#5 Providence vs. UConn, at Sacred Heart
- The 2018-19 Hockey East regular season begins Friday night at Schneider Arena in Providence, as the 2-1-0 Friars welcome in the 1-1-0 Huskies. Both teams are coming off their first losses of the season, as UConn dropped a 4-2 decision at Quinnipiac on Tuesday, while Providence fell, 3-0, to Notre Dame in the Ice Breaker title game.
- Last season, the two programs split the season series one game apiece by the same score of 3-1. The road team won each of those outings.
#12 Northeastern vs. #20 Union
- After sweeping Sacred Heart last weekend, #12 Northeastern welcomes its first ranked opponent to Matthews Arena as #20 Union. Northeastern is aiming to start 3-0-0 for the first time since 2013-14.
- Sophomore goalie Cayden Primeau (Voorhees, N.J.) was named Hockey East defensive Player of the Week after stopping 49 of 51 shots he faced, including a 25-save shutout. He now sits in a tie for fourth place on Northeastern's career shutout list after just 36 career games with five blank sheets.
- Liam Pecararo (Canton, Mass./1g, 3a) and Lincoln Griffin (Walpole, Mass./4a) powered the Husky offense with four points each.
Massachusetts at #1 Ohio State
- The UMass Minutemen travel for a tough road test to begin their season, visiting the top-ranked team in the nation for a pair of away games. UMass has not faced the number-one team in the country since 2012, when they visited UMass Lowell on Oct. 12, a 5-2 loss.
- Massachusetts last defeated a number-one team on Feb. 10, 2012 in a 3-2 victory at Boston University. The Minutemen also defeated Boston College, then ranked #1, on Nov. 5 of that same season, 4-2.
- Reigning Hockey East Player of the Week Cale Makar (Calgary, Alta./2g, 2a) became the first Minuteman defender to post four points in a single game since 2006 last Friday, while his classmate Mitchell Chaffee (Rockford, Mich.) found the back of the net three times over the weekend in a sweep of RPI.
#18 Boston College at Quinnipiac
- The Eagles look to right the ship after a road sweep at the hands of Wisconsin last weekend as they travel to Connecticut for a rematch of the 2016 Frozen Four semifinals with Quinnipiac.
- Boston College will play the Bobcats for the fourth time in series history and the first time at Quinnipiac. Last year, the programs opened the regular season in Chestnut Hill, skating to a 1-1 tie in their first-ever meeting at Kelley Rink.
- Quinnipiac has started the year 2-0-0 after downing Hockey East rivals Vermont and UConn.
#13 Boston University vs. U.S. National Under-18 Team (ex), at Merrimack
- The Terriers, coming off of two road losses to begin the regular season, host USA Hockey's National Team Development Program for their second exhibition contest of the year. They previously won their first tune up, a 7-1 decision over Acadia in preseason action.
- Boston University, the defending Hockey East Tournament champions, then travel to Merrimack to begin league play. BU has not lost a Hockey East regular-season opener since 2009, when they fell to UMass, 3-2. The Terriers are 5-0-3 over that span.
UMass Lowell at Miami
- After opening the year with a weekend split against RIT that saw both games decided by one goal, UMass Lowell looks to rebound in as they travel to Oxford, Ohio to play Miami.
- The programs have met just twice previously, the last time coming March 23, 2012 in the NCAA Regional Semifinals. The River Hawks took a 4-3 overtime win in that game. UMass Lowell is 1-0-1 all-time against the Red Hawks.
Maine at #3 Minnesota Duluth
- Maine travels to #3 Minnesota Duluth after sweeping St. Lawrence last weekend. The two teams met last season, a UMD sweep in Orono Oct. 27-28. Overall, the Bulldogs own an 8-4-0 record against the Black Bears.
- Jacob Schmidt-Svejstrup (Charlottenlund, Denmark) netted the first goal of his collegiate career and set up two others in a weekend sweep of St. Lawrence, opening the Black Bears' season with a pair of victories to earn Pro Ambitions Rookie of the Week honors.
New Hampshire at Colorado College
- The Wildcats continue a four-game road swing to open the season, flying to Colorado Springs to clash with Colorado College. The two programs met last year in Durham in a weekend split. The Tigers snapped UNH's five-game winning streak to open the year in a 2-1 overtime game in that series.
- New Hampshire dropped two to Colgate last weekend, but saw senior captain Marcus Vela (Burnaby, B.C.) pick up two assists and freshman Jackson Pierson (Zionsville, Ind.) scored his first collegiate goal during the weekend.
UConn at #5 Providence, at RPI
- UConn opens the 2018-19 Hockey East season Friday night at #5 Providence before traveling to RPI on Saturday to complete a stretch of three games in five days. The Huskies dropped a 4-2 decision at Quinnipiac on Tuesday.
- The two-game road swing will wrap up a four-game road trip to open the 2018-19 season for UConn, who sits 1-1-0 at this point.
- UConn freshmen Jonny Evans (North Delta, B.C.) and Carter Turnbull (Nanaimo, B.C.) each scored their first NCAA goals in the loss to Quinnipiac on Tuesday.
