ORONO, Maine —- After eight non-conference games, the University of Maine men’s hockey team plays its first Hockey East series this weekend against Boston College.
The teams play Friday at 7 p.m. at Portland’s Cross Insurance Arena and meet Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at Alfond Arena in Orono.
It is believed to be Boston College’s first trip to Portland.
UMaine (3-3-2) is mired in a five-game winless streak (0-3-2) while the fifth-ranked Eagles (6-2-1) are riding a six-game unbeaten streak (5-0-1).
The Black Bears had thrived at the Cross Insurance Arena until the last two seasons when they have gone 0-2-2 at the former Cumberland County Civic Center. The losses came against archrival New Hampshire and the ties in last season IceBreaker Tournament were to North Dakota and Michigan State.
They had won their previous four games in Portland.
With the American Hockey League’s Portland Pirates having moved to Springfield this season, that opened up more dates for UMaine. This is the first of three games in Portland this season.
Two will be Hockey East games.
UMaine also plays Notre Dame in Portland on Feb. 10 and has a non-league game against Brown University on Nov. 26.
“I like playing there a lot. It’s fun,” said UMaine senior defenseman and assistant captain Eric Schurhamer. “It’s awesome to see how far our fan base reaches.”
“It’s always a great atmosphere,” said junior center Cedric Lacroix. “Everything is first class from the hotel to the arena. They let us use the Pirates’ locker room last year. Everything is there for us. All the guys are really excited.
“It doesn’t give us the same advantage as playing at the Alfond but it’s the second-best thing,” added Lacroix.
UMaine has submitted a bid to host a regional tournament at the Cross Insurance Arena for the first time and they will know if it was a successful one this spring.
They had originally expected to know in December but it has been pushed back by the NCAA.
“We put in a great proposal,” said UMaine senior associate athletic director for development Seth Woodcock. “The Maine Sports Commission was exceptional. We feel really good about it.”
The Maine Sports Commission, which also facilitated the playing of the first three rounds of the America East Women’s Basketball Championship tournament in Portland in 2017 and 2018, partnered with UMaine on the hockey proposal.
The Black Bears are also anxious about beginning their Hockey East schedule.
“It’s like a new season,” said UMaine junior left wing Nolan Vesey.
“It’s really good for us,” said Schurhamer. “BC always has a good team. It’s going to be another good test for us. We’ll see how we match up.”