UConn MHOC & 2025 Hockey East Tournament (*Championship Game: Friday 3/21/25 v. Maine Black Bears at 7:30p @ TD Garden, Boston MA) Game on NESN

[RSTuthill]

Well, I know that. But QU still might make it. That was my point.

Oh, they are in at 13th in the Pairwise and no one playing today who could pass them. Sorry. But I am sure that the confusion arose before the latest Pairwise was posted.

 

[DblCrossbar]

I was there- to settle the whole turnout question it was at least 80% maine fans. I was stunned.
And boy do their young fans know how to talk sh----about the state of connecticut. Not even the team but the state as a whole. Quite impressive

Lol, would love to hear what the kiddos had to say about our fine state. We all got flaws but would be funny to hear.

Besides they now have the prickly Dannell Malloy as the UMaine Chencellor. Did anyone at the game notice a shot of him in his luxury box on the Jumbotron just after Sitar’s goal was waived off for offsides?

Q: Does anyone else think that the jumbotron at TDG spends way too much time showing tugging of jerseys?

 

[freescooter]

There were a million Maine fans there Thursday. Whenever Maine plays at the Garden they flock to the games. You literally can’t get a seat on AmTrack from Maine and they add extra cars. Or catch an MBTA train from Amesbury. And while Orono is 90 miles from nowhere, Portland is 1 1/2 hours anway and places like York and Ogunquit are basically Boston suburbs now. And the population lives in southern Maine, not Orono.

I’ve been to this tournament when Maine was in it before and they Always take it over. Hockey is the sport where they compete nationally. Whoever said the is their Big East Tournament hit it right on the nose.

 

[DblCrossbar]

There were a million Maine fans there Thursday. Whenever Maine plays at the Garden they flock to the games. You literally can’t get a seat on AmTrack from Maine and they add extra cars. Or catch an MBTA train from Amesbury. And while Orono is 90 miles from nowhere, Portland is 1 1/2 hours anway and places like York and Ogunquit are basically Boston suburbs now. And the population lives in southern Maine, not Orono.

I’ve been to this tournament when Maine was in it before and they Always take it over. Hockey is the sport where they compete nationally. Whoever said the is their Big East Tournament hit it right on the nose.

The vibe of this game kinda reminded me of the one played against Cornell at MSG over Thanksgiving weekend a coupla years ago. Similarly there were an identifiable number of UConn fans there but only in pockets.

In terms of support, one indication this program will have arrived is when CT Ice is played on neutral Ice and UConn fans dominate there. Don’t forget there are many fans that used to attend XL games and when they were shut out of Toscano just gave up and started going to the WolfPack instead. There’s some damage to repair there, but winning is always a good cure.

 

[zls44]

. Don’t forget there are many fans that used to attend XL games and when they were shut out of Toscano just gave up and started going to the WolfPack instead.

This is not a thing that exists. This is a folly.

 

[RSTuthill]

This is not a thing that exists. This is a folly.

I think it is at least partially true. Particularly fans from West of the river.

 

[king conn]

That must have been polite Maine fans cheering us when we scored our goals according to these posters. It certainly sounded like we had some good representation watching on TV.

 

[DblCrossbar]

This is not a thing that exists. This is a folly.

If you look at the surge in attendance of the WP it correlates perfectly with the opening of Toscano. They have played better as of recent too, but it’s absolutely a thing…

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

Ticket allotments are determined by Hockey East and the Garden. They generally do not allot entire sections for teams, especially in the loge. It's portions of sections - sometimes more from that or an adjacent section are released to the school if the original sells out. It's all done via coded Ticketmaster links now, not tickets distributed to the ticket office for sale to fans. The number of seats allotted is usually low because the HE tournament almost never sells out.

Looks like last night barely reached it to capacity. This and last year were the first sellouts in a long, long time. When the likes of Merrimack, Lowell, UNH, or Providence make it, attendance is reeeeally bad. Even BC-NU games in the last 2010s weren't sellouts.

