#19 UMass Heads To Merrimack Looking to Keep Streak Alive
• After an offensive explosion last weekend in a home-and-home series against Providence, the No. 19 UMass hockey team will play just one game this weekend as the Minutemen head to Merrimack (2-4-1, 0-3-0 HEA) on Saturday night at 7 PM. The Mass Attack enters Saturday's game with the fourth-best unbeaten streak in the nation at 4-0-1 in the last five games and holds the country's fourth highest ranked scoring offense.
• This will be the 65th all-time meeting between the Minutemen and the Warriors. Last season, UMass swept all three games by a combined score of 14-to-5.
• This will be UMass' sixth road trip in its first seven games. The game will be a reunion of head coach Don "Toot" Cahoon and Merrimack bench boss Mark Dennehy who was an assistant for Cahoon at UMass and Princeton. The Minutemen hold a 32-27-5 advantage in the all-time series having swept the series last season. Over the last 16 games, UMass is 13-3 against the Warriors including four straight wins.

BroadCast Information
• UMass hockey will once again be broadcast live on 100.9 FM WRNX with Donnie Moorhouse calling the play-by-play and Brock Hines calling the color commentary. The pregame show will begin 30 minutes prior to the opening face-off. The game will also be streamed live over the internet through www.UMassAthletics.com.
• Additionally, fans can watch the games online on www.MerrimackAthletics.com. This is a fee-service and works best using a high speed internet connection. Live stats will also be available through www.UMassAthletics.com along with a live in-game blog.

Story Lines
• The UMass penalty kill is 18-for-18 over the last four games and at 92.3 percent ranks 10th overall nationally and second in Hockey East. Conversely, the UMass power play is also clicking at 8-for-32 (25%) which ranks seventh nationally and third in HEA.
• UMass is tied for the fourth longest unbeaten streak in the country at five games (4-0-1) ... If the Minutemen notch a win on Saturday night, it will tie the third longest unbeaten streak (six games) in program history which has been accomplished six times.
• UMass is 5th nationally in scoring at 4.17 goals per game, while defensively they rank 11th at 1.83 goals per game.
• The 25 goals scored in the first six games are the most since the 1995-96 season when UMass netted 32 goals in the first six games ... The 25 goals are the most in the first six games of any season of head coach Don Cahoon since scoring 22 in 2003-04 - the same season UMass appeared in the Hockey East Championship game.
• UMass' nine goals against Providence were its most ever in Hockey East play and the most in a game since defeating Air Force 10-2 on Nov. 30, 1996 ... UMass' nine goals against Providence are the most by any Hockey East team this season.
• The line of Alex Berry-Cory Quirk-James Marcou accounted for 19 points this weekend and for 28 of UMass' 65 total points - 43.1 percent of UMass' point total.
• Twelve different skaters (of 18 dressed) scored at least one point in the 6-0 win at RPI. Through four games, 15 different skaters have earned at least one point with four tied with three points (James Marcou, Alex Berry, Topher Bevis, and Cory Quirk).
• UMass' win over No. 5 North Dakota was a victory over its highest ranked opponent since beating No. 4 Colorado College on Dec. 30, 2007.

Team Overview
• UMass returns a strong corps of players in 2008-09 led by seven seniors including co-captain Cory Quirk. The Minutemen will also have defenseman John Wessbecker back in the line-up after he missed the second half of last season due to injury. Defenseively, the Minutemen will have to find replacements for Mike Kostka and David Leaderer who were two of the most dependable blueliners in all of Hockey East last season. One area of the ice that is looking strong for UMass is between the pipes with sophomore Paul Dainton and junior Dan Meyers both returning.
• UMass returns seven of its top 10 scorers from last season with sophomore James Marcou (8-24-32) and Cory Quirk (11-18-29) leading the way. Justin Braun is the top scoring defenseman returning after scoring 20 point (4-16) last season.
• Bolstering UMass' depth is six newcomers (4 forwards, 2 defensemen). Coach Cahoon is very high on this class stating that each will make an impact on the ice this season.

