No. 12/13 Mavericks Square Off With No. 4/5 Miami
Dec 4, 2014 | Hockey
This Week
The No. 12/13 Omaha Mavericks will play in their fifth road series of the season this weekend when they visit No. 4/5 Miami on Friday and Saturday, Dec. 5-6. Friday's game begins at 7:35 p.m. ET, and Saturday's game starts at 7:05 p.m. ET from Steve Cady Arena in Oxford, Ohio.
The Teams
The Mavericks are 7-3-2 overall this season and 3-2-1-1 in the NCHC this season, putting them in fourth place. They are coming off a tie/shootout win and loss at then-No. 2 North Dakota last weekend. UNO trails the all-time series with Miami, 10-17-4, and is 3-10-3 all-time in Oxford. The Mavericks are unbeaten in their last five games vs. Miami (4-0-1) and are 5-1-2 on the road this season.
The RedHawks are 10-4-0 overall and 6-2-0-0 in the NCHC this season, good for first place. Miami is coming off a bye weekend. Its most recent series was a home sweep (1-0, 5-2) of Western Michigan on Nov. 21-22. Overall, Miami is 7-1-0 at home this season and has won five straight in Oxford.
Last Time Out
The Mavericks opened their weekend at North Dakota with a 2-2 tie and a 1-0 shootout win on Friday before losing 3-2 the following night. On Friday, UND's Gage Ausmus broke a scoreless deadlock 7:43 into the second period, but the Mavericks got a goal from Tyler Vesel just 29 seconds later to tie it. Justin Parizek then scored his fourth goal in the last five games at 17:16 of the stanza to put Omaha up, 2-1, at the break. Nick Schmaltz tied the game for UND at 3:00 of the third to force the shootout. Ryan Massa stopped all three UND shots, and Dominic Zombo scored on UNO's third attempt for the extra point. Massa finished with 24 saves.
On Saturday, UND jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first on goals by Jordan Schmaltz and Mark MacMillan. Omaha halved the lead with a goal from Jake Randolph at 15:52 of the second, but Stephane Pattyn scored shorthanded just 2:15 later to make it 3-1. UNO's Grant Gallo scored at 13:48 of the third but in spite of a 15-3 shot edge in the third, the Mavericks couldn't even it. Massa stopped 20 in the game.
The Coaches
Dean Blais is in his sixth year as the head coach of the Mavericks, having led UNO to two 20-win campaigns in that time. The 1973 graduate of Minnesota has posted a record of 360-204-53 (.626) in his career as a head coach and has guided the Mavericks to a mark of 98-89-20 (.522). He coached in his 200th game at UNO on Oct. 31 at Cornell.
Blais is a two-time Spencer Penrose Memorial Award winner as the Division I coach of the year and a four-time winner of the WCHA's Coach of the Year Award. He spent 10 years as head coach at North Dakota where he led UND to national championships in 1997 and 2000. He is assisted by coaches Troy Jutting and Alex Todd who both have extensive head coaching experience, Jutting at Minnesota State and Todd at Castleton (Vt.) State.
Enrico Blasi is in his 16th season as head coach of Miami. The 1994 MU graduate is 336-220-56 all-time at his alma mater. He is assisted by Brent Brekke and Nick Petraglia.
Media
Both games can be heard live on 1180 The Zone 2. Dave Ahlers will have the play-by-play, and Terry Leahy will handle the analysis. Coverage begins 30 minutes before game time with the First National Bank Pre-Game Show. Streaming video is available through NCHC.tv, while live audio and live stats are available at OMavs.com. In addition, Friday's game will appear on Fox College Sports.
Up Next For the Mavericks
The Mavericks will begin an eight-game home stand next weekend when they welcome St. Cloud State on Friday and Saturday, Dec. 12-13. Friday's game begins at 7:37 p.m., and Saturday's contest starts at 8:07 p.m. from the CenturyLink Center.
The No. 12/13 Omaha Mavericks will play in their fifth road series of the season this weekend when they visit No. 4/5 Miami on Friday and Saturday, Dec. 5-6. Friday's game begins at 7:35 p.m. ET, and Saturday's game starts at 7:05 p.m. ET from Steve Cady Arena in Oxford, Ohio.
The Teams
The Mavericks are 7-3-2 overall this season and 3-2-1-1 in the NCHC this season, putting them in fourth place. They are coming off a tie/shootout win and loss at then-No. 2 North Dakota last weekend. UNO trails the all-time series with Miami, 10-17-4, and is 3-10-3 all-time in Oxford. The Mavericks are unbeaten in their last five games vs. Miami (4-0-1) and are 5-1-2 on the road this season.
The RedHawks are 10-4-0 overall and 6-2-0-0 in the NCHC this season, good for first place. Miami is coming off a bye weekend. Its most recent series was a home sweep (1-0, 5-2) of Western Michigan on Nov. 21-22. Overall, Miami is 7-1-0 at home this season and has won five straight in Oxford.
Last Time Out
The Mavericks opened their weekend at North Dakota with a 2-2 tie and a 1-0 shootout win on Friday before losing 3-2 the following night. On Friday, UND's Gage Ausmus broke a scoreless deadlock 7:43 into the second period, but the Mavericks got a goal from Tyler Vesel just 29 seconds later to tie it. Justin Parizek then scored his fourth goal in the last five games at 17:16 of the stanza to put Omaha up, 2-1, at the break. Nick Schmaltz tied the game for UND at 3:00 of the third to force the shootout. Ryan Massa stopped all three UND shots, and Dominic Zombo scored on UNO's third attempt for the extra point. Massa finished with 24 saves.
On Saturday, UND jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first on goals by Jordan Schmaltz and Mark MacMillan. Omaha halved the lead with a goal from Jake Randolph at 15:52 of the second, but Stephane Pattyn scored shorthanded just 2:15 later to make it 3-1. UNO's Grant Gallo scored at 13:48 of the third but in spite of a 15-3 shot edge in the third, the Mavericks couldn't even it. Massa stopped 20 in the game.
The Coaches
Dean Blais is in his sixth year as the head coach of the Mavericks, having led UNO to two 20-win campaigns in that time. The 1973 graduate of Minnesota has posted a record of 360-204-53 (.626) in his career as a head coach and has guided the Mavericks to a mark of 98-89-20 (.522). He coached in his 200th game at UNO on Oct. 31 at Cornell.
Blais is a two-time Spencer Penrose Memorial Award winner as the Division I coach of the year and a four-time winner of the WCHA's Coach of the Year Award. He spent 10 years as head coach at North Dakota where he led UND to national championships in 1997 and 2000. He is assisted by coaches Troy Jutting and Alex Todd who both have extensive head coaching experience, Jutting at Minnesota State and Todd at Castleton (Vt.) State.
Enrico Blasi is in his 16th season as head coach of Miami. The 1994 MU graduate is 336-220-56 all-time at his alma mater. He is assisted by Brent Brekke and Nick Petraglia.
Media
Both games can be heard live on 1180 The Zone 2. Dave Ahlers will have the play-by-play, and Terry Leahy will handle the analysis. Coverage begins 30 minutes before game time with the First National Bank Pre-Game Show. Streaming video is available through NCHC.tv, while live audio and live stats are available at OMavs.com. In addition, Friday's game will appear on Fox College Sports.
Up Next For the Mavericks
The Mavericks will begin an eight-game home stand next weekend when they welcome St. Cloud State on Friday and Saturday, Dec. 12-13. Friday's game begins at 7:37 p.m., and Saturday's contest starts at 8:07 p.m. from the CenturyLink Center.
Players Mentioned
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