a 2.11 GAA and .916 save percentage spanning Nov. 20 to Jan. 7.

Inside the Unbeaten Streak

The six-game unbeaten streak (5-0-1), which began with a 2-1 win at home vs. Providence College (Nov. 20), was UNH's longest such streak since the 2010-11 season, when the Wildcats won seven straight.
Hilary Cashin went 5-0-1 with a 1.96 GAA and .919 save percentage.
Nicole Dunbar (Coto de Caza, Calif.) was UNH's leader in both goals (four) and points (six).
Jonna Curtis (3g, 3a) and Amy Schlagel (2g, 4a) also tallied six points.
UNH outscored the opposition 21-12, including 7-3 in the first period, with a 164-148 shot advantage during the unbeaten streak.

League Leaders

Jonna Curtis is tied for ninth in goals (12). She is tied for fifth in power-play points (eight) and tied for third in shots (101).
Curtis and Amy Schlagel (Blaine, Minn.) are tied for ninth in game-winning goals with two.
Julia Fedeski (Algonquin Highlands, Ontario) is tied for third in power-play goals (four).
Meghara McManus (7g, 7a) is tied for eighth in freshman scoring and Carlee Turner (2g, 11a) is tied for 10^th in that stat.
Sophomore defenseman Marie-Jo Pelletier (Dalhousie, New Brunswick) ranks sixth in blocked shots (45).

Conference Call

Jonna Curtis has tallied 14 points (9g, 5a) in 15 Hockey East games.
Meghara McManus ranks second on the team in both goals (six) and points (nine). Carlee Turner also has nine points on a goal and team-high eight assists.
Hilary Cashin has a 6-2-1 league record with a 2.57 GAA and .900 save percentage.

Cashin In Her Chance To Start

Sophomore goaltenders Hilary Cashin and Kyra Smith alternated starts through the first half of the season, but then Cashin started seven consecutive games spanning Nov. 20 to Jan. 7. The streak ended in UNH's most recent game, when Smith was the starter Jan. 10 at Dartmouth College, which marked the Wildcats' third game in five days.
Cashin, who saw limited action in three games last season, has a 2.58 GAA and .908 save percentage with an 8-5-1 record; Cashin is 6-2-1 in Hockey East with a 2.57 GAA and .900 save percentage.
In addition to her career-high 41 saves Oct. 23 vs. Clarkson, Cashin made 32 saves (on 35 shots) in her first game of the season, a 3-1 loss at eighth-ranked Colgate (Oct. 2). Cashin recorded her second 40+ save effort in the 3-2 overtime win vs. Harvard on Nov. 16.
Cashin stopped 21 shots vs. Merrimack to earn her first career win Oct. 15.
Smith made 32 or more saves each of her first five games, and that included 38 saves in the season-opening 4-2 loss at No 8 Colgate and 36 saves at No. 9 Boston University.
Smith made a personal-best 39 saves Nov. 19 at PC (6-3 loss) with 15 saves in the first period, 14 in the second and 10 in the third.
In nine games, Smith has a 3.59 GAA and .899 save percentage with a 1-8-0 record; she is 1-5-0 in Hockey East with a 4.05 GAA and .888 save percentage.

Block That Shot

Sophomore Marie-Jo Pelletier is the team leader in blocked shots with 45. She is followed by junior Julia Fedeski (38) and sophomore Jenna Rheault (Deering, N.H.; 37).

Strong Starts

UNH has outscored the opposition 19-15 in the first period despite facing its largest shot deficit (-46; 223-187) of any period. The Wildcats have been outscored 32-13 in the final frame.

First Blood

New Hampshire has a 5-4-0 record when scoring the game's first goal, and the 'Cats are 4-9-2 in the 14 games they have fallen behind 1-0; during the six-game unbeaten streak, UNH went 2-0-1 after surrendering the first goal.

Scouting the Black Bears

The University of Maine (Orono, Maine) enters the weekend with an 8-14-1 overall record that includes 4-10-1 in Hockey East.
Maine has an 8-5-1 record in home games this season but is winless (0-9-0) in nine road games – that includes 0-7-0 in Hockey East road games.
Dating back to last season, Maine has lost 14 consecutive road games since a 3-1 win at Providence College on Jan. 30, 2016.
All four Hockey East wins have been against top-level competition. The Black Bears defeated Boston College (3-2; Oct. 15), Boston University (4-1; Nov. 12) and a two-game sweep of Northeastern University last weekend (3-1 and 6-3). In the most recent RPI, BC is No. 6, BU is 13^th and NU is 14^th.
In last Saturday's 6-3 triumph, the six goals were scored by six different players. Alyson Matteau led the way with four points (1g, 3a).
Freshman forward Tereza Vanisova is Maine's leader in goals (15), power-play goals (three), assists (11), points (26) and shots (73).
Junior forward Brooke Stacey leads the team in plus/minus (+13) and ranks second in both goals (nine) and points (19).
Freshman Carly Jackson, who has started 19 of 23 games, has a 2.64 GAA and .917 save percentage with a 6-11-1 record.
Maine averages 2.17 goals and 25.0 shots per game while allowing 2.87 goals and 31.0 shots per game. On special teams, the Black Bears are 9 of 78 (11.5%) on the power play and 82-for-105 (78.1%) on the penalty kill.

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Hilary Cashin

Jonna Curtis

Nicole Dunbar

Julia Fedeski

Tori Howran

Meghara McManus

Marie-Jo Pelletier

Jenna Rheault

Amy Schlagel

Kyra Smith

Carlee Turner

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