Weekly Release
This Week: The UNO hockey team plays the third and fourth games of its season-high five-game road trip this weekend when it visits the University of Alaska Nanooks on Friday and Saturday, Dec. 11 and 12. Face off is 10:05 p.m. CT from the Carlson Center in Fairbanks, Alaska.
Last Week: The Mavericks lost both ends of a two-game series at Ferris State. On Friday, the Mavs were shutout, 2-0. #John Faulkner# made 34 saves in the game. The next night, the Mavericks lost to the Bulldogs, 3-1. Ferris scored three goals in a span of 4:57 early in the second period to take a 3-0 lead. UNO got one goal back when #Nick Fanto# scored shorthanded to make it 3-1. The two teams played a scoreless third period in spite of ten combined powerplays, eight for the Bulldogs. Faulkner stopped 36 in the finale.
The Records: The Mavericks are now 7-6-3 this season and 4-6-2-1 in the CCHA, good for ninth place. The Nanooks are 8-4-4 overall and 5-4-3-3 in the league, putting them in fourth place. Alaska is coming off a loss and a shootout win in their two-game series at Western Michigan last weekend. The Nanooks dropped the first game, 3-1, before skating to a 4-4 tie in the rematch. They then won the ensuing shootout, 1-0.
The Series: UNO trails the all-time series with Alaska, 14-20-11. They are 5-11-6 all-time at Fairbanks. Last season, the two teams combined for six goals in their four-game season series that included three ties and a shutout. The two teams split shootout wins in Omaha in December with UNO winning its game following a 0-0 tie. Alaska shutout the Mavs 2-0 before winning a shootout at home in January.
The Coaches: #Dean Blais# is in his first year as the head coach of the Mavericks. He brings an impressive resume to Omaha, having led the University of North Dakota to national titles in 1997 and 2000. He won five WCHA regular season titles with UND and two playoff championships. He is a two-time winner of the Spencer Penrose Memorial Award given to Division I hockey's top coach. The native of International Falls, Minn. has a career record of 269-121-36. Blais is assisted by former Omaha Lancer head coach and first-year associate head coach Mike Hastings and third-year assistant coach Nick Fohr. Alaska is coached by Dallas Ferguson, now in his second year as the Nanooks' bench boss. The 1996 graduate of Alaska is 25-20-10 all time.
Media: Both games will be broadcast live on “The Voice of Omaha's Team”, KVNO 90.7 FM. Dave Ahlers will call the action, and Terry Leahy will provide features from the studio. Coverage begins 20 minutes before the face-off. Live audio is available at kvno.org and live stats at omavs.com.
Coming Up: The Mavericks finish their road stretch with the front half of a home-and-home series with Minnesota State on Friday, Dec. 18 at 7:37 p.m. They'll finish the series on Saturday back in Omaha at 7:05 p.m. before Christmas Break.
