Topsy Turvy. That would be two words to describe the 2025-26 men’s hockey season for the University of Maine Black Bears.
Maine, who was ranked #16 in the most recent USCHO National Poll, now has a week off before returning to action at UMass-Lowell for a two game conference series on January 23rd and 24th. The Black Bears were dominated in almost every facet in being swept at Providence College this past weekend by scores of 6-1 and 3-0. It now doesn’t seem possible that they can climb into the top 16 of the NPI, which mirrors the NCAA Tournament selection, as they now sit in 29th with 11 games left in the regular season. Of those 11 games, only four (1 at Boston University, 1 vs Providence, and 2 vs UConn) are against teams in the top 20 of the NPI. Maine had put themselves in a better position (#22) by beating and tying Denver on the road in the opening series of 2026, but the PC series now has really set them back and likely in a position where the only road to the NCAA Tournament will be to defend and win the Hockey East Championship.
The Black Bears only have four true road games left (2 at UMass-Lowell, 1 at BU, 1 at Vermont), while playing on home ice at Alfond Arena for five contests (1 vs Providence, 2 vs UConn, 2 vs Merrimack). The other two will be at neutral sites (Portland and Lowell, Massachusetts) the weekend of February 27-28 against Northeastern. Maine, currently 12-9-2 and 6-7-0 in Hockey East, will need to finish in the top eight in the league to get a home conference playoff in Orono. The top four get a first round bye and advance to host a quarterfinal, avoiding an opening round game. The Hockey East semifinals and championship game is scheduled for Friday, March 20 and Saturday, March 21 at TD Garden in Boston. As of now, Maine is tied for fifth place with Northeastern with 16 points. The Huskies (11 Hockey East games played- 16 points), UNH (9 games- 15 points), and Vermont (11 games played- 15 points) have all played less games than the Black Bears (13).
Photos are courtesy of UMaine Athletics
