UConn men’s hockey earns fourth seed in Hockey East Playoffs, to host UMass Lowell in quarterfinals

For the third straight season, UConn men’s hockey will host the quarterfinals of the Hockey East Playoffs. The Huskies will welcome UMass Lowell to Toscano Family Ice Forum on Saturday, Mar. 11 after finishing fourth in the standings and earning the No. 4 seed in the tournament. The start time is still TBA.

UConn finished with 41 points after beating Boston College 6-5 while UMass Lowell totaled just 39 after falling 7-3 to Northeastern on Saturday.

Despite losing 69 goals and 98 assists — 63.3 and 54.7 percent of their total production, respectively — from a team that reached the Hockey East championship game last season, the Huskies still finished in the exact same spot in the standings. UConn has now received a bye into the quarterfinals by earning a fifth seed or better in five of the last six seasons.

In the season series back in November, UConn and UMass Lowell each picked up a win but the Huskies claimed four of six points by losing in overtime on Friday night (one point) and winning in regulation (three points) on Saturday. The home team won both games.

Toscano will be the third quarterfinal venue UConn uses to host in as many years. In 2021, the Huskies fell 6-1 to Providence at Freitas Ice Forum in Storrs during the COVID-marred season in that contest. Last year, UConn beat Boston University 3-1 at the XL Center in Hartford — capped by Chase Bradley’s empty-netter goal that sent the crowd, and the bench, into a frenzy.

This year, the Huskies will take on UMass Lowell at Toscano Family Ice Forum. UConn is 4-1-0 in its new, on-campus rink this season. The two teams have never met in the postseason and the River Hawks have yet to play at Toscano.