Weekly Release
Live Audio
Live Stats
This Week
The No. 12/13 UNO Mavericks begin the second half of the 2012-13 season with a non-conference series at No. 9 Quinnipiac on Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 29 and 30. Each game starts at Noon ET. This is the third straight year the two schools have met.
The Teams
The Mavericks are 11-6-1 overall and 7-4-1 in the WCHA, putting them in a tie with Minnesota for fifth place, just three points behind league-leading St. Cloud State. The Mavs split a pair of games against Minnesota State on Dec. 14 and 15, losing the opener, 6-3, before rebounding for a 5-1 win the following night. Omaha trails the all-time series with Quinnipiac, 1-2-1, and trails in Hamden, Conn., 0-2-0. Last year, the two teams played to a 2-2 tie before the Mavericks picked up a 4-1 win in Omaha. UNO is 5-3-0 away from home this season.
The Mavericks face another hot team in Quinnipiac. The Bobcats are riding a 10-game unbeaten streak (9-0-1), the second-longest in the nation, and have posted an overall mark of 12-3-2 and a perfect 8-0-0 ledger in ECAC Hockey, good for first place. The Bobcats haven't played since sweeping a home-and-home series with Princeton, 3-1 and 3-0, on Dec. 7 and 8. They are 5-2-1 at home this season.
Last Time Out
UNO lost its first series opening game, dropping a 6-3 decision to Minnesota State in the opener of its last series before the holiday break on Dec. 14. Matt White had a goal and an assist for UNO while
Zahn Raubenheimer and
Ryan Walters also scored for the Mavs. They couldn't offset a two goal-one assist night from MSU's Johnny McInnis and a three-assist game from Teddy Blueger.
John Faulkner gave up four goals on 19 shots in a little more than 31 minutes and took the loss.
On Saturday, the Mavs got goals from five different players in a 5-1 win.
Johnnie Searfoss and
Dominic Zombo scored 36 seconds apart in the first period,
Ryan Walters added another goal in the second, and White (empty net) and
Charlie Adams tacked on late goals just 24 seconds apart after MSU had drawn to within 3-1. Anthony Stolarz turned aside 27 shots for his second win of the season.
The Coaches
Dean Blais is in his fourth year as the head coach of the Mavericks, having led UNO to two 20-win campaigns in that time. The 1973 graduate of Minnesota has posted a career record of 328-171-46 (.644) and has guided the Mavericks to a mark of 66-56-15 (.536).
Blais is a two-time Spencer Penrose Memorial Award winner as the Division I coach of the year and a four-time winner of the WCHA's Coach of the Year Award. He spent 10 years as head coach at North Dakota where he led UND to national championships in 1997 and 2000.
He is assisted by first-year assistant coaches
Steve Johnson and Troy Jutting who both have extensive coaching experience in the WCHA, Johnson as an assistant at St. Cloud State and Jutting as the head coach and an assistant at Minnesota State.
Rand Pecknold is in his 19th season at Quinnipiac. The 1990 graduate of Connecticut College is 349-233-64 all-time in Hamden. He is assisted by Bill Riga and Reid Cashman.
Media
Both games of this weekend's series can be heard live on 1180 The Zone 2.
Dave Ahlers provides play-by-play, and Terry Leahy will have analysis for both games. Coverage begins with the First National Bank Pre-Game Show 30 minutes before game time. Streaming audio and live stats are available at OMavs.com.
Up Next For the Mavericks
The Mavericks jump back into WCHA play next weekend when they host Colorado College on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 4-5. Friday's game starts at 6:37 p.m., and Saturday's game begins at 7:07 p.m. from CenturyLink Center Omaha.
