Photo Credit: Brian Jenkins

MEN'S HOCKEY NOTEBOOK
The 10th-ranked University of Vermont men’s hockey team (2-2-0, 1-1-0 HEA) returns to action on Friday at 7 p.m. at Maine (1-5-0, 0-2-0 HEA). Friday’s game can be heard live on the flagship station for UVM hockey on WVMT-AM 620 and on the Internet on SportsJuice.com beginning at 6:30 p.m. The game will also be televised throughout Maine on WABI-TV. Video streaming will be available on a pay-per-view basis through Maine All-Access on GoBlackBears.cstv.com.

FAST FACTS
• Vermont went 3-0 against Maine last season with all three victories coming by a single goal. The Catamounts had to overcome a third period deficit in two of the wins. Vermont is 13-13-2 all-time against Maine and 6-4-2 since joining Hockey East.

• The Catamounts are just 2-for-14 on the power play this season while the Black Bears have recorded at least one power-play goal in all six games. Maine is 10-for-37 on the man advantage (27-percent) and sophomore Gustav Nyquist already has three power-play tallies.

• Vermont will be completing a stretch of four road games in the first five contests of the season on Friday. The Catamounts are 1-2 on the road so far this year after going 12-6-1 away from home last season.

• Senior Brayden Irwin leads Vermont in scoring with three goals and six points and has a four-game scoring streak to begin the season. Irwin also has won a team best 52-percent of his face offs. A total of 10 different Catamounts have scored goals in the first four games.

LAST TIME OUT
Sophomore Joe Cannata made 25 saves, five different Merrimack players scored a goal and the Warriors won their third straight game with a 5-2 victory over Vermont at Lawler Arena last Friday night. Junior Kyle Medvec and senior Brayden Irwin scored goals in the loss for the Catamounts. Vermont went 0-for-4 on the power play while Merrimack was 2-for-6. Vermont out shot Merrimack 14-5 in the first period but was out shot 34-27 for the game.

POLL POSITION | USA Today/USA Hockey Poll | USCHO.com Poll | INCH PWR Rankings
Vermont is ranked 10th in the USCHO.com/CBS College Sports Poll and the USA Today/USA Hockey Poll this week. The Catamounts have been ranked in the USCHO.com Poll for 32 straight weeks. Vermont is ranked sixth in the latest Inside College Hockey Power Rakings.

AGAINST RANKED TEAMS
Vermont is 20-16-6 against ranked opponents since the start of the 2007-08 season. The Catamounts are 2-1-0 against ranked teams this season.

OFFENSIVE OUTPUT
Vermont lost its leading scorer from a year ago in Hobey Baker finalist Viktor Stålberg, who ranked fifth in the nation in goals with 24 while posting a team-high 46 points. Last year’s captains Dean Strong, Peter Lenes and Corey Carlson also departed with a combined 272 career points. So far the Catamounts have been able to replace that offense as 10 different players have already scored goals this season and Vermont ranks fourth in the country in scoring with 4.00 goals per game.

D-CORE
Vermont is one of only two teams in Hockey East this season to return all six of its starting defensemen and all of its goaltenders. The Catamounts six returning defensemen have combined to play in 436 career games.

SCOUTING MAINE | Maine Website
Maine is 1-5-0 (0-2-0 HEA) on the season following losses against Massachusetts and New Hampshire on the road last weekend … The Black Bears split a home series against No. 20 Michigan State … Maine was picked eighth in the Hockey East Preseason Coaches’ Poll … Sophomore Gustav Nyquist, a fourth-round pick by the Detroit Red Wings in the 2008 NHL Draft, has a team leading four goals and 10 points … Nyquist has 42 career points in 44 games to lead all active Maine players in scoring … The Black Bears have six NHL Draft picks on the roster … Three different goaltenders have seen time in net for Maine. Sophomore Scott Darling has a 4.19 goals against average and a .851 save percentage in four games while senior Dave Wilson (4.61 GAA, .816 save%) and freshman Shawn Sirman (4.50 GAA, .854 save%) each have played in two games … Darling has a 2.89 GAA and a .890 save percentage in 31 career games … Head coach Tim Whitehead is in his 181-114-33 in nine seasons … Whitehead has guided Maine to four Frozen Fours in eight seasons.

SERIES STUFF
Vermont is 13-13-2 all-time against Maine. The Catamounts are 6-4-2 against the Black Bears since joining Hockey East. UVM is 6-3-1 all-time at Alfond Sports Arena.

