ORONO, Maine – The University of Maine women's ice hockey team will host Merrimack College in the opening round of the Hockey East playoffs on Wednesday, February 28th at Alfond Arena. Puck drop is set for 6 p.m. Maine swept College of the Holy Cross over the weekend to earn the No. 8 seed, and Merrimack swept Providence College to earn the No. 9 seed.
5 things you should know:
- In its third year, Hockey East's postseason sees all 10 programs compete in a single-elimination format, with all games played in the higher-seeded arena on campus. In the opening game on Wednesday, February 28th, No. 7 seeds (BU) and No. 8 seeds (Maine State) will take on No. 10 seeds (Holy Cross) and No. 9 seeds (Merrimack), respectively, with the top six seeds advancing to the quarter-finals with byes. advance to the finals. After reseeding, the top two seeds will play the winner of the opening round, the third seed will play the sixth seed, and the fourth seed will play the fifth seed against the fifth seed.
- All Hockey East playoff games are ticketed events. General admission ticket prices are set by the conference and are $10 for adults and $5 for youth, seniors, and groups. Admission is free for main students. Click here for tickets.
- The Hockey East playoffs will be streamed on ESPN+.
- Black Bears Notables:
- Ida Kuopara, who was recently named Hockey East Player of the Week, had a weekend where she had two goals and two assists for four points in Maine's victory over Holy Cross. Kuopala leads the conference in total points (38) and goals (20) this season. She ranks eighth nationally in scoring this season.
- Sam Morrison was named Hockey East's Rookie of the Year after scoring three goals over the weekend, including both game-winning goals and an assist. Morrison is currently on a three-game winning streak.
- Goaltender Jorden Mattison played in both games of the weekend sweep, saving a total of 61 shots. Mattison has played between the pipes for the Black Bears in the last three games, winning three of them.
- Mila Cereziri had one goal and two assists over the weekend and is currently on a three-game winning streak.
- On special teams, his main power play success rate is 77.3% and his penalty kill success rate is 21.1%.
- In the last five seasons of the league playoffs, Maine has advanced to the semifinals three times.
- This will be the first opening game appearance for eighth-seeded Maine (HE 15-17-2/HE 11-14-2).
Five. Warriors scouts:
- The Warriors are 2-0-1 against the Black Bears this season.
- Merrimack has lost its last four games by just two points.
- The team is led by Celine Tedenby who has 7 goals and 14 assists this season for a total of 21 points.
- The expected goaltender is Kari Hogarth, who has started 33 of the Warriors' 34 games this season. This will be Cali's first start in the playoffs.
- The overall record in the series is 13 wins, 11 losses, and 2 draws, giving the main advantage.
-Umain-
