While the weather outside was frightful, the Nadeau show in Orono made being in the Alfond so very delightful.

The Maine Black Bears continued their excellent home form with a 7-3 victory over the Connecticut Huskies on a snowy Sunday evening.

Coming off an emotional Border Battle victory over UNH Friday night, the quick turnaround to Sunday's game was sure to test the Black Bear's mental focus. UConn has been a bogey side for Maine lately, as the Huskies have defeated the Black Bears in their past five meetings.

The combination of a rare Sunday night game along with a winter storm passing through left the Alfond with its smallest crowd of the season. It meant that the Huskies would be spared from facing the full brunt of the Alfond's taunts as the usual intimidation factor that could beat teams alone was lacking its full force.

All in all, Sunday night had the makings of what could be a banana skin game for the Black Bears if they weren't careful.

Veteran Victor Ostman, who has been battling an injury of late, was welcomed back to loud cheers from the adoring Alfond faithful as he was announced as the starter back between the pipes. The senior was given the nod ahead of Albin Boija, the starting goaltender on Friday, who performed so well in his first collegiate start.

Joining Ostman, forward Parker Lindauer and defenseman Ryan Hopkins spelled Nicholas Niemo and Bodie Nobes in the lineup Sunday night, getting their first action of the weekend.

The Huskies, who had a win of their own Friday night over UMass-Lowell, are known to be a very physical and aggressive team. On Sunday's Keys to the Game, Barr emphasized his team's need to not be surprised by the Huskies' aggression and challenged his men to match UConn's physical style. He wanted Maine to absorb hits and know what to do with the puck when getting checked. Making plays while taking hits would be vital in the Black Bears' inevitable dogfight with the Huskies.

Connecticut, like Maine, is a team that loves to shoot the puck and is one of the top teams in the country in doing so. Often finishing games with a shots-on-goal tally well into the forties — they even totaled sixty-nine earlier this season — fans were expecting a high-shooting game from both teams.

The first period saw the opposite of this.

Both sides negated each other's attacking moves for much of the first. It wasn't that either team was overly sloppy with the puck; they were both very successful at quickly and cleanly moving the puck through the neutral zone. But once in each other's respective offensive zones, the defenses absorbed each other's pressure as neither side could muster any real prolonged attacking threat.

Maine couldn't set each other up for one-timers and open scoring chances as active UConn sticks didn't allow any Black Bear centering passes through to their intended targets. The Maine forecheck that has been so good this season was not at its best for much of the first period, as both teams looked disjointed around each other's net.

Ostman did have to come up with a couple of big saves, including an impressive back-door stop, but like with Maine's chances, you could count on one hand the number of grade-a scoring opportunities for each team in the first frame.

Maine's fourth line of Parker Lindauer, Félix Trudeau, and Reid Pabich were the first Black Bears to cause a commotion in front of UConn's net. The line played excellently all night. Well into the first, they were able to spark their team with an impressive, hard-hitting, and tenacious forecheck that saw them out-battle the Huskies in the corners and get Maine's first real o-zone cycle going. Lindauer, a healthy scratch Friday, was particularly impressive at not allowing UConn to clear the puck out of the zone as he fought hard at the half-boards to keep Maine's rare pressure on UConn going during the first.

But Connecticut struck first, further quieting an already passive Black Bear crowd. Maine's defenders were unable to clear a flurry of rebounds before a Husky pounced on the loose puck to put the visitors up by one late in the first period.

Maine, who looked flat in front of the net during the first, came out for the second period with a bang. A four-on-four minutes into the frame opened up the ice and allowed Maine's New Brunswick line to showcase their speed and skill. Bradly Nadeau found a charging Lynden Breen in the high slot, who fired home a wicked wrister to tie the game and wake up the Alfond's voice.

Breen, who centers the Nadeau brothers on Maine's top line, can sometimes be overlooked by his fellow New Brunswick natives. But the senior from Grand Bay-Westfield had yet another terrific game and was well deserving of getting on the score sheet. Breen's small frame and terrific edge work allow him great success at absorbing and rolling off hits, keeping the puck in the process. This skill at spinning off checks gives the co-captain an innate ability to hold on to the puck when behind the net or against the boards, keeping Maine with puck possession and allowing his teammates time to get open. His success is vital to the Neadeaus' and team's success.

Just over a minute after Breen's game-tying goal, the Alfond faithful would be given more to cheer about. The big red-headed farm boy from Saskatchewan, Nolan Renwick, used his speed to drive to the net. Renwick centered a pass that bounced off a Husky defender and deflected into his own net to give the Black Bears the lead. It was a fortunate bounce for Maine, but one that was well deserved as it was created through hard work and putting the puck in a dangerous area of the ice.

The two Maine goals in quick succession to open up the second period would also completely open up the game. From then on, the rest of the contest was played at breakneck speed. Both Maine and UConn found their shooting gloves as each team made up for the first period's tight defensive game with a shooting match, firing shot after shot on net. As the game picked up in offense, it also picked up in physicality as both squads began plastering each other into the boards repeatedly.

