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2023–24 Maine Black Bears men's ice hockey season

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2023–24 Maine Black Bears
men's ice hockey season
Ledyard Bank Classic, Champion
NCAA Tournament, Regional Semifinal
Conference3rd Hockey East
Home iceAlfond Arena
Rankings
USCHO#10
USA Hockey#10
Record
Overall23–12–2
Conference14–9–1
Home13–2–2
Road8–8–0
Neutral2–2–0
Coaches and captains
Head coachBen Barr
Assistant coachesAlfie Michaud
Jason Fortier
Eric Soltys
Captain(s)David Breazeale
Lynden Breen
Alternate captain(s)Ben Poisson
Nolan Renwick
Maine Black Bears men's ice hockey seasons
« 2022–23 2024–25 »

The 2023–24 Maine Black Bears Men's ice hockey season was the 49th season of play for the program, the 47th season competing at the Division I level, and the 40th in Hockey East. The Black Bears represented the University of Maine, played their home games at the Alfond Arena and were coached by Ben Barr in his 3rd season.

Season

[edit]

For the second year in a row, Maine had a significant amount of roster turnover but it was the addition of the Nadeau brothers, Bradly and Josh, that brought about the biggest change. The two swiftly established themselves as top offensive threat for the Black Bears and helped chance a middling team into one of the nation's top squads. They were not alone, however, as the defense, led by co-Captain David Breazeale, performed tremendously by routinely holding opposing teams under 30 shots per game.[1] This relatively light workload enabled Victor Östman to get off to a good start and backstop the Bears to a 6–1–1 record by mid-November. With wins over defending champion Quinnipiac and #1 Boston College, Maine shot up the national rankings and found themselves in the top 10 before Thanksgiving.

A sweep at the hands of Boston University briefly halted the teams ascent but Maine proceeded to win the next seven games, including the Ledyard Bank Classic, and were positioned for an NCAA tournament berth by the start of January. Unfortunately, an injury to Östman forced the team to turn to Albin Boija as the starter for several games. The freshman played well at the start but as he assumed the majority of the workload his play began to suffer. Goaltending problems were compounded by a dip in scoring in February that saw the team lose five of six games and drop out of contention for a Hockey East championship. Maine recovered at the end of the season by sweeping Massachusetts to guarantee themselves a bye into the quarterfinal round and punch their ticket to the NCAA tournament.

They faced an old foe, New Hampshire, in the Hockey East tournament. With both teams experiencing a renaissance, the Nadeaus put their stamp on the rivalry by each scoring 4 points in the game.[2] The unambiguous win sent Maine to the semifinals where another long-time rival, BU, used a solid performance on the power play to knock out the Black Bears.[3]

Mine ended the year at #5 in the PairWise rankings, giving the team a #2 seed and setting them against Cornell in the Northeast Regional. Östman got his first start in over a month and the gamble seemed to pay off early when took a lead less than 6 minutes into the game. Shortly afterwards, the Big Red were handed a 5-minute major and the Black Bears had a tremendous opportunity to take over the match. Maine Pressured the Cornell cage for much of the power play but could not increase their lead. Instead, the performance by the Big Red goaltender turned the momentum against Maine and just minutes after the penalty ended, the score was tied. The Black Bears skated hard, searching to regain the lead, but nothing they threw on the net landed. Cornell, too, had its chances but Östman made several sparkling saves to keep the score knotted. Just past the midway point of the match, Cornell finally broke the tie with a straight shot from the right circle. Now with the lead, the Big Red began to play an oppressive brand of defense and limit Maine's chances. The Black Bears were unable to get many opportunities for the rest of the game and, as time slowly ticked away on their season, the team became desperate. Disaster struck when Cornell was able to get a goal off of the rush halfway through the third and all but ended Maine's chances. It wasn't until Östman was pulled that the Bears were able to get many shots on goal but nothing they tried worked and the team went down in defeat.[4]

