A lot on line for River Hawks vs. Cornell

MANCHESTER, N.H — UMassLowell senior center Joe Gambardella anchors a power scoring line capable of imposing its style on any team in the country.

Gambardella will be flanked by wingers C.J. Smith and John Edwardh when the second-seeded River Hawks (26-10-3) take on No. 3 Cornell (21-8-5) in the NCAA Northeast Regional semifinals today (noon) at SNHU Arena.

“With our team we don’t really have first line, second line, third line or fourth line,” Gambardella said after practice yesterday. “We all produce every night and everyone contributes and on my line I’m very fortunate to play with those two guys the past two seasons.

“Throughout my career here I’ve had the opportunity and experience to play with some of the most amazing players in college hockey and have moved on to play pro.”

Gambardella, Smith and Edwardh are the second-ranked scoring line in the nation and tops in Hockey East with a shared 138 points. Gambardella leads the trio with 18 goals and 33 assists and was the recipient of the Walter Brown Trophy given annually to the top American-born hockey player in New England.

Smith is second with 22 goals and 28 assists while Edwardh has 18 goals and 19 assists. The trio has combined for 20 power-play goals and all are a plus-20 or higher.

Lowell has outscored its opponents 144-92 with a relentless push-the-puck design that led to its third Hockey East title in the last five seasons.

“I think we have just got to do what got us to this point in the season and keep doing everything we did well,” Gambardella said. “We have to get pucks behind and not change up our game and we are looking forward to the matchup.”

Lowell’s explosiveness will meet with harsh resistance from the Big Red’s physical presence at the back end and forwards committed to containing the River Hawks transition in the neutral zone.

Cornell coach Mike Schafer emphasizes patience the way UML coach Norm Bazin stresses pace, proven formulas that have produced success for both programs.

Lowell is sixth in the nation is scoring offense with 3.69 goals per game while Cornell is eighth in scoring defense, allowing 2.24 goals per game. The Big Red won four 1-0 games this season, the most in program history, and have held the opposition to 77 goals in 34 games.

Senior Jake Weidner was the ECAC Defensive Forward of the Year and was the nation’s top shot blocker among forwards with 2.06 per game. Cornell senior goalie Mitch Gillam is a Hobey Baker candidate with a 2.17 goals-against average, a .921 save percentage and three shutouts in 33 games.

“We have to stay focused on what we do well and we pride ourselves on playing a 200-foot game,” Weidner said. “We have to limit turnovers first because they are dangerous in transition.

“We have to make sure we are above them and frustrate them and implement our game plan as best as possible.”