Ben Murphy and John Ronan had productive freshman seasons for the University of Maine men’s hockey team. They were on an all-freshman line with Paul Falco and the trio combined for seven points in four NCAA Tournament games.

Falco was dismissed from the program after being charged with trafficking marijuana and Murphy and Ronan had sub-par sophomore seasons that included time in the stands as healthy scratches.

Although they are on different lines, both are off to good starts this season as Murphy has three assists in three games while Ronan has a goal.

“They have played very well,” said coach Tim Whitehead. “They have been very important to our strong start. We needed some upperclassmen to elevate their games, I wanted to give them an opportunity at the start of the season to see if they could, and they have done that.”

The Bears travel to Canton, Ohio to take on St. Lawrence in 7 p.m. games Friday and Saturday.

Whitehead said they have been exceptional penalty-killers “and they play with a lot of heart. They block shots, get to the front of the net and they’re team guys, that’s for sure.”

Murphy and Ronan said they both worked hard on their skating over the summer, knowing they would have to compete for playing time.

“My edges weren’t real good so I lost a lot of balance that way. I really focused on that and it’s starting to pay off,” said Murphy, who had 16 points as a freshman and 11 a year ago.

“I had to get quicker,” said Ronan, who slipped from nine points to four a year ago. “I’m not the fastest guy out there by any means. I did a lot of stuff like plyometrics and working on my first step.”

Ronan also said he needed to become more consistent and the key was “staying positive and working hard all the time.”

They said they knew five veteran forwards were leaving after last season and spots were available.

But nothing was guaranteed.

“Every year, you have to fight for ice time. The team is so good and there is so much depth,” said center Murphy.

“We’re a consistently top-tier program. We don’t rebuild. We reload. Now that we’re upperclassmen, it’s a chance to be leaders and that definitely weighs on our performance,” said right winger Ronan. “We knew everything was up for grabs from first line to the fourth line.”

Both said hard work and maintaining a positive attitude have been crucial.

“Last year, the team was pretty negative coming down the stretch and that really hurt us. We’re trying to make sure everyone has a positive attitude and that we’re having fun out there. That makes the game so much better,” said Murphy.

They are pleased with their starts and the team’s 3-0 mark but warned that this weekend’s series at St. Lawrence won’t be easy.

“Anybody can knock you off. It’ll be a good experience playing a non-conference series in a hostile environment before we go down to UNH and BC,” said Murphy.

“We’re really going to have to come together and play as a team. We’ll need our road warrior mentality,” said Ronan.