Showdown between recent national champions
The University of Massachusetts spent the final weeks of the season in the bubble, trying to make the NCAA Tournament. Their playoff fate was not decided until Denver defeated Omaha in the NCHC Championship, giving the University of Massachusetts the final playoff spot. This will be the Minutemen's fourth appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 2018.
In a twist of fate, the same Denver team that pushed the University of Massachusetts into the tournament will also be the Minutemen's first-round opponent. Despite the geographical differences, the two teams have been close opponents for many years. UMass fans will remember his 4-3 OT win against the Pioneers in the 2019 Frozen Four.
The Pioneers are no strangers to the NCAA Tournament, having appeared in 15 of the past 16 tournaments and won two national titles during that time. Standing in the way of Denver's third national title will be a nearly 2,000-mile journey to Springfield's MassMutual Center.
Denver had an elite offense and finished the season with a record of 28-9-3. Denver boasts the nation's top offense with his 4.87 goals per game. Denver has 11 double-digit scorers with a total of 194 goals this season.
Leading this elite group is junior forward Jack Devine, a top prospect with the Florida Panthers. Devine, a native of Glencoe, Illinois, had 27 goals and 28 assists this season. Devine's 55 points ranked him sixth in the nation and solidified his status as a finalist for the Hobey Baker Trophy.
Another star of the loaded Pioneers lineup is junior forward and assistant captain Massimo Rizzo. Rizzo has been out since February 3, but is likely to play this week. He scored 44 points, including 34 helpers, in just 28 games this season.
The Bueum brothers on defense also play an important role for the Pioneers. Freshman Jeev Bouium ranks second on the team with 48 points, leading all Pioneers defensemen. He played a key role in last weekend's NCHC semifinal against St. Cloud State, scoring the winning goal.
His older brother, Shai, is one of the best defensemen on the team and was also a member of the 2022 National Championship team. He has seven goals and 27 assists this season, and his 41 blocks are second on the team.
Standing in the way of the Minutemen Pioneers' powerful attack is Hockey East second-team goaltender Michael Hrabal. Hrabal, a freshman from the Czech Republic, has been dominant since taking over as the Minutemen's starting goalie in the second week of the season.
Hrabal finished his freshman season with a 16-10-1 record and a .912 save percentage. Unfortunately for Hrabal and the Minutemen, they are coming off their worst loss of the season, with Hrabal stopping just 28 of 36 shots in an 8-1 loss to Boston College.
Hrabal has been an integral part of the Minutemen's season, allowing three or more goals in nine of his last 14 starts.
Although Massachusetts doesn't have the top-end scorers of the Pioneers, the Minutemen play intense hockey along the boards for their size, and most of their skaters can play on both ends of the ice as well. For the Minutemen, no one exemplifies this more than defenseman and captain Ryan Ufko.
This season, Ufko has been elite on both ends of the ice for the University of Massachusetts. Ufko scored 26 points on the season, including 10 goals, three of which were the winning goals in overtime. Ufko continued to be a mainstay on special teams this season, blocking 50 shots, tied for second place.
Overall, this UMass team is young, but veterans like Ufko have NCAA Tournament experience that will help prepare young freshmen like forwards Jack Moussa and Aidar Sniev for the NCAA Tournament.
One area UMass needs to improve heading into the tournament is special teams. The Minutemen have his 34th power play unit and his 51st penalty kill unit. Meanwhile, Denver ranks 14th on the power play but only 49th on the penalty kill. For the Minutemen to win, they will need to improve their penalty kill.
A showdown between elite goaltending and intense offense.
The second Springfield District game will see Cornell Big Red take on the Maine Black Bears.
Cornell also spent most of the season looking inside, but after defeating Dartmouth on Friday night and St. Lawrence the next day, the Big Red won the ECAC Tournament and earned a spot in the tournament. obtained the right. Cornell University will return to the tournament for the first time since 2019.
The Big Red are also led by star goaltender Ian Shane. A native of California, Shane spent three seasons in Ithaca. He won the Ken Dryden Goaltender of the Year Award as the best goaltender in the ECAC, and his stats back it up.
He leads the nation with a 1.704 GAA, and his 54 goals allowed in a season are the lowest by a goaltender with more than 1,800 minutes on ice. He also owns a .774 winning percentage, second in the nation behind BC's Jacob Fowler.
Like Massachusetts, Cornell doesn't have a big scoring threat, but does have a balanced attack led by forwards Gabriel Seager, Dalton Bancroft, and Ryan Walsh. Seager led the team with 14 points and 42 points, respectively. Bancroft finished second on the team with 31 points with 12 goals and 19 assists. Walsh also has 12 goals and has earned one point with five of his last eight goals.
Despite lacking an elite scorer, the Big Red ranks 12th in the country offensively, scoring 3.36 goals per game.
Heading into the tournament, Cornell ranks eighth in the nation in faceoff percentage, but struggles on special teams, along with Massachusetts and Denver. Cornell's power play ranks 41st in the nation and its penalty kill ranks 36th.
On the other side of the bench, the Maine Black Bears are making their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2012 and head coach Ben Bahr's first since his third season. The University of Maine finished third in the Hockey East last season, falling 4-1 against Boston College in the conference quarterfinals.
The Black Bears have no shortage of scoring this season, ranking 15th in the nation with 3.28 goals per game. The Black Bears' turnaround this season has been fueled by the Nadeau brothers, two freshman forwards from New Brunswick.
Bradley Nadeau led the team with 46 points, including 19 goals. He also led the team with 108 shots on the season, but his younger brother Josh wasn't far behind. Josh Nadeau totaled 18 goals and 45 points on the season. He was also a star on the power play, scoring eight goals on the man advantage.
Behind them is a group of talented skaters who have spent several seasons in Orono. One of the most important people is captain Linden Breen. He has played in 36 games this season and has nine goals and 21 shots.
Back at the blue line, Maine's other captain, David Breazeale, is the leader. He had nine points and a team-leading 42 blocks this season.
The Black Bears have also struggled to put together consistent performances on special teams. They rank 29th nationally on the penalty kill and 23rd on the power play.
Maine also struggled with consistent play from its goaltender until it acquired freshman Alvin Boyha from Sweden. The Swede was an occasional starter, but he scored after a shutout win on the road against Massachusetts on February 3. Since then, he has a 7-5 record, including a career-high 34 saves against UMass on March 9th.
The game begins Thursday at 2 p.m., with the University of Massachusetts facing Denver.Maine and Cornell will follow shortly thereafter at 5:30 p.m.
The winners of both matchups will then meet on Saturday at 4 p.m., with the winner traveling to St. Paul, Minnesota for the Frozen Four.
