UMass announces 2007-08 schedule

Hockey
Joe Meloni

The Massachusetts hockey team announced its schedule for the upcoming 2007-2008 season.

The Minutemen open their season with a rematch of the opening round of the NCAA Tournament against the Clarkson Golden Knights. UMass defeated Clarkson, 1-0, in overtime in the tournament and also tied Clarkson, 3-3, on Oct. 14 at the Mullins Center.

UMass-Lowell travels to Amherst on Oct. 19 to kick off the Hockey East portion of the schedule for the Mass Attack.

Last season, the Minutemen won the season series with Boston College for the first time ever. The Eagles travel to Amherst on Nov. 16 for the first end of a home-and-home series with the Minutemen. The third game of the season set is on Feb. 8 in Amherst.

UMass ends the season at Merrimack on March 8. Before that, the Minutemen travel to Orono, Maine for two games on Feb. 22 and 23. The series with the Black Bears should be instrumental in deciding the postseason positioning for UMass. The next weekend, UMass plays a home-and-home with Boston University. BU was the only Hockey East team that the Minutemen didn't defeat last season.

Over winter break, the Minutemen travel to Tampa, Fla., for the Lightning College Hockey Classic. They open up the tournament against Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish, like the Minutemen, are coming off the best season in program history. Colorado College and Rensselaer are the two other teams in the tournament.

On Dec. 2, the USA Under-18 National Team comes to Amherst for an exhibition with the Minutemen.

The ability to schedule exhibitions like this speaks to the emergence of UMass as a legitimate hockey program in the Northeast.