Despite its current five-game unbeaten streak (4-0-1) and four-game winning streak, the University of Maine’s hockey team will be seeded either fifth or sixth for the Hockey East playoffs depending on its season finale at Vermont on Saturday and results from the other four Hockey East games.
The top five teams earn a first-round bye into the quarterfinals and the other six will play a preliminary round game next Wednesday. The sixth seed will host the 11th seed, the seventh seed will entertain the 10th seed and the No. 8 team will await a visit from the ninth seed.
Vermont is locked into last place and UMaine would host the Catamounts next Wednesday if it winds up sixth.
UMaine is currently fifth and one point ahead of sixth-place Boston University, which concludes its regular season at UMass Lowell on Saturday evening. UMass Lowell will be the ninth or 10th seed.
Teams receive three points for a regulation win; two for a win in the five-minute, three-on-three overtime or the shootout and one for an overtime or shootout loss.
If UMaine finishes fifth, it will wind up visiting UConn, UMass or Boston College.
UMaine owns the tiebreaker vs. Boston University because it won both regular season games.
So if UMaine beats Vermont in any manner (regulation, overtime, shootout) or if BU loses to UMass Lowell in any manner, the Black Bears will be the fifth seed.
However, if BU earns two more points than UMaine, it would leapfrog UMaine into fifth place. Somewhat ironically, that is the only scenario where UMaine would get to host a home playoff game. But it would also mean that they would have to play an extra postseason game as they try to defend their Hockey East tournament title.
UMaine is three points behind fourth-place Boston College and could finish tied with the Eagles if it beats Vermont in regulation and Boston College loses in regulation to visiting Northeastern.
But Brian Smith, associate commissioner of Hockey East, explained that BC would win the tiebreaker based on the third criteria which is wins in regulation.
BC has 12 and UMaine has 9.
The first tie-breaker is head-to-head, and UMaine and BC split regular season games in Massachusetts in November.
Smith said the second tie-breaker is winning percentage in games decided in regulation, and they were also tied.
To earn the coveted fourth seed, the Black Bears needed help from other teams and they didn’t receive any.
UMass beat current second seed UConn 5-1 and then earned a shootout victory over UConn last weekend before Boston College 2-1 on Thursday night.
And BU has a current three-game winning streak with a 5-3 victory over New Hampshire and a sweep of Boston College (3-1, 5-1).
Providence College has captured its first outright Hockey East regular season championship. It has 51 points.
UConn has 41 points, UMass has 40, BC has 39, UMaine has 36 and BU has 35.
In addition to splitting its two games at BC, losing 7-3 and winning 3-0, UMaine also split at UMass with a 6-2 victory and 4-0 loss. UMaine played UConn twice in Orono, losing 2-0 and then dropping the second game in a shootout after a 3-3 tie.
UMaine split a home series with Vermont, winning 7-0 and losing 2-1.