UMass Earns First Ranking of Season
• UMass earned its first national ranking of the year at No. 19 in the USCHO.com/CBS College Sports Top 20 poll on Nov. 3 after starting the season 4-1-1. The Minutemen had received votes in either the USCHO.com or the USA Today/USA Hockey Top 15 Poll in each week of the season. In the Nov. 3 USA Today poll, UMass was the top Receiving Votes team recognized with 27 votes.
• To begin the 2008-09 season, UMass entered both the USA Today/USA Hockey Top 15 and the USCHO.com/CSTV preseason polls as a team receiving votes.
• At No. 5 in the Dec. 31, 2007 and Jan. 7, 2008 USCHO.com/CSTV.com Top-20 poll, UMass gained its highest ever national ranking in program history. The previous top national ranking was No. 7 back in December 2003.

vs. Ranked Teams
• In 2008-09, UMass is 1-1-1 against ranked teams as No. 4 New Hampshire was the second top-10 opponent in the first four games of the season.
• Last season, UMass was 7-10-1 against ranked opponents including a 5-0-1 stretch against ranked teams through the holiday break. It was UMass best record ever against ranked teams.
• All-time, UMass is 41-167-18 against ranked opponents including a 4-7-2 record at neutral sites and a 5-19-4 record against non-conference teams.

Marcou Earns League, National Praise After Performance Vs. Providence
• Sophomore wing James Marcou, the team's leading scorer from last season as a freshman, had a tremendous weekend in the home-and-home series against Providence with three goals and five assists.
• He was named the CCM/RBK Player of the Week, the UMass/Dinn Bros. Co-Athlete of the Week, the Hockey East Player of the Month Runner-Up, the New England Hockey Journal Player of the Week and the INCH National Player of the Week Runner-Up.
• He currently leads Hockey East in points (5-6-11), ranks second in goals and fifth in assists, power play points and power play goals. Nationally, he ranks 12th overall in points.
• Nationally, Marcou is tied for 12th in points, tied for 24th in goals, tied for 22nd in assists and tied for 7th in power play goals.

Milestones, Firsts, Who's Hot
• Head coach Don "Toot" Cahoon picked up his 117th win at UMass and his 297th overall last Saturday at Providence (11/1) - he needs just four more to become the all-time winningest coach in UMass history and three more to reach 300.
• Marc Concannon tallied his first goal of the season at Providence (11/1) becoming the 17th player to record a point this season.
• Paul Dainton started his first game of the season at Providence (11/1) allowing one goal and making 24 saves for his second win of the season.
• James Marcou has eight points in the last two games (3g, 5a), Cory Quirk has five points (1-4-5), while linemate Alex Berry has six points (2g, 4a).
• Danny Hobbs, Doug Kublin and Casey Wellman each scored their first collegiate goals at RPI.
• Wellman had a career-high four assists in the first win over Providence (10/31). • Chris Davis scored a career-high two goals at RPI.
• Dan Meyer posted his first career shutout at RPI and made a career-high 40 saves against North Dakota.
• John Wessbecker and Chase Langeraap made their returns to the UMass lineup against RPI after missing the first two games of the season and much of the second half of last season due to injury.
• Against North Dakota, Alex Berry tallied a career-high three assists.
• In the last four games, the UMass penalty kill is a perfect 18-for-18.

UMass Announces TV Schedule; Time Changes
• Five games will be televised this season which forced time changes for three games from the original schedule released over the summer. UMass will be televised on COX Sports, CN8, NESN and ESPNU this season.
• The game time for the Nov. 25 meeting between UMass and Vermont in the Mullins Center has been moved to 7:30 p.m. to better accommodate CN8 TV. The game time was originally slated for 7 p.m. UMass will make one more appearance on CN8 on Feb. 28 at Boston University.
• The Minutemen will make a national appearance on Sunday, Feb. 1 at Maine (4 PM) on ESPNU - game originally slated for 2 PM. The Feb. 27 game against Boston University (7:30 PM) at the Mullins Center will be televised by NESN as part of NESN's Friday Night Ice package. That game was also originally slated for a 7 PM start.
• The Minutemen's first television game of the season will be on Saturday, Nov. 1 at Providence and will be carried by COX Sports which can be viewed in Rhode Island.
• All home UMass hockey games that are not televised can be watched online through UMassAthletics.com's All-Access Streaming Video with Donnie Moorhouse and Brock Hines calling the action. Most away games will also be available through All-Access or the B2Networks Streaming Video.

