Series Preview: Mavericks Ring in New Year at Cactus Cup

The Mavericks will compete in their second tournament of the season and open the 2025 portion of the schedule this weekend as they head to Palm Springs, Calif.

Omaha will be one of four teams at the Cactus Cup, joining Holy Cross, UMass Lowell and Michigan Tech, and will play two games – Holy Cross on Friday and either UML or Michigan Tech on Saturday. Both games will be played at Acrisure Arena and will be streamed on FloHockey.

Here’s what you need to know before the puck drops.

Omaha (7-9-0, 4-4-0) vs. Holy Cross (8-9-1, 7-4-1)

Friday, Jan. 3, 9 p.m. CDT

Omaha vs. UMass Lowell (10-4-2, 5-3-1) or Michigan Tech (10-6-2, 7-3-2)

Saturday, Jan. 4, 5:30 p.m. (with Friday loss) or 9 p.m. (with Friday win)

Omaha
Conference: NCHC
Head coach: Mike Gabinet (8th season, 124-123-18)
Leading scorer: Sam Stange, Gr., F (7-4-11)
Between the pipes: Simon Latkoczy, Jr. (6-8-0, .930 save percentage, 2.38 GAA)
Power Play: 9/57 (15.8%)
Penalty Kill: 37/44 (84.1%)

Holy Cross
Conference: Atlantic Hockey
Head coach: Bill Riga (4th season, 58-67-10)
Leading scorer: Liam McLinskey, Sr., F (10-6-16)
Between the pipes: Thomas Gale, Sr. (8-9-1), .922 save percentage, 2.34 GAA)
Power Play: 10/62 (16.1%)
Penalty Kill: 66/73 (90.4%)

All-time series: Omaha leads, 1-0-0
Last matchup: Nov. 26, 2005 – Omaha 6-1 win in Troy, N.Y.

Last Time Out

The Mavs returned from a 15-day break Sunday afternoon with a 5-0 exhibition win over Manitoba.

Five different Mavs – Jacob Guevin, Sam Stange, Jimmy Glynn, Isaiah Norlin and Zach Urdahl – lit the lamp and Kevin Reidler earned a 20-save shutout in front of 6,455 fans. However, Sunday’s contest provided valuable game reps for a number of freshmen and guys making their way back from injury too – something that could pay dividends moving forward.

Now Omaha wants to build off it and keep it going as the game counts. Omaha finished the first half with a sub-.500 record but won five of its final eight games to close out the first half.

“We’ve got to continue to get better,” Gabinet said. “We have to find ways to improve and there’s going to be some good internal competition, as you saw (Sunday) for spots in the lineup. Which I think is a good thing. So looking forward to continuing to build here.”

Opponent Watch

The Crusaders will look to respond from a 3-1 loss at Long Island on Tuesday afternoon. Holy Cross grabbed an early lead but allowed three unanswered goals, including a pair in the third period en route to the loss – which snapped a four-game win streak.

Holy Cross comes in at 8-9-1 and despite Tuesday’s disappointing loss, they’ve still rebounded well the past six weeks from their 4-8-1 start. Bill Riga’s club has scored 17 times over its past five games and their penalty kill, which ranks fifth in the country, has been outstanding too at 90.4% (66-for-73).

It’ll be just the second time Omaha and Holy Cross have ever squared off.

“They’re hard to play against,” Gabinet said. “They’ve had some success this year and are doing a lot of good things. They’ve got a really good penalty kill so they’ll be a tough opponent.”

Tournament Experience

While everyone inside Omaha’s locker room is excited to get out of the cold and head west this week, playing in a tournament setting and on neutral ground can be an adjustment.

However, the Mavericks have been through it once already this season as they opened the season in Las Vegas. Omaha also played in the Desert Hockey Classic last January and these events offer a great opportunity for players and fans alike.

But it begs the question… Can that prior experience help?

“I think so,” Gabinet said. “Obviously we’ve got three pretty good teams out there and (one) that are ranked pretty high, so it’ll be some good competition. Just another opportunity to continue to build.”

“I think it does a great job (preparing you),” added graduate forward Jimmy Glynn. “We’re going into neutral territory, so you never know what the circumstances are gonna be. What your locker room is like, the ice – I think it’s just the mentality that we’re going in there to get a job done and it’s gonna be fun.”