Series Preview: Omaha vs. UMass, Oct. 24-25, 2025

  

By Bridget (Weide) Brooks

No. 13 UMass comes to town for Homecoming on the weekend of the 10th anniversary of the opening of Baxter Arena. (Omaha Hockey faced Air Force on Friday, Oct. 23, 2015 in the first-ever game at the new arena, winning 4-2.)

The Mavericks last faced the Minutemen at the Ice Breaker Tournament in Las Vegas, Nev., on Oct. 11, 2024. Omaha prevailed 3-2 in overtime as senior forward Zach Urdahl scored twice in the contest, including the OT game winner.

The overall series is 6-2-1 in favor of the Mavericks. UMass is 4-1 on the season, most recently losing to Northeastern last Friday night (4-2) and beating Bentley in overtime on Saturday (5-4).

Omaha is 1-1-0. The Mavericks had a bye week last weekend, and split with Minnesota State-Mankato on Oct. 10-11, winning Friday 6-2 and losing 4-1 Saturday in a penalty-filled contest. 

The series is expected to be a goaltending duel. Senior Omaha netminder Simon Latkoczy, from Trencin, Slovakia, has a 2.52 goals against average and a .928 save percentage. The Minutemen’s junior goaltender, Michael Hrabal, from Prague, Czechia, has a 2.40 GAA and a .924 save percentage. 

The series marks a return for Hrabal to Omaha. He played for the Omaha Lancers of the United States Hockey League (USHL) during the 2022-23 season.

Coach Mike Gabinet met with the media earlier this week to preview the series.

“(We’re) excited to get back playing here this weekend, coming off a bye weekend,” Gabinet said. 

The off weekend was helpful to get some players back who were injured in early season games, he said.

“We got hit a little bit by the injury bug, so it’s been nice to try to get some guys healthy for this upcoming weekend,” Gabinet noted. “But that's probably the only positive about being off, I think. I think once you get rolling, guys want to play. We've been practicing for a long time, and (we) want to get playing in games here. I think guys are excited to kind of just get rolling here and playing games every single weekend.”

Gabinet said he likes the impact the experience from the Mankato series had on the team, especially the new players.

“I think you can tell guys are getting that kind of real-life feedback and realizing just how you have to play to be successful, and where you have to go on the ice to be successful. So, I think that's been a positive note to get some of that real-life feedback and then just continue to work on our game,” Gabinet noted. “We still have lots of things that we have to improve on.”

UMass will be a “challenge,” he noted.

“They're off to a good start. I think they're 4-1 and played some good hockey, so it'll be a good challenge here, but a challenge we'll be ready to face, and (we’re) looking forward to another good opponent coming into Baxter Arena,” Gabinet said.

The team is looking forward to another home series at Baxter Arena.

“I think they can tell the energy's there. And I think they go a little bit from that ‘uncomfortable feeling’ a little bit just to being at home, being in front of a crowd. And now I think they're starting to roll into that just excitement period there, where you're feeding off the energy, you're enjoying it.

“They're getting more comfortable skating in the arena,” he added. “The guys love it. You can tell the guys love it here. They love the city. They love the university. They love each other, (their) teammates. And so, just to top it all off, we get to play in one of the best buildings in the country with some of the best fans in the country. So it's all positive, that's for sure.”

Junior defenseman Aidan de la Gorgendiere talked about his experience with the Maverick hockey team so far.

“It's been a lot of fun. Obviously, coming in here at the start of August, (it was) a lot of new faces. It felt pretty uncomfortable. I think that was a big word that a lot of people, a lot of new guys used,” he said. “But ever since coming in here, the guys have welcomed us with open arms, and it's been a blast.”

De la Gorgendiere was an assistant captain for one year and the captain for two years for the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades. He talked about how he applies those leadership skills to his time in Omaha.

“I think I try and lead by how I play on the ice. Obviously, I think I'll say a word or two here and there, but yeah, I don't want to step on anyone's toes,” he said. “Obviously, our leadership group is unbelievable, so it's a work in progress. So yeah, I just try and chime in when I can and play good hockey,”

Even though 15 of the team’s players are new to the Mavericks, several of them have ties from their previous playing experience. De la Gorgendiere played with Marc Lajoie, Brett Hyland, and Sean Tschigerl on the University of Alberta Golden Bears team last year, which he said helped ease the transition to Omaha.

“There's been a couple of us that we’ve kind of all played together, crossed paths. So, I kind of knew most of the guys coming in to this year — the new guys I guess — playing with Marc, Sean and Brett last year, it's been awesome. It's been a lot of fun,” de la Gorgendiere said.

The difference between USports college hockey and NCAA college hockey was apparent, he said.

“I think the biggest challenge is probably the speed. It's quite a bit quicker and obviously the talent (is different). There's talent on the first and fourth line and every line in between there. I think it's just being sharp every single day, and trying to get better.”