VERMONT’S LEADERS AGAINST MAINE
Colin Vock: 9GP – 3G-2A-5P
Josh Burrows: 5GP – 2G-2A-4P
Brayden Irwin: 9GP – 2G-1A-3P
Brian Roloff: 9GP – 0G-3A-3P
Rob Madore: 2GP – 2-0-0, 1.50 GAA, .947 save%

2009-10 HOCKEY EAST PRESEASON COACHES’ POLL

Vermont was picked to finish fourth in the 2009-10 Hockey East Preseason Coaches’ Poll released on Sept. 30 at Hockey East Media Day at the TD Garden in Boston, Mass. It’s the highest Hockey East preseason ranking for the Catamounts since joining the league.

Defending national champion Boston University was selected first in the 2009-10 Hockey East Preseason Coaches’ Poll with six first-place votes and a total of 84 points. UMass-Lowell was picked second and earned two first-place votes and 79 points. Boston College was selected third with 76 points while Vermont and New Hampshire were tied for fourth with 59 points apiece. Northeastern (57 points), Massachusetts (47 points), Maine (32 points), Providence (24 points) and Merrimack (23 points) rounded out the 10-team preseason poll.

2009-10 Hockey East Preseason Coaches’ Poll

First-Place Votes in Parenthesis

1. Boston University (6) - 84

2. UMass-Lowell (2) - 79

3. Boston College (2) - 76

4. Vermont - 59

4. New Hampshire - 59
6. Northeastern - 57

7. Massachusetts - 47

8. Maine - 32

9. Providence - 24

10. Merrimack - 23

CATAMOUNTS IN THE NHL
Six former Catamounts began the 2009-10 season in the National Hockey League including Viktor Stålberg, who was a Hobey Baker finalist last season with Vermont. Stålberg earned a spot on the Toronto Maple Leafs and has been playing on the team’s top line. Stålberg joined Torrey Mitchell ‘07 (San Jose), Martin St. Louis ‘97 (Tampa Bay), Patrick Sharp ‘02 (Chicago), Jaime Sifers ‘06 (Minnesota) and Tim Thomas ‘97 (Boston) in the NHL.

NHL AWARDS
Vermont is the only college hockey program in the country that is home to the NHL's Hart, Pearson and Vezina trophies. Tim Thomas '97 won the Vezina trophy with the Boston Bruins last season and Martin St. Louis '97 collected the Hart and Pearson trophies in 2003-04 on his way to leading the Tampa Bay Lightning to the Stanley Cup.

TWO-SPORT MILO
Junior Justin Milo spent the summer playing professional baseball with the New York Yankees organization. Milo was a 37th round draft pick by the Yankees in the 2009 MLB draft and spent the majority of the summer playing for the Staten Island Yankees in the New York-Penn League. Milo hit .257 with a home run and 12 RBIs in 25 games in helping Staten Island win the NYP League championship. Vermont’s most prominent hockey/professional baseball player is Kirk McCaskill ’83, who spent 14 seasons in the major leagues with the California Angels and Chicago White Sox. McCaskill was a Hobey Baker finalist for the Catamounts in 1982. Milo is currently out indefinitely with a foot injury.

SWEDISH CONNECTION
The Catamounts have three freshmen on their roster with ties to Sweden. Tobias Nilsson-Roos and Sebastian Stålberg both grew up in Sweden while Anders Franzon spent the 2007-08 season playing for Vastera in the Swedish Superelite Junior League. Sebastian Stålberg is the younger brother of Viktor Stålberg, who was a Hobey Baker finalist with the Catamounts in 2008-09. Viktor Stålberg signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs following last season and earned a spot on Toronto’s roster for the start of the 2009-10 NHL season.

CLUTCH CATAMOUNTS
Vermont is 22-12 in one-goal games dating back to the start of the 2007-08 season following a 5-4 loss Denver in the season opener on Oct. 9. Since the 2004-05 season the Catamounts are 43-29 in one-goal games under head coach Kevin Sneddon.

SCORE FOUR
Vermont is unbeaten in 52 of its last 54 games when scoring at least four goals following a 4-1 victory against No. 12 Boston College on Oct. 18. The only losses in that stretch for the Catamounts are a 6-5 overtime defeat to No. 9 New Hampshire on March 7, 2009 at Gutterson Fieldhouse and a 5-4 loss to Denver at Magness Arena on Oct. 9, 2009.

TOUGH TICKET
The Catamounts have sold out 95 of their last 103 home games and had a streak of 65 straight sellouts at one point during that stretch. Overall, Vermont has sold out 270 of the last 357 games at Gutterson Fieldhouse dating back to November of 1987.

HOME COOKING
Vermont is 364-259-45 all-time at Gutterson Fieldhouse. The Catamounts are 57-39-19 (.578) at home under head coach Kevin Sneddon. Last year the Catamounts went 10-6-4 at home and are off to a 1-0 start at home this season.

OUT OF THE GATE
Vermont is 51-16-13 in its last 80 games when scoring first after a 5-4 loss to No. 1 Denver in the season opener.

