It was Seniors Night at Alfond Arena and you couldn’t have scripted a better ending for UMaine senior center and co-captain Lynden Breen.
Breen’s 100th career point turned out to be a game-winning goal with 1:17 remaining as the Black Bears completed a sweep of UMass, 4-3, before another sellout crowd at the University of Maine’s Alfond Arena on Saturday night.
UMaine improved to 22-10-2 overall and wound up 14-9-1 in Hockey East which is good enough for third place behind regular season champion Boston College and runnerup Boston University.
UMaine earned a first-round bye and will now host the highest seeded survivor following Wednesday’s preliminary round games between seeds six through 11 in Saturday’s 7 p.m. quarterfinal at the Alfond Arena.
It also means regardless of their playoff outcome, the Black Bears are all but assured a spot in the 16-team NCAA Tournament field for the first time since the 2011-12 season.
UMass wound up 19-12-3 and 12-10-2 including three one-goal losses to UMaine.
UMass will be the fifth seed and will travel to take on fourth seed Providence in next Saturday’s quarterfinals. UMass would have been the fourth seed if it beat UMaine in any fashion: regulation, overtime or a shootout.
UMaine jumped out to a 2-0 lead on power play goals by Harrison Scott and Sully Scholle at the 5:18 and 10:37 marks of the first period. It was Scott’s 14th goal of the season and Scholle’s seventh.
Lucas Mercuri notched his eighth for UMass just 38 seconds after Scholle had scored and that triggered a run of three unanswered goals for the Minutemen.
Cole O’Hara tied it on the power play at the 4:15 mark of the second period with his seventh and Jack Musa collected his 12th only 2:05 later. It was an even-strength goal.
Josh Nadeau tied it for UMaine at the 11:22 mark of the second period, his 16th of his freshman campaign.
The desperate Minutemen poured it on in the third period looking for the game-winner and seemed the likelier of the two teams to break the deadlock.
UMass outshot UMaine 16-5 in the third period but freshman goalie Albin Boija stopped all 16, including a number of Grade-A (high-percentage) shots and Breen took full advantage of a costly UMass turnover to win it.
A UMass player tried to make a breakout pass but it hit his teammate’s skate and landed on Breen’s stick in the high slot.
“I hadn’t had any chances like that. I was getting hit every time I had the puck,” said Breen, whose goal was his eighth of the season and 41st of his career to go with 59 assists. “God was on my side. I got the puck and went down the left side. I was still quite far out but I decided to shoot against the grain for the far side and it found a pocket under (goalie Michael Hrabal’s) glove.”
“I never predict this kind of stuff but I thought Lynden was going to score. I really did,” said UMaine head coach Ben Barr.
“We got outplayed in the third period. We were out of juice,” said Barr. “But he’s a guy who always finds a way to give us some juice.
“It was fitting that he scored. He cares so much about this place,” added Barr.
“UMass was the better team tonight. They probably deserved to win. But that’s hockey. We have a lot of heart in our dressing room,” Barr said.
“I was so happy for him,” said graduate student left wing and Breen’s linemate Ben Poisson. “To end it like that was awesome for him and the team.”
UMass coach Greg Carvel said he “really liked” the way his team played.
“I didn’t like our game last night (2-1 loss). But we played to our standard tonight,” said Carvel. “It’s Hockey East. You have to play your best and hope for the right bounce and Maine got the bounce at the end.”
Scott gave UMaine a 1-0 lead with a one-timer off a Donavan Houle pass and Scholle scored in a similar fashion off a Brandon Holt feed.
Mercuri scored with a close-range one-timer off a Taylor Makar pass from behind the net and O’Hara and Musa scored off rebounds from the left circle off point shots from Owen Murray and O’Hara, respectively.
Nadeau equalized off a perfectly-executed 3-on-2 as Nolan Renwick dropped the puck to Bradly Nadeau and he slipped the puck to his brother for a one-timer into the short side corner.
Boija finished with 34 saves in an outstanding performance and Hrabal was also solid as he turned aside 24 shots.
In addition to Breen and Poisson, right wing Houle and goalies Victor Ostman and Connor Androlewicz were all honored during Seniors Night festivities after the game.