Last Time Out: UMass 5, Providence 1
• After a scoreless first period, Chris Davis and Mike Lecomte each netted power play goals in the first 10 minutes of the second period to break open UMass' 5-1 win at Providence last Saturday. Marc Concannon added the third goal, while James Marcou finished UMass' scoring in the second period. Justin Braun tallied the fifth goal in the third period as the Minutemen wrapped up the weekend outscoring the Friars 14-to-5 in the two game series.
• Special teams were once again key as UMass was 2-for-6 with the extra man and the penalty kill held Providence 0-for-6. For the weekend, the UMass penalty kill was a perfect 10-for-10.
• Paul Dainton made his first start of the season and earned his second win of the year with a 24 save effort.

Up Next: Boston Univ./UMass Lowell
• The Minutemen will have a pair of home games next Friday and Saturday at the Mullins Center. No. 3 Boston University will travel West on the I-90 for Friday night's 7 PM tilt, while UMass Lowell, who split its series at Michigan State earlier this season, will visit on Saturday night (7 PM).
• The Terriers are off to a fast 5-1-0 start with their only loss at New Hampshire. UMass Lowell is 3-2-0 overall and 1-0-0 in Hockey East action heading into this weekend. The River Hawks have been receiving votes in both polls for much of the season.
• All-time, UMass is 7-43-3 against Head Coach Don "Toot" Cahoon's alma mater, but did win the series last season in convincing fashion putting up five goals against the Terriers twice (5-3, 0-3, 5-1). In the last two seasons, UMass is 2-2-2 against Boston University.
• Against UMass Lowell, UMass is 18-28-6 all-time but have had difficulties with the River Hawks lately. UMass is 0-2-2 in the last four meetings, but did win three straight prior to that.

UMass Has Best Regular-Season Attendance In Program History
• UMass averaged a program-best 5,017 fans this season at home games in 2007-08 which was an all-time best for the program. Against UMass Lowell (10/19/07), UMass set a new record for opening game attendance as 5,862 fans came through the turnstiles. Attendance has increased in each of the last three seasons.
• The Minutemen had their first of 18 home games this season last Friday (10/31) against Providence drawing 5,285 fans including nearly 3,000 students. It was the second largest attendance mark of any game this season.

Cahoon Closing In On All-Time Winning Record At UMass
• Head coach Don "Toot" Cahoon needs just four more wins to become the all-time winning head coach in UMass history. He enters the week with 117 career wins, just behind UMass Hall of Famer Jack Canniff who had 120 wins in his career from 1967-79. He also needs three more wins to record his 300th overall win as a head coach.
• Under Cahoon's tenure, UMass made its first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance (2007) and played for the Hockey East Championship title in 2003.

Hard To Beat When Scoring 3's
• UMass is 4-0-0 this season when lighting the lamp three times or more in a game and 0-1-1 when they score fewer than three goals. When UMass scored three or more goals last season, the Mass Attack was nearly undefeated with a 14-3-2 record. When the Minutemen failed to do so, their record was 0-13-4.
• UMass has scored six goals-or-more on two occassions - at RPI (10/21, 6-0) and against Providence (10/31 - 9-4). The nine goals scored against the Friars is the most in Hockey East this season.

Four-or-More Is Best
• Over the last 50 games where UMass scores four-or-more goals, the Minutemen are an amazing 47-2-1. Before the home loss against Vermont (1/25), the Mass Attack had not lost a game when scoring four-or-more goals since March 14, 2003 against New Hampshire in the Hockey East Semifinals (5-4).
• UMass scored a season-high five goals on seven occasions last year: in the wins over Merrimack (11/3; 3/7), Boston University (11/9; 3/1), against Union (11/25), Colorado College (12/29), and Maine (2/2).
• Last season, UMass scored four-or-more goals in 11 games.

Mullins Magic
• UMass is 1-0-0 this season at home having played six of its first seven games (including the Merrimack game) on the road.
• The Minutemen lost just three games at home last season going 8-3-4 (.667) at the Mullins Center. The loss to New Hampshire on Jan. 11 broke a 13-game home unbeaten streak which dated back to the 2006-07 season.
• Over the last 44 games at the Mullins Center, UMass is 27-10-7 (.686) including a 14-3-4 mark in 2006-07.
• All-time, UMass is 114-107-26 in the Mullins Center including a 66-93-20 record among Hockey East foes. Under Don Cahoon, UMass sports a 70-53-14 record at home.

