Saturday at 7 p.m. Whittemore Center in Durham, N.H. UNH is 1-2; Colorado College is 1-3
The Wildcats look much better going into this weekend at the Whittemore Center than they did when they left.
After a weekend split vs. St. Lawrence and Clarkson, UNH hopes to develop a winning streak, starting with Colorado College this Saturday night.
The Tigers stand at 1-3 overall, with all games thus far being against Hockey East opponents such as UMass Lowell and UMass Amherst. They take on No. 10 Boston College on Friday night before meeting the Wildcats the following night.
Colorado College is not the most competitive opponent the schedule has to offer for UNH. Head coach Dick Umile has an 11-1-1 record vs. the Tigers, and has not lost a matchup to them since 1997, but it is certainly not one to look past. A young team that in every game this season has been down 2-0 to start the game, needs to prove that last game’s 5-3 victory over Clarkson was not a fluke. It starts with continuing the scoring trend.
Patrick Grasso has stepped into a scoring role on the third line with fellow freshmen Brendan van Riemsdyk and Liam Blackburn. The third line will be a huge game-changer; if they can continue producing it will add a solid compliment to Tyler Kelleher and Ara Nazarain on the first line.
The Tigers have been in some high-scoring affairs this season, including a 8-5 loss to the Riverhawks and a 7-4 win over the Minutemen, totaling 12 goals thus far. The Wildcats will face a number of solid scoring threats, including Branden Makara. Makara has three points including two goals and an assist in four games this season. Along with Makara, Alex Berardinelli and Bryce Van Horn lead the charge at three points overall as well.
With Danny Tirone and Adam Clark still battling for a starting position, it’s unsure who will get the call on Saturday night. But the fact still remains, the netminding has to be stout, and a matchup vs. the Tigers, a game that historically favors the Wildcats, will provide a great opportunity to establish a dominant netminding presence heading into the Hockey East slate next weekend.
For more information, visit unhwildcats.com.
