This WeekThe No. 3/4 Omaha Mavericks continue their four-game season opening road trip against No. 20 Vermont of Hockey East on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 16-17. Both games begin at 7:05 p.m. ET from Gutterson Fieldhouse in Burlington, Vt. The series marks the first-ever meetings between the two schools in hockey.
The TeamsThe Mavericks opened the 2015-16 season at 2-0-0 following a pair of wins at No. 14 Minnesota State last weekend. It marks the first time since the 2010-11 season that the Mavericks have opened a season with two straight wins. That year, they won five straight to begin the campaign. Last season, the Mavericks were 3-0-1 in non-conference road games and 1-2-0 against Hockey East teams including a loss to eventual national champion Providence in the Frozen Four semifinals.
Vermont began the season on a strong note, shutting out Minnesota in the Twin Cities, 3-0, last Saturday. The Catamounts were 22-15-4 last season and finished seventh in Hockey East with a mark of 10-9-3. UVM beat Maine and Boston College in the first two rounds of the Hockey East playoffs last season before bowing to UMass-Lowell in the conference semifinal.
Last Time OutThe Mavericks picked up their first road sweep since November of 2014 with 3-2 and 2-0 wins over Minnesota State last weekend in Mankato. On Friday, UNO got out to a 3-0 lead on goals by
Jake Randolph,
Jake Guentzel and
Austin Ortega. MSU battled back with a powerplay goal from Jimmy Mullin and an even-strength tally from C.J. Franklin but could get no closer.
Kirk Thompson made 24 saves in the win.
The following night, Minnesota State peppered freshman goalie
Evan Weninger in his collegiate debut but eventually saw Omaha take a 1-0 lead on a breakaway goal by Randolph at 12:02 of the first. MSU had several good chances denied in the second and then found itself trailing 2-0 early in the third when Randolph scored on another breakaway. Weninger finished the night with a 40-save shutout.
The CoachesDean Blais is in his seventh year as the head coach of the Mavericks, having led UNO to three 20-win campaigns in that time. The 1973 graduate of Minnesota has posted a record of 375-214-57 (.625) in his career as a head coach and has guided the Mavericks to a mark of 113-99-24 (.530).
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 coaches
Troy Jutting and
Alex Todd who both have extensive head coaching experience, Jutting at Minnesota State and Todd at Castleton (Vt.) State.
Kevin Sneddon is in his 13th season as the head coach of Vermont, having led the Catamounts to a record of 240-303-78 in that time and back-to-back 20-win seasons. The 1992 graduate of Harvard is assisted by Kevin Patrick and Kyle Wallack.
MediaBoth games can be heard live on 1180 The Zone 2.
Dave Ahlers will have the play-by-play, and Terry Leahy will provide analysis for his 19th consecutive season. Coverage begins 30 minutes before game time with the First National Bank Pre-Game Show. Live audio as well as live video and stats from Burlington are available at OMavs.com.
Up Next For The MavericksIn a moment anticipated by many for more than two years, Omaha opens its home schedule and plays its first games in Baxter Arena on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 23-24 by hosting Air Force. The 7,898-seat on-campus venue will serve as the home for the UNO hockey, basketball and volleyball teams.
