Weekly Release
2011-12 Hockey Media Guide

This Week
The 14th-ranked UNO Mavericks host their 11th Mutual of Omaha Stampede this weekend to open the regular season.  The Mavericks will play Mercyhurst College on Friday, Oct. 7 at 7:37 p.m. and then face-off against either Colgate or Robert Morris the following night at 7:07 p.m. at CenturyLink Center Omaha.  The early games will feature Colgate and Robert Morris at 4:37 p.m. on Friday and Mercyhurst against Colgate or Robert Morris on Saturday at 4:07 p.m.

The Teams
The Mavericks are coming off the fifth 20-win season in their history and the second straight.  They posted a record of 20-16-2 last year and a mark of 17-9-2 in their first year in the WCHA.  They finished the regular season in third place, their highest conference finish ever, and earned the second trip to the NCAA playoffs in school history.  The Mavs fell 3-2 in overtime to national runner-up Michigan in the first round of the West Regional.  

Mercyhurst was 15-18-4 last year and 12-13-2 in Atlantic Hockey play, good for seventh place.  The Lakers lost to Connecticut in two games in the Atlantic Hockey Quarterfinals.

Colgate was 11-28-3 last year and posted a record of 4-15-3 in ECAC Hockey, good for 12th place.  The upset-minded Red Raiders knocked off RPI in three games in the first round of the ECAC playoffs and then stunned Union in three games in the quarterfinals to earn a berth in the final four.  The Raiders then bowed to Yale, 4-0, in the in the semifinals and lost to Darmouth, 5-3 in the third-place game.

Robert Morris was 18-12-5 overall and 13-9-5 in Atlantic Hockey, putting it in fifth place in Atlantic Hockey.  The Colonials got knocked out of the league playoffs with a 5-1 loss to Mercyhurst in the first round.

Exhibition Weekend
The Mavericks beat British Columbia, 4-1, in an exhibition game on Saturday.  Brock Montpetit had a pair of goals, and Terry Broadhurst had three assists to power the UNO attack.

Mercyhurst earned a 5-4 win over York in an exhibition game on Sunday.  Daniel Bahntge and Paul Chiasson each had a pair of goals for the Lakers.

Colgate skated to a 3-3 tie with Carleton last Saturday.  The Raiders built a 3-0 lead only to see the Ravens score three in the third period to knot the game.  Eric Mihalik made 28 saves for Colgate.

Robert Morris also played York in its exhibition game, beating the Lions, 4-3, on Saturday.  Cody Crichton had a goal and an assist for the Colonials.

The Coaches
Dean Blais is in his third year as the head coach of the Mavericks, having led UNO to back-to-back 20-win campaigns.  The 1973 graduate of Minnesota has posted a career record of 303-147-41 (.659) and has guided the Mavericks to a mark of 41-32-8 (.556) since coming to Omaha.  In 2010-11, he was named the WCHA Coach of the Year, the fourth time he's earned the honor.  He will serve as the head coach of the 2012 U.S. World Junior Team in December.

Blais is a two-time Spencer Penrose Memorial Award winner as the Division I coach of the year.  He spent 10 years as head coach at North Dakota where he led the Fighting Sioux to national championships in 1997 and 2000.  He is assisted by third-year associate head coach Mike Hastings and first-year assistant coach Brian Renfrew who joins the UNO staff after eight seasons at Michigan State.

Rick Gotkin is in his 24th season at Mercyhurst, having compiled a record of 414-290-60.  Don Vaughan is  in his 19th year at Colgate, going 294-296-68 in that time.  Derek Schooley is in his eighth year at Robert Morris, building a record of 83-114-7.

Media
Both UNO games this weekend can be heard live on 96.1 The Brew.  Dave Ahlers will call the play-by-play while Terry Leahy will provide analysis.  Coverage begins 30 minutes before game time online at UNO's IHeart Radio channel, “Mavericks Radio.”  Streaming audio, video and live stats are available at OMavs.com.  

Up Next For the Mavericks
The Mavericks will head north to the Brice Alaska Goal Rush tournament next weekend in Fairbanks, Alaska.  The Mavs will play WCHA foe Alaska Anchorage on Friday, Oct. 14 at 8:05 p.m. CT and then take on host Alaska on Saturday, Oct. 15 at 10:05 p.m. CT.