All eyes in eastern and central Maine will be on Alfond Arena tonight and tomorrow as the Black Bears, the 9th-ranked team nationally, welcome No. 7 Quinnipiac to Orono for a pair.

The energy around the program is back. They're the hottest ticket in town as more than 11,000 people will cram their way into the Alfond the next two nights. The Black Bears have once again established a significant national presence under the guidance of Ben Barr and only appear to be growing stronger now in Barr's 4th year on the job.

Coming off a return to The Garden a year ago for the Hockey East playoffs, as well as a trip back to the NCAA Tournament, both firsts for the program in more than a decade, Maine has scored 11 and conceded none through their first two games.

A 6-0 opening night victory vs. AIC was followed by last weekend's 5-0 exhibition win vs. Army. Now, the Black Bears get an early season litmus test to see just how accurate that single-digit number next to Maine is.

Ahead of this weekend's first test, what would a good season look like for Maine in 2024-25? They've improved by eight wins in each of Barr's three years, from 7 to 15 to 23, and this year's squad looks like it could be the deepest yet.

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