If you're rooting for Maine, you should be a bitworried about this game. I don't think UMass-Amherst could have a better draw. Why? Because the Minutemen beat the Black Bears earlier this season after getting blown out. When the Minutemen came to Orono, I saw a pretty good team for the first period or so. They are certainly not as talented as Maine, but talent doesn't necessarily win games. If I were UMass-Amherst, I'd be looking at the win against Maine. It can be done, even if it happened at home. What do the Minutemen have to lose? It's a single-elimination tournament. Beat Maine and the road gets easier. However, that could be a problem, as the Minutemen found out earlier in the season. But I think that happened because the Minutemen looked back on their win against Maine and felt a bit invinsible. If the Minutemen are going to win, they have to focus on Saturday night's game while remembering how they beat Maine two months ago. If I were Maine, I would be cautious. It doesn't matter that the Black Bears won two out of three, with both wins coming easily. What matters is that the Minutemen beat them once and Saturday's game is a one-night stand. Even though Maine is guaranteed a spot in the NCAA tournament, the stakes are still high when it comes down to seeding. I don't think anybody wants to start the NCAA tournament after a two-week layoff. There's a fine balance that has to be kept by both teams. The Minutemen can't get down because they're the last place team, nor can they get too excited because they beat Maine once. The Black Bears can't rest on their laurels and consider a spot in the Hockey East semi-final to be a lock because of their two blow-out wins against the Minutemen. On the other hand, the Minutemen can use their standing to their advantage. Obviously the key is to get off to a fast start. But there will be more to it than that. The Minutemen will have to keep the Black Bears against the boards and tie the puck up. They can't even play one period at a time. They'll have to play each play at a time. What will be intersting to see is whether fans will pack Alfond. Maine used to play in front of sell-out crowds, but that's not happening anymore. This is spring break and not as many students will be around. The Minutemen could take the crowd out of the game early and use the silence to concentrate. Or, if Maine is able to get the crowd going, the Minutemen could use the crowd to its advantage by pretending that the cheers are for them. I think it's going to be an interesting game if the Minutemen can stick with the Black Bears on the ice. _____________________________________________________________________ Ryan Robbins "Nothing in fine print is ever good news." University of Maine -- Andy Rooney _____________________________________________________________________ [log in to unmask] ____________________________________________