Men’s Hockey Falls to #17 UMass, 4-2

Saturday, March 7

Durham, N.H.

7 PM

University of New Hampshire

14-19-1, 8-15-1

UMass

21-12-1, 14-9-1

Massachusetts

New Hampshire

Kristaps Skrastins

Photo by: Alex Miller

3/7/2026 10:08:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey

Box Score

Wildcats to play Northeastern in Hockey East Opening Round

DURHAM, N.H. – Junior forward Marty Lavins (Riga, Latvia) and senior forward Kristaps Skrastins (Grobina, Latvia) each scored a goal for the Wildcats, but the University of New Hampshire men's hockey team fell to No. 17 UMass, 4-2, on Saturday evening at the Whittemore Center at Key Auto Group Complex in the regular season finale for both teams. The Minutemen win the regular season series, 2-1-0.

The Wildcats fall to 14-19-1 (8-15-1 Hockey East), while the Minutemen advance to 21-12-1 (14-9-1 Hockey East).

With tonight's results, the Wildcats will be the No. 10 seed in the Hockey East Playoffs and will play No. 7 seed Northeastern in the Opening Round on Wednesday, March 11, at Conte Forum on the campus of Boston College.

Captain Morgan Winters (Osprey, Fla.), alternate captain Cy LeClerc (Brentwood, N.H.), Skrastins (Grobina, Latvia), Kyle Chauvette (Goffstown, N.H.) and Jared Whale (Calgary, Alberta) were honored before the game on Senior Night for their dedication to the program.

Score: #17 UMass 4, UNH 2
Records: UNH (14-19-1, 8-15-1 Hockey East); UMass (21-12-1, 14-9-1 Hockey East)
Location: Durham, N.H. (Whittemore Center at Key Auto Group Complex)
Date: Saturday, March 7, 2026
Attendance: 6,227

BOXSCORE

HOW IT HAPPENED:

UMass struck first at 5:14 of the first period with a shorthanded goal when Larry Keenan carried the puck out of the UMass defensive zone scoring stick side.
The Wildcats evened the score at 9:54 of the first with a power play goal when freshman forward Felix Gagnon (Jonquiere, Quebec) sent a pass from the right post to Lavins who finished into an open net from the crease. Freshman defenseman Conner de Haro (Raleigh, N.C.) also posted an assist.
The Minutemen regained the lead with a power play goal at 19:04 of the first period, as Daniel Jencko buried a one-timer from the right face-off dot.
The Wildcats tied the game at 4:52 of the third period when Skrastins fired a shot off the face-off into the net. Sophomore forward Cam MacDonald recorded an assist on the play.
UMass made it 3-2 at 14:42 of the third period when Matthew Wilde scored on a rebound in the crease.
With 50 seconds remaining Jack Galanek scored an empty net goal for the 4-2 final.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

UNH outshot UMass, 28-23.
UNH went 1-4 on the power play, while UMass went 1-3.
Chauvette posted 19 saves for the Wildcats, while Micheal Hrabal posted 26 saves for the Minutemen.