CLOSERS
Vermont is 79-5-11 in its last 95 games when leading after two periods during the Kevin Sneddon era. The Catamounts are 29-2-3 since the start of the 2007-08 season when leading after 40 minutes. This season Vermont is 2-1 when leading after two periods.

CATAMOUNT DRAFT PICKS

Vermont has four players on its roster that have been drafted by a NHL franchise. Junior Kyle Medvec was a fourth-round selection (102 overall) by Minnesota in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft. Sophomore Matt Marshall was a fifth-round pick by Tampa Bay in the 2007 draft (150 overall) while sophomore Drew MacKenzie was selected in the seventh-round (209 overall) by Buffalo. Freshman David Pacan was a sixth-round pick (177 overall) by Chicago in the 2009 draft.

NEWCOMERS

The Catamounts add six newcomers to the roster in the 2009-10. Vermont welcomes five freshmen forwards: Ben Albertson (Williston, Vt.), Chris McCarthy (Collegeville, Pa.), Tobias Nilsson-Roos (Malmo, Sweden), David Pacan (Ottawa, Ont.) and Sebastian Stålberg (Gothenburg, Sweden). Anders Franzon (Plattsburgh, N.Y.) is the lone freshman defenseman.

WHO’S NEXT

Vermont returns home next weekend for a pair of games. The Catamounts host UMass-Lowell on Friday (Nov. 6) at 7:05 p.m. and Providence on Sunday (Nov. 8) at 4 p.m.

2009-10 MEN’S HOCKEY TV SCHEDULE
(Dates, times and networks, subject to change)
Fri., Oct. 9 – at Denver – 9:30pm (EST) – Fox Sports Rocky Mountain
Sun., Oct. 18 – vs. Boston College – 5:00pm – ESPNU
Fri., Oct. 30 – at Maine – 7:00pm – WABI-TV
Sun., Dec. 6 – vs. New Hampshire – 3:00pm – ESPNU
Sun., Jan. 24 – at Massachusetts – 4:00pm – ESPNU
Sat., Feb. 6 – at Providence – 7:00pm – Cox Sports
Fri., Feb. 19 – at New Hampshire – 7:30pm – NESN
Fri., Feb. 26 – vs. Boston University – 7:30pm – NESN
Sun., Feb. 28 – vs. Boston University – 3:00pm – ESPNU

WEBCASTING VIA B2 NETWORKS | B2 Networks
Watch all home Vermont men's hockey games live on the Internet via B2 Networks. View each game on a pay-per-view basis for $7.00 each or buy a season package for $75. Log onto www.UVMathletics.com for more information.

RADIO
All University of Vermont men’s hockey games will once again be broadcast live on WVMT AM-620. All men’s hockey games can also be heard on the Internet via SportsJuice.com by logging on the www.UVMathletics.com.

KEVIN SNEDDON COACHES’ SHOW | WVMT Website
The Kevin Sneddon Coaches’ Show airs on WVMT AM-620 on Thursday at 9:30 a.m. throughout the season. The show can also be heard on the Internet at newstalk620wvmt.com.

CATAMOUNTS ALL-ACCESS | Click Here
Visit the Catamounts All-Access page at UVMathletics.com for information on how to get results of your favorite Catamount teams minutes after the conclusion of the game via a text message on your cell phone via eScores. The feature is available to anyone with a cell phone, regardless of cell phone service provider.

Also, stay up-to-date with the Catamounts. Sign up for the Vermont Men's Hockey eNews, offered free of charge by the Athletic Communications Office. Receive all the latest news and notes, as well as complete game summaries for every contest via your personal e-mail account.

Catamounts All-Access also includes links to UVM's other social networking sites like Flickr and YouTube, Vermont's television schedule, live stats, live audio streaming and wallpaper for your computer.

FOLLOW THE CATAMOUNTS ON TWITTER | Click Here
Fans can follow the Catamounts on Twitter. The department has a general Twitter account @UVMAthletics and the men's hockey team also has a Twitter account @UVM_M_Hockey. Follow @UVMAthletics for general news on the department and/or follow @UVM_M_Hockey for more in-depth coverage of the team, including in-game updates throughout the season.

PHOTO STORE | Click Here
Catamount faithful can purchase athletic pictures at www.UVMathletics.com via the Vermont Photo Store. Pictures make great gifts for holidays, home wall art, or office decorations. Powered by Replay Photos, the website will feature pictures of all 18 sports, including game action photos from the 2009-10 season.

GET YOUR GEAR | Click Here
The UVM athletic department, in conjunction with TeamFanShop, has launched its first-ever merchandise and apparel store through the school's official athletic site at UVMathletics.com. The new online store includes hats, polo shirts, shorts, t-shirts, gifts and much more from several leading manufacturers.