# 1998–99 Maine Black Bears men's ice hockey season

The 1998–99 Maine Black Bears Men's ice hockey season was the 22nd season of play for the program, the 20th season competing at the Division I level, and the 15th season in the Hockey East conference. The Black Bears represented the University of Maine and played their home games at Alfond Arena, and were coached by Shawn Walsh, in his 15th season as their head coach. The Black Bears would win their second national title with a victory over rival New Hampshire in the national championship game.

## Departures

| Player | Position | Nationality | Cause |
| Brian Addesa | Forward | United States | Transferred to Massachusetts–Boston |
| Aaron Boone | Forward | United States | Left program (retired) |
| John DiBattista | Forward | Canada | Left program |
| Javier Gorriti | Goaltender | Spain | Left program (retired) |
| Bryan Masotta | Goaltender | United States | Left program (signed with San Diego Gulls) |
| Scott Parmentier | Forward | United States | Graduation (signed with Arkansas GlacierCats) |
| Nate Ponitz | Defenseman | United States | Left program (retired) |
| Jason Price | Defenseman | United States | Left program (signed with Tucson Gila Monsters) |
| Shawn Wansborough | Forward | Canada | Graduation (Signed with Cincinnati Mighty Ducks) |
| Ed Washuk | Goaltender | United States | Transferred to Iona |
| Brian White | Defenseman | United States | Graduation (Signed with Colorado Avalanche) |

## Recruiting

| Player | Position | Nationality | Age | Notes |
| Niko Dimitrakos | Forward | United States | 19 | Boston, MA |
| Barrett Heisten | Forward | United States | 18 | Anchorage, AK |
| Doug Janik | Defenseman | United States | 18 | Agawam, MA |
| Peter Metcalf | Defenseman | United States | 19 | Pembroke, MA |
| Mike Morrison | Goaltender | Canada | 19 | Medford, MA; selected 186th overall in 1998 |
| Brendan Walsh | Forward | United States | 23 | Dorchester, MA; transfer from Boston University |
| Ed Wood | Defenseman | Canada | 22 | Rivers, MB |
| Matthew Yeats | Goaltender | Canada | 18 | Montreal, QC; selected 248th overall in 1998 |

