After a season-opening split and a bye, Omaha hockey welcomes No. 13 UMass to Baxter Arena this weekend for its second – and final – home nonconference series of the season.
Here’s what you need to know before the puck drops.
Omaha (1-1-0, 0-0-0) vs. No. 13 UMass (4-1-0, 0-1-0)
Game 1: Friday, Oct. 24, 7 p.m. CDT
Game 2: Saturday, Oct. 25, 7 p.m. CDT
*Both games played at Baxter Arena
Omaha
Conference: NCHC
Head Coach: Mike Gabinet (9th season, 136-130-19)
Top Scorer: Marcus Nguyen, Fr., F (1-2-3)
Between The Pipes: Simon Latkoczy, Sr. (1-1-0, .928 save percentage, 2.52 GAA)
UMass
Conference: Hockey East
Head Coach: Greg Carvel (10th season, 174-134-25)
Top Scorer: Jack Musa, Jr., F (4-5-9)
Between The Pipes: Michael Hrabal, Jr. (4-1-0, .924 save percentage, 2.40 GAA)
All-time series: Omaha leads, 6-2-1
Last matchup: Oct. 11, 2024 – Omaha 3-2 (OT) win in Las Vegas, Nev.
*Game part of Ice Breaker Tournament
Last Time Out
Omaha enjoyed an early-season bye last weekend after its season-opening split against Minnesota State. Omaha earned a 6-2 win in Game 1, followed by a 4-1 loss in the finale.
Six different Mavericks found the back of the net in the win, while senior Simon Latkoczy made 47 saves at the other end, earning the 46th win of his college career. Marcus Nguyen scored Omaha’s lone goal in Saturday’s loss – a game that featured four game misconducts, five power-play goals and a pair of MSU goals in the final 31 seconds.
After an additional week of rest and recovery, Mike Gabinet’s club will now shift its attention to No. 13 UMass.
“We got hit a little bit by the injury bug, so it’s been nice to get some guys healthy for this upcoming weekend,” Gabinet said Wednesday afternoon. “But that’s probably the only positive about being off, just because once you get rolling, guys want to play. We’ve been practicing for a long time and want to get playing games every single weekend.”
Opponent Watch
The Minutemen make their first trip to Omaha since the 2003-04 season and their fourth all-time. Omaha and UMass met in Vegas last October and played a game in Amherst during the 2004-05 season, which was previously the last matchup.
Greg Carvel’s program has enjoyed plenty of recent success, winning a national championship in 2021 and making five NCAA Tournament appearances since 2019 – including the Fargo Regional last spring. UMass comes to town as the No. 13 team in USCHO’s latest Poll.
Junior goaltender Michael Hrabal – a former Omaha Lancer – is one of seven NHL picks on the roster and anchors UMass between the pipes, while the roster features freshman forward Vaclav Nestrasil and sophomore defenseman Francesco Dell’Elce ahead of him. Nestrasil helped Muskegon (USHL) win the Clark Cup last spring and was taken by Chicago (25th overall) in June.
Mike Gabinet announced Omaha will be without sophomore defenseman Joe Gramer (pictured) and senior forward Samuel Huo this weekend due to injury. Photo by Logan Hock
The Minutemen are off to a 4-1-0 start and are averaging four goals per game. UMass swept Northern Michigan to open the season and earned an overtime win (5-4) over Bentley last time out.
“Another ranked team, another team that was in the NCAA Tournament, so I’m looking forward to it,” Gabinet said. “They’re off to a good start and playing some good hockey here, so it’ll be a good challenge here, but a challenge we’ll be ready to face.”
Omaha’s next four opponents are currently ranked as well – Colorado College (No. 16), North Dakota (No. 8), Minnesota Duluth (No. 18) and Western Michigan (No. 2).
North Dakota (Nov. 7-8) and Western Michigan (Nov. 21-22) are Omaha’s only remaining home opponents before the Christmas break. Omaha’s complete 2025-26 schedule can be viewed here.
Final Verdict
Number to know: 5 — Omaha allowed five power-play goals in the Minnesota State series. The Minutemen enter this weekend with five power-play tallies themselves, and they’ve netted one in four straight games. UMass is 5-for-21 (23.8%) on the man advantage this season.
Player to Watch: Jacob Guevin, Sr., D — Guevin had a pair of assists in the win over UMass last October and is coming off a career-best 20-point season. He fired three shots at Minnesota State’s Alex Tracy and also had a pair of blocked shots in Omaha’s season-opening split.
Series prediction: Split
