The Black Bears will play Cornell University at 5:30 a.m. Thursday in Springfield, Mass., the team's first NCAA game in 12 seasons.
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — The University of Maine men's hockey team practiced Wednesday in Springfield, Mass., ahead of its game against No. 12 Cornell University in the NCAA Tournament.
The game will be played at MassMutual Center on Thursday at 5:30 p.m., following the region opener between No. 3 Denver and Mass. Amherst.
Maine enters the tournament as the No. 6 overall seed after its best season in more than a decade.
Co-captains Linden Breen and David Breazeale have always had a “growth mindset” since head coach Ben Barr came to Orono three years ago, and have worked in the offseason to bring the program to national attention. He said he has been working hard.
“We have the whole community supporting us. It's really special to be here representing our school and the entire state. I'm looking forward to what we can do in the tournament,” Breazeal said. He spoke before the NCAA game. Press conference.
“It's special. We've been through a lot since I first came here as a freshman,” Breen added.
After Breen's freshman season, which was shortened due to COVID-19 concerns, then-head coach Red Gendron suddenly passed away. Current head coach Ben Barr came to Orono a month later, and Main went 7-22-4 in his first season on the bench.
This season, the Black Bears had a record of 23-11-2 and were consistently ranked among the top 10 teams in the country. As the No. 3 seed in the conference playoffs, the University of Maine advanced to the semifinal round of the Hockey East tournament for the first time since the 2011-12 season.
“I'm really excited for the players, the staff and the community because it means a lot to the entire state. And it's crazy to think it's been 12 years, but the team got it this year and it's a huge accomplishment.” “With all the support we're receiving, part of that team is our entire community as well, so we're excited to really be here for the entire state of Maine.” Barr said Wednesday.
With multiple sold-out games at Alfond Arena this season, the Black Bear community is on full display at Orono, with loyal fans expected to be in attendance in droves on Thursday. Ru.
“You know, we're lucky, every time we play on the road, we have good fans, which shows how important we are.” [the fans] and how important they are to us. It was huge to be able to build these relationships, and we used that momentum to our advantage,” Breen said.
Barr and his two captains spoke highly of their opponents, who just won the ECAC Conference Tournament last weekend. They say Cornell is a big, strong team that forces Maine to win one-on-one battles for the puck and “causes havoc” in the corners and in front of the net.
Meanwhile, Maine just completed a grueling schedule in the Hockey East. The conference featured some of the best teams in the country, including No. 1 Boston University, No. 2 Boston University, and the University of Massachusetts.
“I do not think so [Cornell has] I think it's going to be a big challenge for them because we really played a team the way we played, and if we play our game we'll definitely like the way things are going,” Breen said Wednesday. Ta.
Despite being the higher seed in this matchup, the Black Bears said they will go into Thursday's game feeling like underdogs. Maine was projected to finish ninth in Hockey East, according to preseason conference polls.
NEWS CENTER Maine will have live coverage of the Maine vs. Cornell game Thursday night.
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