Either way, UConn's always going to be in a bit of an attendance bind with this because it's almost guaranteed a HE semi or final will conflict with a MBB or WBB NCAA tournament game. A great showing for the team nonetheless and the program is finally on a really solid trajectory. And you get another crack at Maine potentially next weekend.

 

[DblCrossbar]

Looks like last night barely reached it to capacity. This and last year were the first sellouts in a long, long time. When the likes of Merrimack, Lowell, UNH, or Providence make it, attendance is reeeeally bad. Even BC-NU games in the last 2010s weren't sellouts.

If memory serves the attendance for UConn vs UMass in 2022 was around 12000 with approximately 5k of that rooting for CT, a much closer mix.

Either way, UConn's always going to be in a bit of an attendance bind with this because it's almost guaranteed a HE semi or final will conflict with a MBB or WBB NCAA tournament game. A great showing for the team nonetheless and the program is finally on a really solid trajectory. And you get another crack at Maine potentially next weekend.

Geez, so how many Maine fans will head all the way down to Allentown if that’s in the cards? They were prolly hoping for Manchester but that’s fully slotted for BC as a 1 seed. Either way many Penn State fans gonna show for sure…

 

[zls44]

If you look at the surge in attendance of the WP it correlates perfectly with the opening of Toscano. They have played better as of recent too, but it’s absolutely a thing…

They also started marketing and lowering prices, especially compared to how much everything else costs for entertainment.

 

[zls44]

Geez, so how many Maine fans will head all the way down to Allentown if that’s in the cards? They were prolly hoping for Manchester but that’s fully slotted for BC as a 1 seed. Either way many Penn State fans gonna show for sure…

Probably thousands.

 

[huskymedic]

Probably thousands.

8 hours ride is nuttin’ for the Mainers.

 

[freescooter]

I had a family commitment Friday that I had been made months ago. I didn’t see the game even. So other than some generic comment I can’t say. But Thursday we had a good ahowing. Except 2 things. UConn fans seemed widely spread out. BU was more concentrated in several sections. #2 our band was better but needs to learn to be a “hockey band”. They are too polite.

Thursday one thing that was noticeable I thought was that BU had more individual talent but UConn played better, more cohesive team hockey. We do have some serious talent though. Muldowney is a really good scorer who doesnt look like one. and Tattle is a very hard nosed player.

But I hope this becomes a regular thing now that we’ve tasted it again

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

They also started marketing and lowering prices, especially compared to how much everything else costs for entertainment.

It also helped last year that they kinda hit the attendance jackpot with the top two teams in the country plus Maine and UMass.

 

[KembaKek]

We'd have a much better turnout if 1. the school marketed this team any further than Instagram posts and 2. we had an arena big enough that it doesn't lock out the fans. I know tons of people that simply lost interest because they can't go to games. To say that isn't happening is absolute denial. The 11k attendance to the Providence game and 6k+ to UML is everything we're missing out on.

It's quite a shame. We had a good thing going. Toscano sucks for everyone, though. Students can't get tickets and STHs who don't show up take up half the seats. The result is <2k UConn fans at the garden.

 

[DblCrossbar]

They also started marketing and lowering prices, especially compared to how much everything else costs for entertainment.

Absolutely! What a super smart move for the WP to make and attract XL center hockey fans who were either totally shut out from or had no interest in driving to Toscano. They took full advantage of the situation and benefitted from it.

 

[RSTuthill]

And you get another crack at Maine potentially next weekend.

You??? I thought you were with us!!

 

[DblCrossbar]

I had a family commitment Friday that I had been made months ago. I didn’t see the game even. So other than some generic comment I can’t say. But Thursday we had a good ahowing. Except 2 things. UConn fans seemed widely spread out. BU was more concentrated in several sections. #2 our band was better but needs to learn to be a “hockey band”. They are too polite.

Maine’s band sounded really good. More like a marching band than a pep band - but unless they lead “Sieve” chants they weren’t nasty or anything at all.