LARGEST SHUTOUT WIN IN 12 TEARS
• UMass' 6-0 win over RPI was its largest shutout win since defeating Army 8-0 on Nov. 22, 1996 - nearly 12 years ago. The six goals were the most scored by the Minutemen since beating UMass Lowell 6-3 on Jan. 26, 2007.

Most Goals Scored IN 12 TEARS
• UMass' 9-4 win over Providence was its largest goal scoring night since the 10-2 win over Air Force on Nov. 30, 1996.
• The nine goals were the most ever scored by the Minutemen against a Hockey East opponent.

Happy 25th Anniversary
• 2008-09 marks the 25th anniversary of the Hockey East Association - regarded as the top collegiate hockey conference in America. To commemorate the anniversary, Hockey East will be debuting a DVD in time for christmas and will announce several anniversary teams and special moments during the season. Fans can vote on these at www.HockeyEastOnline.com.

Facing Off With Quirk
• Cory Quirk established himself last season as one of UMass' top face-off specialists. This season, he is 78-51 (.605) in six games. Against RPI, he was 13-for-19 in the face-off dot and in both games against Providence (10/31, 11/1) he was 11-for-17.
• In 36 games in 2007-08, he had a 556-364 (.604) face-off record which was the best on the team. He won over 300 more face-offs than any other player on the team.

Quirk A Top Scoring Threat
• Over the final 25 games of 2007-08, Cory Quirk picked up his scoring to move into second place on the team with 10 goals and 15 assists.
• With one goal and seven assists in 2008-09, Quirk is tied for 19th all-time at UMass in career points (81), is tied for 20th in goals (33) and ranks 18th in assists (48).

Marcou Having A Super Sophomore Season
• In 2008-09, James Marcou leads the Minutemen with five goals, six assists, and one game-winning goal. He posted five points (2g, 3a) against Providence (10/31) before finishing the weekend with another goal and two assists at Providence (11/1) the next night.
• Following his performance against Providence (10/31, 11/1) he was named the INCH National Player of the Week Runner-Up, the Hockey East Player of the Week, the New England Hockey Journal Player of the Week, and the Hockey East Player of the Month Runner-Up.
• Marcou was one of the top offensive rookies in Hockey East last season after leading the Minutemen with 8 goals and 24 assists for 32 points. In 36 games, he had 11 multi-point nights.
• Marcou earned Hockey East All-Rookie Team honors and was a member of the Hockey East All-Academic Team. Additionally, he was one of 15 semifinalists for the 56th annual Walter Brown Award.
• Marcou also netted UMass' only hat trick of the season last year with three goals against Vermont (1/25/08).

Braun One of Hockey East's Top Defensemen
• Junior defenseman Justin Braun is not only one of the best defensemen for the Minutemen, but he is one of the best in the entire league. Last season, he finished sixth on the team in points with four goals and 16 assists.
• Braun plays on the top power play and penalty kill lines and is one of the team leaders in minutes played.
• The 2007 member of the Hockey East All-Rookie Team was the 201st pick overall last season in the NHL Draft by the Pittsburgh Penguins who traded his rights to the San Jose Sharks.

The Puck Stops Here
• Paul Dainton missed the first four games of the season due to injury, but saw his first action in the second period of the game against Providence (10/31) where he made 17 saves and did not allow a goal. He made his first start of the season and picked up his second win the next night at Providence (11/1).
• All-time, Dainton has already cracked several of UMass' goalie charts. He ranks second in save percentage (.914), second in goals against average (2.46), and 11th in saves (889). The man above him in terms of save percentage and goals against average is none other than former All-American Jon Quick.
• A relative unknown heading into the 2007-08 season, Dainton was pressed into action early last season after an injury sidelined Dan Meyers. Dainton quickly impressed the coaching staff and became the team's starting goalie last year. He finished his first season in Amherst with nods to the Hockey East All-Rookie Team and the Hockey East All-Academic Team.
• Dainton's story is a unique one as he actually came to UMass without ever having visited the campus. With the summertime departure of Quick, the coaching staff had heard of and seen Dainton play and spoke to him about joining the team looking for a solid goalie.

