DURHAM – There are two ways to look at this.
The University of New Hampshire men’s hockey team has won just one of its last 13 games or the Wildcats came away with at least one point in four of their last six Hockey East games, including three points last weekend.
They prefer the positive going forward as the Wildcats continue their quest for home ice in the first round of the playoffs with a vital two-game series Friday ( 7 p.m.) and Saturday (7) against Vermont at the Whittemore Center.
The clubs are tied for eighth place in the standings with identical 5-9-4 league marks and 14 points apiece. Seeds six through eight will host a first-round, best-of-three series while the top five seeds draw byes into the quarterfinals.
“You want home ice,” said coach Dick Umile. “There’s no question if you can get home ice in the first round it’s better than the alternative of traveling. We’ve done that the past couple years. We’ve gotten through the first round but it isn’t easy. You end up playing an awful lot of games in a short period time.”
UNH has six games left in the regular season, four at home, including one against archrival Maine next Wednesday.
The Wildcats (10-13-5 overall) are coming off their most productive Hockey East weekend of the season since a two-game, season-opening sweep of UMass Lowell. They played to an overtime tie with then No. 9/11 Northeastern and defeated UMass to snap a 12-game winless streak that lasted almost two months.
“We were doing a good job and staying positive and being there for each other and stuff like that, but definitely there was always this cloud over us that we’ve got to get through this,” said senior goalie and alternate captain Danny Tirone. “It motivated us to keep working, but when you get out of it there’s a little bit of relief. Morale is a little bit better, things are going in the right direction and guys are excited about what’s to come.”
Tirone stopped 66 of 68 shots in the two games, including 40 of 41 against Northeastern, which features one of the most potent lines in Division I.
Vermont (8-15-5 overall) kept pace with UNH by taking three of a possible four points with a win and a tie at home with then No. 8 Providence.
“Heading right down into the final stretch of the season to finally get that win (and) to build on that going into the playoffs now is going to be really big for us,” said sophomore forward Liam Blackburn.
The Wildcats and Catamounts skated to a 4-4 tie Oct. 28 in Burlington, Vt. Although the Wildcats have dominated the all-time series, they’ve won just two of the last 11 meetings, both on the road.
UNH hasn’t beaten Vermont in Durham since Nov. 10, 2012.
“At the end of the season now the games really matter,” Blackburn said. “We’re looking at the standings and where we’re going to be in the playoffs so every game we play now we need to put some goals up.”
The Wildcats continue to struggle offensively, particularly 5-on-5. Three of their four goals last weekend came on the power play, two on rebounds Saturday night against UMass.
They’ve scored more than three goals just once in the last 13 games and their leading scorer is freshman defenseman Max Gildon with eight goals and 14 assists in 28 games.
“We’ve been working on it hard in practices, getting pucks to the crease with everyone driving the net and just kind of whacking at the puck,” Tirone said. “It’s creating chaos in practice and hopefully it carries over in a game.”
UNH managed to eke out a tie (1-1) and a win (3-1) last weekend despite getting outshot in the two games, 68-36.
“You’re not going to come out of it unless you play real hard,” Umile said. “That’s a given. We’ve got to continue to do that. We’ve played well defensively. We’ve just got to shoot more, get to the crease area, get the puck there (and) and be ready for second and third shots if we need to.”