The Miami University RedHawks (0-0-2) will host the University of Alaska Anchorage Seawolves (0-2-0) in a two-game series. The first game is on Friday, October 11th, at 7:05 PM at Steve Coach Cady Arena in Oxford, Ohio. The second game will be the following night, Saturday, October 12th, with a 7:05 PM puck drop as well.
The Miami RedHawks (NCHC) have started their season with two ties, going 0-0-2 after drawing back-to-back games against the Ferris State Bulldogs (CCHA). This series marked the beginning of the Anthony Noreen era as Head Coach, following his hiring in April. During Wednesday’s press conference, Coach Noreen commented, “I thought our performance improved significantly from Friday to Saturday, both individually and as a team.” Although the RedHawks had opportunities to win both games over the weekend, they ended up with a 3-3 tie on Friday and a 4-4 tie on Saturday.
Three of the newcomers for Miami lit up the scoring sheet against Ferris State (Colby Ambrosio, Matt Choupani, Conner Hutchison), all with three points each so far. Blake Mesenberg leads the team with two goals and Matt Choupani leads the team in assists with three. Miami’s PK unit has been stellar so far, as they are 7/7 (100%), while they are 3/11 (.273%) on the PP. Johnny Waldron seems to have been practicing lightly on Wednesday and is considered day-to-day by Coach Noreen. He has an upper-body injury after being elbowed in the head during Friday night’s game.
Looking forward, the RedHawks must continue to play at a high-intensity level like this past weekend to set a new standard for Miami hockey under Head Coach Anthony Noreen.
UAA comes into this series with a 0-2-0 record after being swept by the Denver Pioneers, the 2024 National Champions, at scores of 6-2 and 4-1 on back-to-back nights. Joey Potter and Ryan Johnson of the Seawolves both have two points so far on the season and are key players Miami will have to focus on defensively heading into this weekend.
Players to Watch (Miami):
Colby Ambrosio (Forward): 1 Goal, 2 Assists (3 Points)
Connor Hutchison (Defenseman): 1 Goal, 2 Assists (3 Points)
Bruno Bruveris (Goalie): 2.77 GAA, 0.919 Save %, 0-1 Record
(Note) – Bruno Bruveris made 9 saves in Overtime on Friday night vs Ferris State, preserving a 3-3 tie in a 34 total save performance.
Players to Watch (UAA):
Joey Potter (Defenseman): 1 Goal, 1 Assist (2 Points)
Ryan Johnson (Forward): 2 Assists (2 Points)
Greg Orosz (Goalie): 5.00 GAA, 0.865 Save %, 0-2 Record
“There’s a lot of people who have helped me get this opportunity. That stuff matters. It means a lot. I’d be lying if I didn’t say I felt some emotion toward it.”
Head Coach Anthony Noreen’s thoughts on how he feels ahead of the home opener
“I played for Coach Noreen and [Troy Thibodeau] in Tri-City, and I loved it. When I saw they got the job here, I called my advisor right away and said for my last year I wanted to play for them again.”
Conner Hutchison (Defenseman) thoughts on why he came to Miami from Sacred Heart
Where to Listen/Watch:
NCHC TV: NCHC.tv – Sign In (nchchockey.com)
Listen (Friday): Live Events – Miami University RedHawks (miamiredhawks.com)
Listen (Saturday): WMOH 1450 AM The Ticket (Hamilton, Ohio)
I will be posting coverage on my X (Twitter) account (Matthew Buhrmann (@Mbuhrmann61) / X) during Game 2 of this upcoming weekend’s series against Alaska Anchorage. Make sure to check it out for live game updates!
ITR 31: Let Them Fight – Inside The Rink
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See you at the game Saturday.