Departures

[edit]
Player Position Nationality Cause
Dawson Bruneski Defenseman  Canada Graduate transfer to Alaska
Samuel Duerr Defenseman  United States Left program (retired)
Matthew Fawcett Forward  United States Graduation (retired)
Grant Hebert Forward  Canada Graduation (signed with Allen Americans)
Didrik Henbrant Forward  Sweden Graduation (signed with Nottingham Panthers)
Killian Kiecker-Olson Forward  United States Left program (retired)
Robert Kincaid Defenseman  Canada Left program (retired)
Michael Mancinelli Forward  United States Left program (retired)
Justin Michaelian Forward  United States Graduation (signed with Iowa Heartlanders)
Jake Mucitelli Goaltender  United States Left program (retired)
Jakub Sirota Defenseman  Czech Republic Graduation (signed with HC Olomouc)

Recruiting

[edit]
Player Position Nationality Age Notes
Albin Boija Goaltender  Sweden 20 Sundsvall, SWE
Patriks Bērziņš Goaltender  Latvia 20 Talsi, LAT
Anthony Calafiore Forward  United States 21 Staten Island, NY
Jack Dalton Defenseman  United States 20 River Forest, IL; joined mid-season
Ryan Hopkins Defenseman  Canada 19 Lunenburg, NS
Liam Lesakowski Defenseman  United States 19 Buffalo, NY
Bradly Nadeau Forward  Canada 18 Saint-François-de-Madawaska, NB; selected 30th overall in 2023
Josh Nadeau Forward  Canada 19 Saint-François-de-Madawaska, NB
Nicholas Niemo Forward  United States 22 Middlebury, VT; transfer from Bentley
Bodie Nobes Defenseman  Canada 20 Kitchener, ON
Sully Scholle Forward  United States 20 Chaska, MN
Harrison Scott Forward  United States 22 San Jose, CA; transfer from Bentley

Roster

[edit]

As of March 7, 2024.[5]