Meyers Has Hot Hand Between The Pipes
• With Dainton suffering an injury in preseason practice, Dan Meyers took over between the pipes and has started five of the six games this season. Meyers has been nothing short of outstanding making 120 saves, posting a 2.25 goals against average, and recording a .923 save percentage.
• In his five outings so far, Meyers has set a new career-high for saves (40 vs. North Dakota) and earned his first career shutout (vs. RPI).
• He currently ranks 25th nationally in goals against average and 22nd nationally in save percentage.
• Meyers was twice named the Hockey East Defensive Player of the Week, the runner-up for the HEA Goalkeeper of the Month, and was a two-time New England Hockey Journal Player of the Week.
• Meyers was the original starting goalie heading in 2007-08 as the lone returner between the pipes, but suffered an injury following the St. Lawrence game. He backed-up All-American Jon Quick as a freshman in 2006-07.
• Having a strong beginning to the season will pay dividends for UMass down the stretch as Cahoon and the coaching staff know they have a pair of quality goaltenders to use on any given night without having to worry about working one too much.

Welcome Back John Wessbecker
• Defenseman John Wessbecker missed much of the second half of last season due to injury playing in just 14 games. The 2005 7th round draft pick of Tampa Bay is one of UMass' top returning blueliners along with Justin Braun and Martin Nolet.
• He made his return to the lineup at Rensselaer where he picked up an assist on the very first goal of the game. He also was critical in UMass' penalty kill which allowed just one shot and held the Engineers scoreless on three RPI power plays. Wessbecker also picked up a penalty and added some additional toughness to the UMass defense - when an RPI skater was crashing in towards Dan Meyers after a whistle, Wessbecker promptly impeded his momentum.
• For his career, Wessbecker has played in 92 career games with one goal and eight assists.

Bevis Honors Late Mother With Fund To Fight Brain Cancer
• Topher Bevis lost his mother Patricia in 1998 when he was 12 to brain cancer. Since that tragic moment, Topher, his father and his two brothers have established The Patty Fund in conjuction with the Massachusetts General Hospital to help fund research for the study and treatment of the disease.
• The fund raised over $50,000 this past summer with its annual Golf Tournament.
• Bevis netted his first goal of the season against North Dakota (10/11) in Agganis Arena. His lone goal of the 2007-08 season was also scored in Agganis - then in the 5-3 win over Boston University (11/9). Through six games in 2008-09, Bevis has one goal and three assists.

Look For Dan Meyers' Movie Picks On UMassAthletics.com
• Known to the team as a movie fanatic, Dan Meyers has agreed to share his thoughts and movie critiques with fans with a blog on UMassAthletics.com. Meyers will pick out different movies and share his thoughts on them throughout the season.
• Meyers' movie collection is a big bonus for the team when travelling on long bus trips during the year.

Quirk, Watson To Lead UMass
• Cory Quirk and Brett Watson will be the co-captains of the 2008-09 Mass Attack. Quirk is one of UMass' top scoring threats, while Watson is a dependable do-everything type of center.

Berry, Hobbs Spend Summer Time In Prospect Camps
• Alex Berry and Danny Hobbs each spent part of their summers working out at prospect camps with their respective draft teams. Berry was a 5th round pick in the 2005 entry draft by Toronto, while Hobbs was a 7th round pick in the 2007 draft by the New York Rangers. Berry was featured in a video package by the Maple Leafs on what the experience was like.
• Berry had his best statistical season offensively in 2007-08 scoring 10 goals and adding 7 assists. He was red-hot to finish the year scoring seven goals in the last nine games.
• The work seems to have paid off as Berry has netted a career-high three assists twice this season - in the win over North Dakota (10/11) and in the win at Providence (11/1).

Ortiz Gives Speaks At Chestnut School Middle School
• Junior forward Will Ortiz spoke to about 150 middle schoolers and faculty members at the Chestnut School in Springfield last week on the importance of continuing their education and making smart decisions in life. His speech also focused on some decisions he had to make in his life and how he has been able to overcome a tough environment to be able to fulfill his dreams.

