The expectations were extremely high when the Nadeau brothers stepped foot on the University of Maine’s campus in Orono this fall.
Bradly Nadeau, who is 18 years old, was a first round draft pick and 30th overall pick of the Carolina Hurricanes, and his 20-year-old brother Josh was equally as prolific as his linemate as they led Penticton to the British Columbia Junior Hockey League regular season and playoff championships a year ago.
Between the regular season and playoffs last season, Bradly Nadeau had 71 goals and 62 assists, and Josh had 61 goals and 82 assists as both played in 71 games for the Vees.
They were expected to help continue UMaine’s ascension into the upper echelon of Hockey East after a last place finish two years ago and a sixth-place showing last season. And so far it’s worked, as the Black Bears are off to a 6-3-1 start, 3-2-1 in Hockey East, and are ranked 10th in one national poll and 12th in the other.
UMaine had been ranked ninth before dropping a pair of one-goal games at Boston University a week ago to a Terriers team that was the preseason No. 1 in the country and in Hockey East.
Five-foot-eight, 159 pound left wing Josh Nadeau is the team’s leading scorer with 13 points on four goals and nine assists. Right wing Bradly, who is 5-10, 172 pounds, has a team-leading seven goals to go with five assists for 12 points and the center of their line, co-captain Lynden Breen, also has 12 points on four goals and eight assists.
Josh Nadeau is tied for 15th in the country among 64 Division I schools in points per game (1.3) and is tied for 22nd in assists per game (.9). He is tied for ninth with four power play goals.
Bradly Nadeau leads the team in game-winning goals with three, which ties him for third in the country.
He is 14th in goals per game (.7) and is tied for 28th with Breen and others in points per game at 1.2
Josh Nadeau had at least a point in his last six games (2 goals, 7 assists) while Bradly and Breen have points in five of the last six. Bradly has five goals and three assists during that stretch and Breen has three goals and five assists.
Their line plays in all situations, including power play and penalty kill as well as even strength.
“That line is dangerous,” said BU coach Jay Pandolfo. “They’re skilled.”
UMaine head coach Ben Barr said the Nadeau brothers are “elite players and they are even better together.”
Barr even compared the Nadeaus to Hockey Hall of Fame twins Henrik and Daniel Sedin, who were linemates during their NHL careers.
“They have a special bond. They work extremely hard and that allows their skill to come through,” said Barr, adding that combining them with Breen on the line helps as well.
“They’re smart players. They learn every game what they can and can’t do. They’re super skilled so you have to give them freedom but, at the same time, they have to be smart about it and they learn a little every night,” Barr added.
“We’ve done some good things so far. And we’re really happy with how the team is playing, too,” said Josh Nadeau, the older of the two brothers. “But we have a lot more to prove.”
Bradly said their goal was to start the season on a good note, and feels the team accomplished that. He also feels he’s adapted well to the new level of play.
“I want to keep working on the small details, offensively and defensively, so, from there, my game should improve even more,” Bradly said.
Bradly Nadeau said he and his brother have established a strong chemistry with Breen.
“When you have three smart players, usually they can accomplish a lot together. We have played every shift together and that should be good for us the rest of the season,” Bradly said.
Breen said when you combine the Nadeaus’ work ethic and determination with their talent, it’s no surprise they’re already playing at a high level.
“They’re going to keep getting better every weekend. But they have already shown such good little spurts of how great they are and how great they read off each other. It’s only going to go up from here,” Breen said. “I’m just fortunate to be a part of that and watch them succeed.”
UMaine has sold out its last three home games and the Nadeaus, who are from St. Francois-de-Madawaska, New Brunswick, said it has been special.
“I love it here,” Josh said. “The atmosphere in the rink is unreal. That’s why we’ve had so much success at home.”
UMaine is 3-0-1 at Alfond Arena.
“It has been unbelievable,” Bradly added. “It definitely helps having all the fans here supporting you. You want to play hard every night and having those people behind you helps.”
Several of the Nadeaus’ family members make the three-hour trek to Orono from New Brunswick for every home game.
Eight of UMaine’s 10 games so far have come against nationally ranked teams and six have been on the road. Boston College was the number one team in the nation when it came to Orono and the Black Bears beat BC 4-2 and tied 2-2 the next night.
Bradly Nadeau said playing nationally ranked teams “gives us a gauge how we compare to other teams. So far, playing all those good teams, we’ve accomplished a lot. We showed the hockey world what we can do and, going forward, we will be better. So there are a lot of positives.”
UMaine is off this weekend but will host archrival New Hampshire at 7 p.m. Friday, Dec. 1, and UConn at 5 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 3.