No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team NHL rights
2 Illinois Jack Dalton Freshman D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 174 lb (79 kg) 2003-07-22 River Forest, Illinois New Mexico (NAHL)
3 New Jersey Luke Antonacci Sophomore D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 171 lb (78 kg) 2002-11-26 Princeton, New Jersey Sioux City (USHL)
4 North Dakota Brandon Holt Sophomore D 5' 11" (1.8 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2001-04-30 Grand Forks, North Dakota New Mexico (NAHL)
5 British Columbia Ryan Hopkins Freshman D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 183 lb (83 kg) 2004-04-15 Penticton, British Columbia Penticton (BCHL)
6 New York (state) Liam Lesakowski Freshman D 6' 5" (1.96 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 2003-12-12 Buffalo, New York Cedar Rapids (USHL)
10 North Dakota Cole Hanson Junior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2000-09-19 Grand Forks, North Dakota Colgate (ECAC)
11 Quebec Donavan Villeneuve-Houle Senior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 196 lb (89 kg) 1999-11-04 Montreal, Quebec Flin Flon (SJHL)
12 British Columbia Ben Poisson (A) Graduate F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 196 lb (89 kg) 1999-08-31 Vancouver, British Columbia Prince George (BCHL)
14 Minnesota Sully Scholle Freshman F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 2003-03-19 Chaska, Minnesota New Mexico (NAHL)
15 New York (state) Brandon Chabrier Sophomore D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 178 lb (81 kg) 2002-07-19 Bayville, New York Madison (USHL)
16 Arizona Aidan Carney Sophomore F 6' 4" (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 2001-09-08 Paradise Valley, Arizona Amarillo (NAHL)
17 Quebec Félix Trudeau Sophomore F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 189 lb (86 kg) 2002-09-24 Terrebonne, Quebec West Kelowna (BCHL)
18 Wisconsin Parker Lindauer Sophomore F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 172 lb (78 kg) 2001-05-17 Madison, Wisconsin Muskegon (USHL)
20 New Brunswick Josh Nadeau Freshman F 5' 8" (1.73 m) 158 lb (72 kg) 2003-10-22 Saint-François-de-Madawaska, New Brunswick Penticton (BCHL)
21 Wisconsin Reid Pabich Sophomore F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2001-10-05 Verona, Wisconsin Madison (USHL)
22 California Harrison Scott Junior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2000-09-27 San Jose, California Bentley (AHA)
23 Ontario Grayson Arnott Sophomore D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 152 lb (69 kg) 2001-06-14 Toronto, Ontario Penticton (BCHL)
24 Saskatchewan Nolan Renwick (A) Sophomore F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 211 lb (96 kg) 2001-02-16 Milestone, Saskatchewan Omaha (USHL)
25 Vermont Nicholas Niemo Sophomore F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 2001-03-28 Middlebury, Vermont Bentley (AHA)
26 Scotland Thomas Freel Sophomore F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 2001-06-26 Aberdeen, Scotland Ottawa (CCHL)
27 New Brunswick Lynden Breen (C) Senior F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 173 lb (78 kg) 2001-05-31 Grand Bay-Westfield, New Brunswick Fargo (USHL)
28 New York (state) Anthony Calafiore Freshman F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 2002-04-06 Staten Island, New York New Jersey (NAHL)
30 Sweden Albin Boija Freshman G 6' 1" (1.85 m) 181 lb (82 kg) 2003-08-20 Sundsvall, Sweden Växjö J20 (J20 Nationell)
32 Sweden Victor Östman Senior G 6' 4" (1.93 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 2000-10-03 Danderyd, Sweden Chicago (USHL)
33 Missouri Connor Androlewicz Senior G 6' 2" (1.88 m) 194 lb (88 kg) 2000-11-28 St. Louis, Missouri Lincoln (USHL)
34 Quebec Bodie Nobes Freshman D 5' 10" (1.78 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2003-07-18 Sainte-Thérèse, Quebec Green Bay (USHL)
37 Michigan David Breazeale (C) Junior D 6' 4" (1.93 m) 201 lb (91 kg) 2000-04-22 Grandville, Michigan Shreveport (NAHL)
39 Latvia Patriks Bērziņš Freshman G 6' 1" (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2003-08-30 Talsi, Latvia Tri-City (USHL)
82 New Brunswick Bradly Nadeau Freshman F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 163 lb (74 kg) 2005-05-05 Saint-François-de-Madawaska, New Brunswick Penticton (BCHL) CAR, 30th overall 2023

Standings

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Conference record Overall record
GP W L T OTW OTL SW PTS GF GA GP W L T GF GA
#2 Boston College †* 24 20 3 1 1 0 1 61 105 56 41 34 6 1 183 89
#3 Boston University 24 18 4 2 1 1 1 57 104 53 40 28 10 2 163 97
#10 Maine 24 14 9 1 0 1 0 44 76 67 37 23 12 2 119 94
#16 Providence 24 11 9 4 3 1 2 37 66 58 35 18 13 4 100 83
#13 Massachusetts 24 12 10 2 4 2 0 36 57 62 37 20 14 3 108 105
#20 New Hampshire 24 12 11 1 1 0 0 36 69 56 36 20 15 1 106 90
Northeastern 24 9 14 1 1 3 0 30 65 71 36 17 16 3 113 97
Connecticut 24 9 14 1 1 1 1 29 49 77 36 15 19 2 90 105
Vermont 24 7 14 3 1 0 3 26 52 81 35 13 19 3 87 106
Merrimack 24 6 17 1 0 1 1 21 62 85 35 13 21 1 98 114
Massachusetts Lowell 24 4 17 3 1 4 0 18 39 78 36 8 24 4 72 113
Championship: March 23, 2024
† indicates regular season champion
* indicates conference tournament champion (Lamoriello Trophy)
Rankings: USCHO Division I Men's Poll

