College hockey

MAINE vs. UMASS-LOWELL

Time, site: Friday and Saturday, 7 p.m.; Tully Forum, Billerica, Mass.

Records: Maine 12-3-2 (5-2-2 HE); UMass-Lowell 8-3-2 (5-2)

Series: Maine leads 29-18

Key players: Maine – RW Shawn Wansborough (15 goals, 7 assists), C Tim Lovell (9 & 9), D Jeff Tory (2 & 16), C Dan Shermerhorn (6 & 10), C Brad Purdie (4 & 12), G Blair Allison (9-3-2, 3.10 goals-against average, .884 save percentage); UMass-Lowell – C Jeff Daw (6 & 13), LW Neil Donovan (11 & 7), RW Brendan Concannon (8 & 10), C Christian Sbrocca (6 & 9), D Ed Campbell (2 & 11), G Martin Fillion (8-2-1, 3.48, .876)

Outlook: Maine has won seven straight. UMass-Lowell has scored 22 goals in its last three games. The River Hawks have the best power-play scoring percentage in league play (28.6 percent) and Maine has the best penalty-killing percentage (90.2 percent). The line of Donovan-Daw-Concannon has accounted for 34 percent of UMass-Lowell’s point production. Maine is 6-2 in its last eight games at Tully Forum, although the two losses were ties that became forfeit losses due to the use of ineligible players. Each team has quick forwards who forecheck aggressively and each has two defensemen among its top seven scorers. The River Hawks were the most penalized team in the league a year ago, but their penalty minutes are down 25 percent this season.

UML standout checker Marc Salsman could shadow Wansborough.