Thursday one thing that was noticeable I thought was that BU had more individual talent but UConn played better, more cohesive team hockey. We do have some serious talent though. Muldowney is a really good scorer who doesnt look like one. and Tattle is a very hard nosed player.

Technically that defines this year’s team vs last year’s team too. At least on paper. Joey has phenomenal instincts and his chemistry with Richard is as tight as can be. We def missed the captain’s skill and poise vs Maine but it’s hard to say if that would have been the difference last night. We needed an A game from each player, Moose included and didn’t get that game changing save when needed.

But I hope this becomes a regular thing now that we’ve tasted it again

100%

 

[cellocgg]

We are a nothing hockey school lol. No recent or historical success. We are one of like 5 TOTAL programs to have never qualified for the NCAA tournament (until this season). Plus another winter sport rules the roost here and was playing at the SAME TIME. I'm not sure why you all are surprised and crying about attendance, what were you expecting

 

[Patman]

You??? I thought you were with us!!

He went to BU

 

[DblCrossbar]

We are a nothing hockey school lol. No recent or historical success. We are one of like 5 TOTAL programs to have never qualified for the NCAA tournament (until this season). Plus another winter sport rules the roost here and was playing at the SAME TIME. I'm not sure why you all are surprised and crying about attendance, what were you expecting

Fair point here. In the earlier days of the team playing at the XL when they first ascended into Hockey East UConn led the league in attendance due to the novelty effect and attracting disenfranchised former Whalers fans like myself who wanted to reconnect with the sport under a brand we could support. For a whole host of reasons, the Wolf Pack isn’t that draw for some of us.

Over time interest settled down, covid hit, and though there was some success in 2022, the transition to Toscano was an awkward one. The game day experience there is fortunately starting to improve, and even though it has alienated some previous fans, it is ultimately where they will build their legacy in Cawlidge Hawkey. They are carving a significant niche but give an established program like Maine credit for coming in full force. Their takeover of TD Garden says more about their passion than it does anything about any perceived lack of it from UConn fans, who will continue to grow, particularly as students become a more integral part of the fanbase.

 

[Viet Vet]

Lol, would love to hear what the kiddos had to say about our fine state. We all got flaws but would be funny to hear.

Besides they now have the prickly Dannell Malloy as the UMaine Chencellor. Did anyone at the game notice a shot of him in his luxury box on the Jumbotron just after Sitar’s goal was waived off for offsides?

Q: Does anyone else think that the jumbotron at TDG spends way too much time showing tugging of jerseys?

Jumbotron at Toscano is much better. I kept looking for SOG near the score. Nope....have to look way around the scoreboard's circumference. Beautiful arena, great sightlines and concessions (although beer prices are insane), but our scoreboard at Toscano is superior.

 

[Viet Vet]

Whoa easy there fella….

it was only 75% Maine fans.


and damn the seats at TD garden have less legroom than an economy seat on Delta flight 2454 to Atlanta

But the cupholders are where they belong.......on the seats in the row in front, not next to your arm where they impede your entry, or exit, from your seat. BTW, they are actually deep enough to hold a beer can in place!

 

[cellocgg]

Fair point here. In the earlier days of the team playing at the XL when they first ascended into Hockey East UConn led the league in attendance due to the novelty effect and attracting disenfranchised former Whalers fans like myself who wanted to reconnect with the sport under a brand we could support. For a whole host of reasons, the Wolf Pack isn’t that draw for some of us.

Over time interest settled down, covid hit, and though there was some success in 2022, the transition to Toscano was an awkward one. The game day experience there is fortunately starting to improve, and even though it has alienated some previous fans, it is ultimately where they will build their legacy in Cawlidge Hawkey. They are carving a significant niche but give an established program like Maine credit for coming in full force. Their takeover of TD Garden says more about their passion than it does anything about any perceived lack of it from UConn fans, who will continue to grow, particularly as students become a more integral part of the fanbase.

Hockey is Maine's sport. It's not our sport. Maine's attendance isn't an indictment on UConn support. Look how the Elite 8 went at the Garden