As the University of Maine men’s hockey team progresses toward becoming an NCAA championship contender, it continues to check off boxes showing its improvement.
Last season, it reached the Hockey East semifinals and NCAA Tournament for the first time since the 2011-12 season and posted the best record (23-12-2) since the 2006-07 team went 28-12-2.
Friday night’s 4-1 win over Northeastern was UMaine’s fourth straight to start the season and that is the best start by a UMaine team since that ‘06-07 team won seven in a row to open its campaign.
It was also the Black Bears’ first win at Matthews Arena in Boston since Feb. 25, 2012.
That snapped a 16-game winless streak (0-14-2) and 14-game losing streak at the soon-to-be demolished arena, which was first known as the Boston Arena.
UMaine’s winning skein was snapped on Saturday night but the Black Bears fought back from a 2-0 deficit to earn a 2-2 overtime tie against the Huskies and then won the shootout 2-0 to pick up the extra point for the Hockey East standings.
UMaine trailed 2-0 after two periods.
UMaine went just 1-9 when trailing after two periods last season.
Winning on the road in hockey isn’t easy.
The home team gets the last line change and can gain favorable matchups.
But an elite program has to find ways to win away from home.
The four teams who reached the Frozen Four last season all had winning records on the road.
Champion Denver was 12-6, runnerup Boston College was 12-2-1, Boston University was 10-4-2 and Michigan was 9-7-1.
One of Boston College’s road losses and its only tie were at UMaine’s Alfond Arena.
The Black Bears were a respectable 8-8 on the road a year ago which was their best mark since the 2017-18 team went 9-8-1.
In between the 2017-18 team and last year’s squad, UMaine’s road record was a dismal 18-52-12.
UMaine fourth-year head coach Ben Barr has said this is his deepest UMaine team and depth plays an especially important role on the road.
As a coach, you need to be able to trust your fourth line and third defense tandem when they are up against the home team’s top line and No. 1 defense tandem because that is a matchup the home coach can create.
On Saturday night it was UMaine’s freshman fourth line center, Oskar Komarov, who made the play that set up Sully Scholle’s tying goal midway through the third period.
In years past, in that situation with UMaine trailing 2-1 in the third period, the fourth line was unlikely to see the ice for more than one or two shifts in the period.
If that.
Just five games into the season, UMaine has received goals from 10 different players and at least a point, goal or assist, from 15 players including five defensemen.
Four of the five transfers have scored at least a goal and the fifth transfer, defenseman Frank Djurasevic (Merrimack), already has four assists. Taylor Makar (UMass) has four goals and three assists and is tied for the team lead in goals and tied for second in points.
Charlie Russell (Quinnipiac) has a goal and four assists; Ross Mitton (Colgate) has a goal and three assists and Owen Fowler (UMass Lowell) has a goal.
It is important to note that Josh Nadeau, who scored 18 goals a year ago and was a preseason All-Hockey East selection, and Lynden Breen, who has scored 30 goals over the two previous seasons, have yet to put the puck in the net.
Nadeau and Breen are going to break out at some point. They are too good to stay in a prolonged slump.
And they are helping the team in other ways.
Both are quality special teams players and tenacious on the puck.
Nadeau is tied for second on the team in blocked shots with five.
The Northeastern weekend was also important for sophomore goalie Albin Boija.
After having a rare off-night in a 6-5 overtime win over Quinnipiac in which he allowed five goals on 27 shots, he bounced back in impressive fashion by stopping 55 of 58 shots against the Huskies including five saves in the five-minute, three-on-three overtime in which UMaine was outshot 5-1.
The Black Bears, ranked sixth in both national polls last week, will entertain Merrimack (1-3-1 overall, 0-1-1 in Hockey East, at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.
Following the Merrimack series, UMaine has two-game series at No. 2 Boston College and at home with No. 3 Boston University up next but the Black Bears can ill afford to look past the hard-working Warriors this weekend.
There are no easy wins in Hockey East.