## Standings

1998–99 Hockey East standingsvte :
| | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall |
| | GP | W | L | T | PTS | GF | GA | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA |
| #2 New Hampshire† | 24 | 18 | 3 | 3 | 39 | 100 | 49 | 41 | 31 | 7 | 3 | 171 | 91 |
| #1 Maine | 24 | 17 | 5 | 2 | 36 | 96 | 64 | 41 | 31 | 6 | 4 | 167 | 94 |
| #4 Boston College* | 24 | 15 | 7 | 2 | 32 | 99 | 73 | 43 | 27 | 12 | 4 | 170 | 125 |
| Providence | 24 | 12 | 11 | 1 | 25 | 90 | 81 | 38 | 20 | 17 | 1 | 159 | 134 |
| Boston University | 24 | 8 | 13 | 3 | 19 | 72 | 86 | 37 | 14 | 20 | 3 | 117 | 132 |
| Massachusetts–Lowell | 24 | 9 | 15 | 0 | 18 | 65 | 85 | 36 | 17 | 19 | 0 | 112 | 117 |
| Massachusetts | 24 | 8 | 14 | 2 | 18 | 56 | 86 | 35 | 12 | 21 | 2 | 80 | 114 |
| Merrimack | 24 | 7 | 16 | 1 | 15 | 67 | 94 | 36 | 11 | 24 | 1 | 107 | 136 |
| Northeastern | 24 | 6 | 16 | 2 | 14 | 74 | 101 | 34 | 11 | 20 | 3 | 108 | 132 |
| Championship: Boston College † indicates conference regular season champion * indicates conference tournament champion Final rankings: USA Today/American Hockey Magazine Coaches Poll Top 10 Poll |||||||||||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date | Opponent$^#$ | Rank$^#$ | Site | Result | Record |
| Regular Season |||||||
| October 16 | at Nebraska-Omaha* | #8 | Omaha Civic Auditorium • Omaha, Nebraska | W 7–2 | 1–0–0 |
| October 17 | at Nebraska-Omaha* | #8 | Omaha Civic Auditorium • Omaha, Nebraska | W 3–0 | 2–0–0 |
| JCPenney Classic |||||||
| October 23 | Moncton* | #3 | Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine (J. C. Penney semifinal, exhibition) | W 5–0 | |
| October 24 | Union* | #3 | Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine (J. C. Penney Championship) | W 6–1 | 3–0–0 |
| November 6 | Mass-Lowell | #4 | Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine | W 3–2 $^{OT}$ | 4–0–0 (1–0–0) |
| November 7 | Mass-Lowell | #4 | Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine | W 5–2 | 5–0–0 (2–0–0) |
| November 13 | at Massachusetts | #4 | Mullins Center • Amherst, Massachusetts | L 1–2 | 5–1–0 (2–1–0) |
| November 14 | at Massachusetts | #4 | Mullins Center • Amherst, Massachusetts | T 1–1 | 5–1–1 (2–1–1) |
| November 20 | Providence | #7 | Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine | W 6–1 | 6–1–1 (3–1–1) |
| November 21 | Providence | #7 | Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine | W 3–2 | 7–1–1 (4–1–1) |
| Governor's Cup |||||||
| November 27 | vs. #7 New Hampshire* | #6 | Tsongas Arena • Lowell, Massachusetts (Governor's Cup semifinal) | W 4–3 | 8–1–1 |
| November 28 | vs. Vermont* | #6 | Tsongas Arena • Lowell, MA (Governor's Cup Championship) | W 2–0 | 9–1–1 |
| December 12 | Northeastern | #3 | Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine | W 5–1 | 10–1–1 (5–1–1) |
| December 13 | Northeastern | #3 | Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine | T 7–7 | 10–1–2 (5–1–2) |
| December 18 | Dartmouth* | #4 | Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine | W 7–1 | 11–1–2 |
| December 21 | vs. Colgate* | #4 | Hartford Civic Center • Hartford, Connecticut (ECAC-Hockey East Holiday Doubleheader) | T 3–3 | 11–1–3 |
| January 1 | at Denver* | #4 | Magness Arena • Denver, Colorado | W 4–3 | 12–1–3 |
| January 3 | at #2 Colorado College* | #4 | Broadmoor World Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado | T 3–3 | 12–1–4 |
| January 5 | at Boston University | #2 | Walter Brown Arena • Boston, Massachusetts | W 4–3 | 13–1–4 (6–1–2) |
| January 8 | at #6 Boston College | #2 | Conte Forum • Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts | W 2–1 | 14–1–4 (7–1–2) |
| January 9 | at #6 Boston College | #2 | Conte Forum • Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts | L 4–7 | 14–2–4 (7–2–2) |
| January 13 | Yale* | #3 | Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine | W 6–1 | 15–2–4 |
| January 17 | Massachusetts | #3 | Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine | W 5–0 | 16–2–4 (8–2–2) |
| January 22 | at Merrimack | #2 | J. Thom Lawler Rink • North Andover, Massachusetts | W 5–2 | 17–2–4 (9–2–2) |
| January 23 | at Merrimack | #2 | Lawler Rink • North Andover, Massachusetts | W 4–3 | 18–2–4 (10–2–2) |
| January 29 | at Providence | #2 | Schneider Arena • Providence, Rhode Island | W 7–4 | 19–2–4 (11–2–2) |
| February 5 | at Northeastern | #2 | Matthews Arena • Boston, Massachusetts | W 5–1 | 20–2–4 (12–2–2) |
| February 7 | #3 New Hampshire | #2 | Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine | W 4–3 | 21–2–4 (13–2–2) |
| February 13 | #6 Boston College | #2 | Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine | W 6–4 | 22–2–4 (14–2–2) |
| February 19 | Boston University | #2 | Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine | W 7-2 | 23–2–4 (15–2–2) |
| February 20 | Boston University | #2 | Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine | L 1–4 | 23–3–4 (15–3–2) |
| February 26 | at Mass-Lowell | #3 | Tsongas Arena • Lowell, Massachusetts | W 5–2 | 24–3–4 (16–3–2) |
| February 28 | Merrimack | #3 | Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine | W 4–0 | 25–3–4 (17–3–2) |
| March 5 | at #4 New Hampshire | #3 | Whittemore Center • Durham, New Hampshire | L 1–6 | 25–4–4 (17–4–2) |
| March 6 | at #4 New Hampshire | #3 | Whittemore Center • Durham, New Hampshire | L 1–4 | 25–5–4 (17–5–2) |
| Hockey East Tournament |||||||
| March 11 | Massachusetts | #4 | Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine | W 3–1 | 26–5–4 |
| March 12 | Massachusetts | #4 | Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine | W 5–2 | 27–5–4 |
| March 19 | vs. #7 Boston College | #4 | FleetCenter • Boston, Massachusetts | L 2–3 | 27–6–4 |
| NCAA National Tournament |||||||
| March 26 | vs. Ohio State* | #4 | Worcester Centrum • Worcester, Massachusetts (NCAA regional quarterfinals) | W 4–2 | 28–6–4 |
| March 27 | vs. #6 Clarkson* | #4 | Worcester Centrum • Worcester, Massachusetts (NCAA regional semifinals) | W 7–2 | 29–6–4 |
| April 1 | vs. #5 Boston College* | #4 | Arrowhead Pond • Anaheim, California (Frozen Four) | W 2–1 $^{OT}$ | 30–6–4 |
| April 3 | vs. #2 New Hampshire* | #4 | Arrowhead Pond • Anaheim, California (National Championship Game) | W 3–2 $^{OT}$ | 31–6–4 |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||