Schedule and results

[edit]
Date Time Opponent# Rank# Site TV Decision Result Attendance Record
Exhibition
October 7 5:00 pm vs. New Hampshire* Jack Kelley RinkWaterville, Maine (Rivalry, Exhibition) ESPN+ Östman W 3–2  1,452
Regular Season
October 12 7:00 pm Renssealer* Alfond ArenaOrono, Maine ESPN+ Östman W 4–1  4,135 1–0–0
October 13 7:00 pm Renssealer* Alfond ArenaOrono, Maine ESPN+ Östman W 6–3  5,143 2–0–0
October 27 7:00 pm at #5 Quinnipiac* M&T Bank ArenaHamden, Connecticut ESPN+, NESN Östman W 2–1 OT 2,771 3–0–0
October 28 7:00 pm at #5 Quinnipiac* M&T Bank ArenaHamden, Connecticut ESPN+ Östman L 1–4  2,614 3–1–0
November 3 7:00 pm at Merrimack #20 J. Thom Lawler RinkNorth Andover, Massachusetts ESPN+ Östman W 2–1  2,438 4–1–0 (1–0–0)
November 4 7:00 pm at Merrimack #20 J. Thom Lawler RinkNorth Andover, Massachusetts ESPN+ Östman W 5–4  2,189 5–1–0 (2–0–0)
November 10 7:00 pm #1 Boston College #13 Alfond ArenaOrono, Maine ESPN+ Östman W 3–2  5,043 6–1–0 (3–0–0)
November 11 7:00 pm #1 Boston College #13 Alfond ArenaOrono, Maine ESPN+ Östman T 2–2 SOL 5,043 6–1–1 (3–0–1)
November 17 7:00 pm at #8 Boston University #9 Agganis ArenaBoston, Massachusetts (Rivalry) ESPN+, NESN Östman L 2–3  4,393 6–2–1 (3–1–1)
November 18 6:00 pm at #8 Boston University #9 Agganis ArenaBoston, Massachusetts (Rivalry) ESPN+ Östman L 4–5  5,858 6–3–1 (3–2–1)
December 1 7:00 pm #15 New Hampshire #11 Alfond ArenaOrono, Maine (Rivalry) ESPN+ Boija W 5–2  5,043 7–3–1 (4–2–1)
December 3 5:00 pm Connecticut #11 Alfond ArenaOrono, Maine ESPN+ Östman W 7–3  4,661 8–3–1 (5–2–1)
December 6 7:00 pm at Union* #8 Achilles RinkSchenectady, New York ESPN+ Östman W 3–1  1,192 9–3–1
December 9 7:00 pm vs. Bentley* #8 Cross Insurance ArenaPortland, Maine ESPN+ Östman W 3–2  6,291 10–3–1
Ledyard Bank Classic
December 29 4:00 pm vs. #18 RIT* #8 Thompson ArenaHanover, New Hampshire (Ledyard Bank Semifinal) ESPN+ Östman W 5–2  2,555 11–3–1
December 30 7:30 pm at Dartmouth* #8 Thompson ArenaHanover, New Hampshire (Ledyard Bank Championship) ESPN+ Östman W 5–1  2,886 12–3–1
January 5 7:00 pm Colgate* #7 Alfond ArenaOrono, Maine ESPN+ Boija W 3–1  4,785 13–3–1
January 6 7:00 pm Colgate* #7 Alfond ArenaOrono, Maine ESPN+ Boija T 4–4 OT 5,043 13–3–2
