This Week
The No. 1/2 Omaha Mavericks play their first games in their new home this week, hosting Air Force of Atlantic Hockey on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 23-24 at Baxter Arena.  The pre-game ceremony for Friday's game begins at 7 p.m. with the puck drop scheduled for 7:37 p.m.  Saturday's game begins at 7:07 p.m.

The Teams
The Mavericks are coming off a sweep at Vermont last weekend, winning 4-3 and 3-1.  The wins improved their record to 4-0-0 this season with all four games on the road.  The last time the Mavericks started the season with four straight wins was 2010-11 when they won their first five.  Last season, the Mavericks were 11-7-2 in their final season at CenturyLink Center Omaha, their home for the previous 12 seasons.  The Mavericks are 5-1-0 all-time against Air Force and 4-0-0 vs. the Falcons at home.  The two teams haven't met since the 1998-99 season.

Air Force is coming off a loss and a tie at Atlantic Hockey foe Robert Morris last weekend.  The Falcons are 1-2-1 overall and 0-1-1 in league play.  They are in the middle of a stretch of seven straight road games since opening at home against Denver on Oct. 9.

Last Time Out
The Mavericks earned their second straight road sweep with 4-3 and 3-1 wins at then No. 20 Vermont last weekend.  On Friday, Fredrik Olofsson scored his first two collegiate goals in the first period, and Austin Ortega had a pair in the second to help the Mavericks open a 4-1 lead.  The Catamounts got two goals back but couldn't notch the equalizer.  Kirk Thompson made 26 saves in the win.

The following night, the Mavericks again opened up a 2-0 lead in the first period on a shorthanded breakaway by Justin Parizek and another goal from Ortega just 2:11 later.  In the third, Vermont drew to within one on a 5-on-3 powerplay goal from Mario Puskarich, but Ortega clinched the win with an empty net goal in the final minute.  Evan Weninger stopped 29 shots to pick up the victory.

The Coaches
Dean 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.

Frank Serratore is in his 19th season as head coach of Air Force and his 23rd season overall.  The 1982 graduate of Bemidji State is 310-300-67 all-time at Colorado Springs.  He is assisted by Joe Doyle and Andy Berg.

Media
Friday's game will be televised nationally on American Sports Network.  Jim Rich will handle the play-by-play, and Pat Micheletti will provide analysis.  Both games also can be heard live on 1180 The Zone 2.  Dave Ahlers will have the play-by-play, Terry Leahy will provide analysis for his 19th consecutive season, and Lester St. James will report from ice level.  Coverage begins 30 minutes before game time with the First National Bank Pre-Game Show.  Live video is available at NCHC.tv. while live audio and stats can be found at OMavs.com.

Up Next For The Mavericks
The Mavericks return to the road next weekend when they open NCHC play against Western Michigan on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 30-31.  Both games begin at 7 p.m. ET from Lawson Arena in Kalamazoo, Mich.