## 1999 National Championship game

Scoring summary :
| Period | Team | Goal | Assist(s) | Time | Score |
| 1st | Maine | Ben Guité (12) – PP | Vitorino and Kerluke | 15:47 | 1–0 Maine |
| 2nd | Maine | Niko Dimitrakos (8) | Cullen and Metcalf | 33:47 | 2–0 Maine |
| 2nd | UNH | Darren Haydar (31) – SH | Souza and Conklin | 35:58 | 2–1 Maine |
| 3rd | UNH | Michael Souza (23) | Krog and Haydar | 43:33 | 2–2 |
| 1st Overtime | Maine | Marcus Gustafsson (13) – GW | Larose | 70:50 | 3–2 Maine |
Goaltenders :
| Team | Name | Saves | Goals against | Time on ice |
| Maine | Alfie Michaud | 46 | 2 | |
| UNH | Ty Conklin | 36 | 3 | |

## Scoring statistics

| Name | Position | Games | Goals | Assists | Points | PIM |
| Steve Kayria | LW | 41 | 27 | 38 | 65 | 24 |
| Cory Larose | C | 38 | 21 | 31 | 52 | 34 |
| David Cullen | D | 41 | 11 | 33 | 44 | 24 |
| Dan Kerluke | LW | 41 | 23 | 19 | 42 | 18 |
| Marcus Gustafsson | LW | 41 | 13 | 15 | 28 | 16 |
| Barrett Heisten | LW | 34 | 12 | 16 | 28 | 72 |
| Ben Guité | C | 40 | 12 | 16 | 28 | 30 |
| Niko Dimitrakos | RW | 35 | 8 | 19 | 27 | 33 |
| Peter Metcalf | D | 33 | 6 | 17 | 23 | 34 |
| Brendan Walsh | C | 30 | 7 | 13 | 20 | 58 |
| Doug Janik | D | 35 | 3 | 13 | 16 | 44 |
| Bobby Stewart | LW | 31 | 8 | 5 | 13 | 28 |
| Anders Lundbäck | C | 41 | 1 | 11 | 12 | 20 |
| Matthais Trattnig | D/RW | 39 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 32 |
| Ed Wood | D | 21 | 1 | 9 | 10 | 10 |
| Jim Leger | F | 41 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 4 |
| Tuomo Jääskeläinen | F | 25 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 14 |
| Robert Ek | D | 39 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 44 |
| Jason Vitorino | F | 35 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 34 |
| Magnus Lundbäck | LW | 13 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| Eric Turgeon | D | 12 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| A. J. Begg | C | 26 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 26 |
| Alfie Michaud | G | 37 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Adam Tate | D | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Mike Morrison | G | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bench | - | 41 | - | - | - | 0 |
| Total | | | 167 | 281 | 448 | 609 |

## Goaltending statistics

| Name | Games | Minutes | Wins | Losses | Ties | Goals Against | Saves | Shut Outs | SV % | GAA |
| Mike Morrison | 11 | 347 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 10 | | 1 | .917 | 1.73 |
| Alfie Michaud | 37 | 2147 | 28 | 6 | 3 | 83 | | 3 | .910 | 2.32 |
| Empty Net | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | - | - | - | - |
| Total | 41 | | 31 | 6 | 4 | 94 | | 4 | | |

## Rankings

| Poll | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 (Final) |
| USCHO.com | 8 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 4 | - | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 | - | 4 | N/A |
| USA Today | - | - | - | 4 | 4 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 2 | - | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | - | - | 4 | 4 | 1 |
USCHO did not release a poll in week 23.

## Awards and honors

| Player | Award |
| Alfie Michaud | NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player |
| David Cullen | AHCA East First Team All-American |
| Steve Kariya | AHCA East First Team All-American |
| Alfie Michaud | NCAA All-Tournament Team |
| David Cullen | NCAA All-Tournament Team |
| Niko Dimitrakos | NCAA All-Tournament Team |
| Steve Kariya | Len Ceglarski Award |
| David Cullen | All-Hockey East First Team |
| Steve Kariya | All-Hockey East First Team |
| Peter Metcalf | Hockey East All-Rookie Team |
| Barrett Heisten | Hockey East All-Rookie Team |

## Players drafted into the NHL
### 1999 NHL Entry Draft

| = NHL All-Star team | = NHL All-Star | = NHL All-Star and NHL All-Star team | = Did not play in the NHL |
| Round | Pick | Player | NHL team |
| 1 | 20 | Barrett Heisten | Buffalo Sabres |
| 2 | 55 | Doug Janik | Buffalo Sabres |
| 5 | 155 | Niko Dimitrakos | San Jose Sharks |
| 9 | 267 | Peter Metcalf | Toronto Maple Leafs |