January 12 7:00 pm at Connecticut #7 XL CenterHartford, Connecticut ESPN+ Östman W 5–3  4,377 14–3–2 (6–2–1)
January 13 3:00 pm at Connecticut #7 XL CenterHartford, Connecticut ESPN+ Boija L 0–2  9,428 14–4–2 (6–3–1)
January 19 7:00 pm Massachusetts Lowell #8 Alfond ArenaOrono, Maine ESPN+ Östman W 5–3  5,043 15–4–2 (7–3–1)
January 20 7:00 pm Massachusetts Lowell #8 Alfond ArenaOrono, Maine ESPN+ Boija W 7–2  5,043 16–4–2 (8–3–1)
February 2 7:00 pm at Northeastern #6 Matthews ArenaBoston, Massachusetts ESPN+ Östman L 3–6  3,507 16–5–2 (8–4–1)
February 3 7:00 pm at #11 Massachusetts #6 Mullins CenterAmherst, Massachusetts ESPN+ Boija W 1–0  7,737 17–5–2 (9–4–1)
February 9 7:00 pm #10 Providence #7 Alfond ArenaOrono, Maine ESPN+ Boija W 2–1  5,043 18–5–2 (10–4–1)
February 10 7:00 pm #10 Providence #7 Alfond ArenaOrono, Maine ESPN+ Boija L 3–4 OT 4,745 18–6–2 (10–5–1)
February 16 7:00 pm at #19 New Hampshire #7 Whittemore CenterDurham, New Hampshire (Rivalry) ESPN+, NESN Boija L 2–6  6,501 18–7–2 (10–6–1)
February 17 7:00 pm at #19 New Hampshire #7 Whittemore CenterDurham, New Hampshire (Rivalry) ESPN+ Östman L 2–5  6,501 18–8–2 (10–7–1)
February 23 7:00 pm Northeastern #9 Alfond ArenaOrono, Maine ESPN+ Boija W 5–1  4,684 19–8–2 (11–7–1)
February 24 7:00 pm Northeastern #9 Alfond ArenaOrono, Maine ESPN+ Boija L 0–4  4,777 19–9–2 (11–8–1)
March 1 7:00 pm at Vermont #9 Gutterson FieldhouseBurlington, Vermont ESPN+ Boija L 1–2  3,218 19–10–2 (11–9–1)
March 2 7:30 pm at Vermont #9 Gutterson FieldhouseBurlington, Vermont ESPN+ Boija W 3–2  3,177 20–10–2 (12–9–1)
March 8 7:00 pm #12 Massachusetts #9 Alfond ArenaOrono, Maine ESPN+ Boija W 2–1  5,043 21–10–2 (13–9–1)
March 9 7:00 pm #12 Massachusetts #9 Alfond ArenaOrono, Maine ESPN+ Boija W 4–3  5,043 22–10–2 (14–9–1)
Hockey East Tournament
March 16 7:00 pm #17 New Hampshire* #8 Alfond ArenaOrono, Maine (Quarterfinal, Rivalry) ESPN+ Boija W 5–0  5,043 23–10–2
March 22 7:30 pm vs. #2 Boston University* #7 TD GardenBoston, Massachusetts (Semifinal, Rivalry) ESPN+, NESN Boija L 1–4  17,850 23–11–2
NCAA Tournament
March 28 5:30 pm vs. #12 Cornell* #6 MassMutual CenterSpringfield, Massachusetts (Northeast Regional Semifinal) ESPNews Östman L 1–3  5,765 23–12–2
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Eastern Time.
Source:[6]

