In a rare midweek game, the UNE hockey team will host the Franklin Pierce Ravens Wednesday afternoon in their last home game before hitting the road for the next four. The squad is still seeking its first home win after a disappointing weekend which featured an OT loss to New England College and an ugly penalty-filled defeat at the hands of St. Anselm.
The Ravens, a Northeast-10 conference member, come to Biddeford in the midst of a five-game losing streak, and are fresh off a pair of beatings they suffered last weekend against SUNY Geneseo. Overall, Franklin Pierce has stumbled to a 3-12 record with seven losses coming by five goals or more.
The matchup is a case of a very stoppable force meeting an extremely movable object, with weakness against weakness in most aspects. The Nor'easters have been quite the generous hosts (0-4 at home), while the Ravens have been very polite guests (1-9 on the road). Both teams will pit their moribund offenses (less than 3 goals per game for each club) against the other's lousy defense (The Nor'easters give up nearly five goals a game, while Ravens opponents have lit the lamp more than six times per contest.)
However, Franklin Pierce has fared better against teams that beat UNE. The Ravens trumped Southern New Hampshire and were more competitive against St. Michael's and St. Anselm, losing to each by just two scores. However, the SNHU and St. Michael's games were at home, were Franklin Pierce has played .500 hockey.
The game is a non-conference matchup that might not be so important standings-wise, but the W is within reach if the Nor'easters can avoid taking long stretches off. The Ravens have been mostly terrible away from home, so if UNE players can channel their frustration over the past weekend's losses constructively (i.e., not into screaming at the refs and pointless shoving matches after the whistle) they can get a win and a much-needed boost going into a run of tough road matches.
After the loss to St. Anselm, coach Brad Holt stressed the need for more shots and fewer penalties. Penalties are not always easy to prevent, given the sometimes capricious nature of the officiating, but the shots part is definitely an area that needs improvement. I've already said several times that this team doesn't get the puck to the net enough, and if the situation is to improve, this game would be an excellent place to start. Franklin Pierce allows almost 46 shots on goal per game, and if UNE can't generate offense against this defense, there will be very little hope for the rest of the season.
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