UVM hosts UMass tonight
Toolbox
Staff Report - Published: November 24, 2009
BURLINGTON – The No. 18 University of Vermont men's hockey team will face No. 9 Massachusetts today, marking the 13th consecutive season the two teams have met the Tuesday before Thanksgiving.
The Catamounts hold a 7-4-1 edge in the annual tradition, with this year's game returning to Gutterson Fieldhouse for a 7:05 p.m. faceoff.
Vermont (4-4-1 overall, 3-3-1 Hockey East) has gone eight days in between games after splitting a weekend series at Boston College on Nov. 14 and 15. Senior Mike Spillane made 30 saves to lead the Catamounts to a 3-2 victory in the second game of the weekend against the Eagles. He earned Hockey East Defensive Player of the Week for the second straight week for his performance.
"When we've watched Mike over the last couple of games, the one comment we've talked about as a staff is he just looks like he's got a great presence in the net," Vermont coach Kevin Sneddon said. "He's very calm, he's very confident, he's challenging very well and he just seems very comfortable."
Spillane improved to 2-0 with a 2.14 goals-against average and a .931 save percentage with the victory against Boston College.
"You work hard at the things that will make you confident, like paying attention to the details of the game," Spillane said. "I worked real hard this summer on the mind aspect of the game since I couldn't do much physical activity for the first couple of months. I think it's paid a lot of dividends both in practice and in games. It's exciting to see something you work hard at pay off."
The Minutemen enter Tuesday's contest as one of the hottest teams in the country. UMass is 8-2 following a 4-3 overtime victory at No. 9 Yale last Thursday.
Junior James Marcou, who has emerged as an early season Hobey Baker Award candidate, leads UMass in scoring with 16 points. Marcou's 12 assists rank second best in the country. The 5-foot-8, 165-pound forward has 95 points (27 goals, 68 assists) in 85 career games.
"He's one of the best players in the league, by far," Sneddon said. "He's very cerebral and very talented. You try to be physical with him and he can handle that. He doesn't disappear when there is physical play."
Vermont is unbeaten in seven straight games against UMass, with the last five contests being decided by one goal or ending in a tie. The Catamounts went 2-0-1 against the Minutemen last season.
Approximately 100 tickets remain for tonight's game.
Tickets are currently available online at www.UVMathletics.com and will be on sale at the UVM Athletic Ticket Office located in Patrick Gymnasium on Tuesday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. or by calling the ticket office at 1-866-4CAT-TIX. All tickets remaining are $15 general admission tickets in the student section.
27