NCAA tournament

[edit]

Regional semifinal

[edit]
March 28, 2024
6:59 pm
(2) Maine1–3
(1–1, 0–1, 0–1)
(3) CornellMassMutual Center
Attendance: 5,765
Game reference
Victor ÖstmanGoaliesIan ShaneReferees:
Colin Kronforst
Andrew Bruggeman
Linesmen:
Sam Shikowsky
Tommy George
(Villeneuve-Houle) Harrison Scott (15) – 5:431–0
1–113:56 – Kyle Penney (10) (Seger)
1–232:09 – GWSullivan Mack (6) (unassisted)
1–350:31 – Sullivan Mack (7) (unassisted)
2 minPenalties5 min
32Shots18

Scoring statistics

[edit]
Name Position Games Goals Assists Points PIM
Bradly Nadeau C/W 37 19 27 46 12
Josh Nadeau LW/RW 37 18 27 45 12
Lynden Breen C 37 9 21 30 20
Harrison Scott F 37 15 12 27 18
Donovan Houle-Villeneuve C 36 9 15 24 22
Brandon Chabrier D 37 6 16 22 22
Thomas Freel C 37 6 16 22 8
Ben Poisson F 37 6 9 15 21
Brandon Holt D 33 4 11 15 18
Sully Scholle F 33 7 4 11 10
Nolan Renwick RW 25 2 9 11 14
David Breazeale D 37 2 7 9 10
Cole Hanson F 34 4 4 8 4
Grayson Arnott D 25 2 3 5 6
Félix Trudeau LW 24 3 2 5 6
Reid Pabich C 21 1 4 5 4
Luke Antonacci D 37 0 5 5 10
Anthony Calafiore RW 19 2 2 4 0
Nicholas Niemo F 17 2 2 4 4
Ryan Hopkins D 24 1 2 3 8
Parker Lindauer F 16 1 1 2 23
Liam Lesakowski D 34 0 2 2 36
Albin Boija G 18 0 1 1 0
John Dalton D 8 0 0 0 0
Victor Östman G 21 0 0 0 0
Bodie Nobes D 19 0 0 0 17
Total 119 202 321 322

[7]

Goaltending statistics

[edit]
Name Games Minutes Wins Losses Ties Goals Against Saves Shut Outs SV % GAA
Albin Boija 18 1014:32 10 6 1 34 373 2 .916 2.01
Victor Östman 21 1197:56 13 6 1 56 462 0 .892 2.80
Empty Net - 21:45 - - - 4 - - - -
Total 37 2234:13 23 12 2 94 835 2 .899 2.52

Rankings

[edit]
Poll Week
Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 (Final)
USCHO.com NR NR NR NR 20 13 9 10 11 8 8 (2) 7 (4) 7 (2) 8 (1) 6 (1) 6 (1) 7 7 9 9 9 8 7 6 10
USA Hockey NR NR NR NR 20т 13 9 12 11 8 8 8 8^ 7 8 6 5 7 8 9 9 9 8 7 6 10 10

Note: USCHO did not release a poll in weeks 11 and 25.[8]
Note: USA Hockey did not release a poll in week 12.

Awards and honors

[edit]
Player Award Ref
Bradly Nadeau Hockey East Second Team [9]
Josh Nadeau Hockey East Third Team [9]
Bradly Nadeau Hockey East Rookie Team [10]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "2023-24 National Team Statistics". College Hockey Inc. Retrieved May 23, 2024.
  2. ^ "Maine vs UNH Hockey East Quarterfinals Game Highlights 2024-03-16". YouTube. Retrieved May 23, 2024.
  3. ^ "Boston University vs. Maine - 2024 Hockey East Semifinal Highlights". YouTube. Retrieved May 23, 2024.
  4. ^ "Maine vs Cornell - NCAA College Hockey - Highlights - March 28, 2024". YouTube. Retrieved May 23, 2024.
  5. ^ "2022-23 Men's Ice Hockey Roster". goblackbears.com. Retrieved September 13, 2016.
  6. ^ "2023-24 Men's Ice Hockey Schedule". Maine Black Bears. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  7. ^ "Univ. of Maine 2023-2024 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  8. ^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  9. ^ a b "HOCKEY EAST NAMES 2023-24 MEN'S ALL-STAR TEAMS". Hockey East. March 15, 2024. Retrieved March 18, 2024.
  10. ^ "HOCKEY EAST NAMES 2023-24 PRO AMBITIONS ALL-ROOKIE TEAM". Hockey East. March 13, 2023. Retrieved March 18, 2023.