Canniff Enshrined In UMass Hall Of Fame
• Former all-time UMass hockey coaching great Jack Canniff was enshrined in the UMass Hall Of Fame on Oct. 3, 2008. Canniff served as the hockey coach from 1967-79, leading UMass to its only conference championship in program history, as the then-Redmen won the ECAC Division II title in 1972.
• A fixture on the bench, Canniff is UMass' all-time leader in career victories with 120. Canniff was named the ECAC Coach of the Year in 1972 as he led the squad to a 19-7-0 overall record. UMass captured the ECAC crown with an 8-1 win over Buffalo on March 11, 1972 in Amherst. Canniff ranks second all-time in career win percentage among all hockey coaches and second among all coaches in career playoff appearances.
• He developed three All-Americans, all from the 1972 team (P.J. Flaherty, Pat Keenan and Brian Sullivan). Canniff graduated from Boston College in 1954.

Langeraap Adds Size, Scoring To Forward Line
• Along with John Wessbecker, Chase Langeraap made his return to the UMass lineup against RPI after missing the tailend portion of last season with an injury. He also missed the first two games of this season.
• In his two games back, however, he has added considerable size and scoring power to the forward lines. At 6-2, 202 lbs., Langeraap is a load on the left wing. Against RPI, he had two assists, while at New Hampshire he scored UMass' lone goal.
• This season, he has two goals, three assists, and a +4 rating.
• Last season, he played in 21 games posting three goals and two assists.

The BQM Line Putting Up Sound Numbers
• The line of Alex Berry-Cory Quirk-James Marcou is the only forward line to skate together in all six games so far this season. The trio netted a combined 11 points over Providence (10/31), eight points at Providence (11/1) and seven points in the win over North Dakota. Just over 43 percent of UMass' points have been produced by this line so far this season: 28-of-65.

A Pair Of Draft Picks Anchor Blue Line
• Martin Nolet and Justin Braun have started each game this season as UMass' top defensive pair - their first season as line mates. Nolet was a 5th-round draft pick by Los Angeles in the 2006 draft (144th overall), while Braun was a 7th-round draft pick by San Jose in the 2007 draft (201st overall).
• Both players have been key on special teams as they are both on the top power play and penalty kill units. Each also has one assist for the season.
• For the last two seasons, Nolet started every game paired with captain Mike Kostka, while Braun was paired with David Leaderer.

Key Numbers From 2007-08
• UMass put up some good numbers in 2007-08 statistically and ranked among the top teams in Hockey East. With the amount of talent returning to each area of the ice, those numbers should continue to improve in 2008-09. Below are the categories and rank among Hockey East Teams.
Team Offense: 2.72 goals per game, 4th
Team Defense: 2.69 goals against per game, 4th
Power Play: 16.9 percent, T-4th
Penalty Kill: 82.4 percent, 9th

David Leaderer Becomes UMass Iron Man
• Last season, defenseman David Leaderer set a new UMass program record for career games played on March 8 at Merrimack when he suited up for his 147th career game. He broke the school record which was previously held by Marvin Degon who played in 146 from 2002-06. Leaderer finished his career playing in 149 career games - every one of his UMass career.

Minutemen In The Pros Update
• UMass has one alum who is currently on a NHL roster: Thomas Pock with the New York Islanders. Former UMass All-America Jon Quick lasted through the preseason until the final cut with the L.A. Kings before being reassigned to Manchester.
• All five seniors from the 2007-08 signed contracts to play in various profession hockey leagues including P.J. Fenton who is with the Worcester Sharks in the AHL and Mike Kostka who is with the Portland Pirates (AHL).
• Matt Anderson won the 2008 Calder Cup with the Chicago Wolves last season. Mark Matheson and Stephen Werner have once again teamed up as members of the Milwaukee Admirals.

Streaming Video
• UMass will once again provide streaming video of all home games this season. This service works best with BroadBand or Cable Internet subscribers. Sign-up at UMassAthletics.com by clicking the UMass All-Access link.

Photo Galleries
• A perfect gift for any die-hard UMass hockey fan are photos from UMass home games which you can purchase online! Photos come in your choice of 4x6, 8x10, or 11x14 and can be ordered from the photo galleries at UMassAthletics.com.

Sign-up For the E-mail List
• If you want to get the lastest UMass hockey news straight to your e-mail account, then sign up for our online e-mail list. You will receive previews, game notes, boxscores, recaps and feature stories delivered right to you. To sign up, e-mail John Sinnett (jsinnett@admin.umass.edu) with the subject line "Sign Up For Hockey Newsletter".