The days of attending University of Maine women’s ice hockey games for free will end after this season.
For the first time in program history, the university has announced that they will sell season tickets as well as single-game tickets for the 2024-25 season.
The program attained varsity status in the 1997-98 season.
UMaine will join Boston University, UConn, Merrimack College, the University of New Hampshire, Northeastern and Vermont with season ticket packages.
Holy Cross, Providence College and Boston College do not have them.
It will be the fifth UMaine program to charge for admission, along with the men’s hockey program, football and both basketball teams.
Season tickets will go on sale on March 19. Single-game and group sales tickets will go on sale at a later date.
Fans can buy a half-season ticket for $70 or a full-season ticket for $122. UMaine will have 14 home games during the 2024-25 campaign. Those will all be general admission tickets.
There will also be club seats available for $237 for a half-season and $313 for a full season. Snacks will be included.
All season ticket holders will receive a commemorative gift and free parking.
Second-year UMaine head coach Molly Engstrom said this means a lot to the program.
‘It is a great step because it shows that the university understands the value of our program and is supporting us. They believe in the product.
“I really like Jude’s vision,” said Engstrom, referring to UMaine athletic director Jude Killy. “This is a great opportunity for the fans to support us. We are looking forward to continuing to build relationships with our fans.”
UMaine fifth-year senior right wing and leading scorer Ida Kuoppala called it a “great thing.
‘“It will raise awareness for the sport,” said Kuoppala, who added that it will also elevate expectations and create an even greater bond between the team and the community.
Engstrom said they have had more fan support this year than last season and she is hoping to continue that trend in the future as she and her staff try to build the program into a Hockey East contender.
Attendance figures are not kept at UMaine home games because there are no tickets sold but the sports information staff will put an estimate on the official scoresheet and UMaine has averaged 325 fans per game this season.
By comparison, defending six-time Hockey East champ Northeastern has averaged 530 per game.
Killy said in a press release that “this is an exceptional opportunity for fans of the game, our program and our university, as we continue to make Orono a destination for college hockey.”
The Black Bears are currently 12-17-2 overall and 8-14-2 in Hockey East. They have suffered eight one-goal losses. They are currently in ninth place in Hockey East.
All 10 teams make the playoffs.
They do own wins over two current nationally-ranked teams: No. 13 Northeastern and No. 15 Boston College. They won all three of their games against Vermont, which was ranked No. 12 in the U.S. College Hockey Online preseason poll.
Northeastern has been to the last three Frozen Fours.
Kuoppala said the coaching staff has the program “going in the right direction” and that there are a lot of productive freshmen on this year’s team who will supply a solid nucleus for the future.
The Black Bears have never qualified for the NCAA Tournament and have never reached the Hockey East championship game dating back to the inception of the league in the 2002-03 season.
However, the Black Bears did have a recent stretch when they reached the league semifinals three consecutive years and four times in five seasons. The Black Bears won four road games in the quarterfinals during a three-year span (2019-20, 20-21, 21-22) to reach the semis.
UMaine will play its Seniors Night game at the Alfond Arena on Friday at 6 p.m. against Providence College before concluding the regular season at Holy Cross on Feb. 23-24 at 6 and 4 p.m., respectively.
