UMaine to play Mercyhurst in Portland

The Cumberland County Civic Center in Portland is the home away from home for University of Maine men’s hockey team.

And it has certainly provided the Black Bears with some “home cooking” in recent years.

The Bears look to extend their CCCC unbeaten streak to 10 games tonight when they face the Mercyhurst (Pa.) College Lakers at 7 o’clock.

Maine is 7-0-2 in its last nine games in Portland, including five consecutive wins.

Maine, ranked third in the country, enters the game with a 10-3-1 record. Mercyhurst, which plays in the Atlantic Hockey Association, is 4-10-3 after being picked to win the conference in the preseason coaches’ poll.

“It’s like having a home game on different ice,” said Maine senior left wing Josh Soares. “There’s always a great atmosphere down there. A lot of them don’t get a chance to see us play [in Orono]. They have a good time.”

“It’s a bigger building and it seems like you have more space out on the ice,” added Soares, who likes the extra space because it gives him more time to make plays.

“The fans are pretty rowdy. I’m really excited. It’s going to be fun,” said sophomore goalie Ben Bishop, who is making his Portland debut.

Matt Lundin’s exceptional 28-save performance last year helped Maine rally for a 2-1 win over Brown.

Maine coach Tim Whitehead said the energetic crowd has been the primary ingredient behind the Bears’ success there in recent years.

“They were a big reason for our comeback last year,” said Whitehead.

The game is already sold out. The crowd has averaged 6,750 in Maine’s last four appearances. Seating capacity for hockey is listed at 6,736.

Whitehead is hoping his Bears don’t dig themselves a hole like they did last year, trailing 1-0 after two sluggish periods.

“We want to come right out of the gate playing well. We want to set the tone in the first period,” said Whitehead.

Rick Gotkin has led the Lakers to NCAA Tournament appearances in 2001, 2003 and 2005 but has lost several key players the past two offseasons.

“We always look at the next game as an opportunity to turn our season around and that’s how we’re looking at Saturday night. It’s another opportunity to do some good things and turn it around,” said Gotkin, who is in his 19th year at Mercyhurst and has a record of 342-208-36.

“There’s no question Maine gets up and down the ice as well as any team in the country. Maybe better. There aren’t many deficiencies. We’re going to have to play the game of our year to have any chance to be successful,” added Gotkin.

He said playing a team like Maine in the national spotlight is “great for our program and great for our community.”

Whitehead will unveil a new fourth line for the game.

Sophomore Chris Hahn, who missed the last four games with a shoulder injury, will play left wing with junior Wes Clark at center and sophomore Vince Laise at right wing.

Clark was a healthy scratch the previous two games and Laise will be making his debut after playing eight games last year and in the 3-2 overtime exhibition win Dec. 6 over the University of New Brunswick.

“I’m excited to see them play. They’re all hungry to get back into the lineup. They can all skate,” said Whitehead.

The game will serve as a homecoming for Maine’s Matt Duffy from Windham.

“I’ll have over 20 family members and friends there,” said the sophomore defenseman.