“I think our mentality is just approaching every weekend the same, coming out and doing, working on our game plan, and executing what we've talked about in our dressing room,” de la Gorgendiere added.

On a more personal note, de la Gorgendiere honors his mom’s memory by writing her name on his hockey sticks.

“I lost my mom when I was 17, so... yeah, I play for her every game, and I've kind of done that since she passed away. It's just a kind of reminder that she's always with me, and yeah, I try and play for her every day,” he said.

Watch the full press conference here. 

Interesting Tidbits:

• The Minutemen are TALL. With an average height of 6'1.8”, UMass is the tallest team in Division I hockey. They also sport one of the tallest goaltenders, Michael Hrabel (6'7")
• Omaha ranks in the top 10 teams for shortest players, with an average height of 5'11.73". Simon Latkoczy’s height is listed as 6'0”.
• UMass is traveling more than 1,000 miles to Omaha for this series — the longest road trip of their regular season.
• Both teams have been bit by the injury bug. For the Minutemen, injuries have led to Daniel Jencko being paired with Jack Galanek and Vaclav Nestrasil this weekend. For Omaha, Sam Huo and Joe Gramer are expected to be out of the lineup.
• Seven different players have scored so far this season for the Mavericks: Marcus Nguyen, Spencer Sova, Sean Tschigerl, Marc Lajoie, Aidan de la Gorgendiere, Jacob Slipec, and Maxime Pellerin.
• UMass made the NCAA tournament last year, appearing in the Fargo Regional. They beat the Minnesota 5-4 on Thursday, March 27 before falling to eventual national champion Western Michigan 2-1 on Saturday, March 29 to end their season.

Game previews:

• Greenfield Recorder (Greenfield, MA): https://recorder.com/2025/10/23/umass-hockey-prepares-for-tough-test-against-nchcs-nebraska-omaha/
• Hurrdat Sports (Jordan McAlpine): https://hurrdatsports.com/omavs/hockey/series-preview-omaha-hockey-returns-from-bye-against-no-13-umass/
• UMass Athletics: https://umassathletics.com/news/2025/10/22/hockey-13-massachusetts-travels-to-nebraska-for-a-pair-against-omaha
• Omaha Hockey: https://omavs.com/news/2025/10/23/hockey-welcomes-no-13-umass-for-homecoming-weekend.aspx

For Fans Attending the Game in Person: 
The west lot outside Baxter, Lot 25, is open to donors and single-game pass holders only and parking passes are required to park in that lot. The north lot, Lot 27, offers free parking on a first-come, first-served basis, as is Lot 26 (west of the arena, across the creek). Omaha Athletics is also encouraging fans to park in one of the public garages at Aksarben Village.

Fans should arrive early, especially if entering via the west entrance. Have digital tickets ready to scan in the Omaha Mavericks app (or add them from your MyMavs account to your phone’s wallet app). If you have questions, stop by the box office at Baxter Arena before the game or call 402-554-MAVS.

The clear bag policy remains in effect at Baxter Arena, and metal detectors are in place at all entrances. Concession stands are card only (no cash).

Promotions: 

There is a FanFest on Holland Ice at Baxter Arena from 5-6:45 p.m. on Friday night. The first 300 fans at the FanFest will receive a UNO-branded cowbell.

When:
> Friday, 7 p.m. CT at Baxter Arena (Omaha, NE)
> Saturday, 7 p.m. CT at Baxter Arena (Omaha, NE)

Radio:
The game will be broadcast live on 1290 AM and on The Varsity Network app. Pre-game coverage begins 30 minutes prior to face off with the FNBO Pre-Game Show. “Voice of the Mavs” Mike Vaillancourt will have the play-by-play, with color commentary provided by Terry Leahy.

TV:
The game will be streamed on NCHC.tv ($) 

Live Stats:
Game stats will be available here. 

On this episode of the Mavpuckcast, Jon and Jason talk about the Omaha Maverick Hockey team’s series against Minnesota State-Mankato (including their picks for “Player of the Week”). They talk about the recent Dinner With The Mavs event the UNO Hockey Blue Line Club held. They conclude the episode with a preview, analysis, and predictions for the upcoming regular season series against UMass at Baxter Arena!

And if you missed it in the Minnesota State-Mankato series preview, in a first for the MavPuckCast, Jon and Jason interview Omaha Hockey Coach Mike Gabinet. Gabinet is an Edmonton, Alberta, native who is in his ninth season as the head hockey coach at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Gabinet discusses how he decided to join the Mavericks as a player 25 years ago, how he got into coaching, what he thinks of the team’s 2025-26 roster, recruiting, his coaching philosophy, and how he has evolved during his career.

Next Weekend:

Omaha starts NCHC conference play with a road series in Colorado Springs, CO. The Mavericks will take on the Colorado College Tigers at 8 p.m. Central on Friday, Oct. 31 and 7 p.m. Central on Saturday, Nov. 1.