This increased physicality naturally led to both teams committing more penalties, which only furthered the surge in offensive looks. Connecticut also really stepped their game up, now down by one. Victor Ostman was tasked with shutting down plenty of quality Huskies looks, but a UConn powerplay goal tied up the thrilling back-and-forth contest.

With the game tied at two, the scrappy and chippy second period continued at full tilt. Both Maine and UConn were much better at keeping the puck in their offensive zone as both teams had substantially improved success at cycling the puck to open up each other's defenses and generate really dangerous shots on net.

Brandon Holt, who has played so well on the blue line in his sophomore campaign, put the Black Bears back in the lead halfway through the period. The North Dakota native snapped a quick shot from the point, which had eyes for the back of the net. Finding its way through traffic and past the screened Huskies goaltender.

The Alfond crowd, who started the game in a sleepy Sunday haze, was now at full roar. The action-packed, back-and-forth, high-intensity whirlwind of a contest caused the decibel level to increase minute by minute as the second period flew along.

But the Alfond was at its absolute loudest, perhaps all weekend, in the final minute of the second.

Victor Ostman stood tall, shutting down a UConn powerplay breakaway. Maine immediately grabbed the puck and, in the blink of an eye, were on their own breakaway. Short-handed Bradly and Josh Nadeau blitzed up the ice on a 2-on-0 that was always going to end one way. Josh in the center forced the helpless UConn goaltender to square up to him before passing the puck to his left, where Bradly one-timed it into the back of the net.

The Alfond's rafters shook with wild celebrations as the short-handed goal almost blew the roof off. The Black Bears had looked so threatening while short-handed all weekend and were finally able to capitalize on their hard work. The fans absolutely loved what they were seeing.

But moments into the third, the Huskies reminded the Alfond that this battle was far from over. A misplayed error in front of Ostman allowed UConn right back into the game, cutting Maine's lead back to just one.

The Black Bears looked sloppy at times in the third, especially during breakouts from their zone, which kept the Huskies in the game and swarming around Maine's net. Defensive breakdowns and poor decisions with the puck caused much of the play to stay in Maine's net, and the Black Bears running around, desperately trying to keep up with an ever-increasing Connecticut attack that was pouring on the shots.

But when the Black Bears looked the most panicked, they could turn to magic from the Nadeau bros to dig them out of trouble.

A perfect deft chip off the glass from Luke Antonoci allowed Josh Nadeau to settle down the bouncing puck in neutral ice and gain the Connecticut zone. Josh, patient with the puck, saucered it over three Husky sticks perfectly on his brother's tape. Bradly did what Bradly does, again smoothly snapping a one-timer into the back of the net. 5-3 Bears.

But Barr was still not happy with his team's performance. Immediately after the goal, he called a timeout where he was visibly animated. He was clearly furious with his team's, at times lackluster play in their own end. He had the whiteboard out and was drawing up plays, shouting at his defensemen until he was red in the face.

Barr has won everywhere he has coached and knows what it takes to be a champion. Although his team was leading, he clearly wanted and expected better from them. He knows to be successful, you must continue to raise the bar and push to improve.

Back on the ice, midway through the second, Bradly Nadeau's backhanded pass broke Maine out of their zone and up the ice. Josh Nadeau, with the puck at the top of the left faceoff circle and a whole dog-sled team of Huskies between him and his brother, was once again able to make a perfect tape-to-tape pass. All Bradly had to do was tuck the puck in from the back post, which he did, sending dozens of hats onto the ice for the second game in a row amid wild celebrations.

Bradly, who had assisted on all three of Josh's hattrick goals Friday night, was returned the brotherly love as Josh turned provider, setting up his younger brother for all three of his goals Sunday night.

The pair are absolutely incredible to watch. They could pass to each other blindfolded as their sixth sense is a joy to watch. Not only is their skill out of this world, but they work just as hard as every other member of this Black Bear squad. The dressing room's terrific culture and character is on full display and might just be the biggest reason for the program's complete turnaround.

But the fun wasn't over. Sophomore defenseman Brandon Chabrier, who has improved leaps and bounds from last season, was rewarded with his third goal of the season and the Black Bears 7th and final of the night. Chabrier has quickly become one of Maine's most important players. Solid defensively, he uses his terrific skating ability and poise on the blue line to become a threat from the point. Already with three assists on the night and now on a 5-on-3 power play, Chabrier got the puck off the draw and crept his way into the high slot before showcasing his accurate shot with a wrister over the goaltender's blocker, giving the Bears their 7th goal. Putting up a crooked number on the scoreboard.

The student section taunted the UConn goaltender with chants of "Empty net, empty net!" And sarcastically cheered when he finally came up with a save.

The game's final minutes petered out, and the buzzer sounded on the resounding Maine victory, sending the Huskies back to Connecticut with the Sunday scaries. It was Maine's 8th win of the year to improve their record to 8-3-1, putting them tied at 2nd in the Hockey East standings with Boston College.

While the Black Bears did not play their absolute best over the weekend, they still came away with two big wins by large margins. That's what winning teams do: they find ways to win even when they are not at their best. And did they ever win.

The team defense was sometimes lacking, but it is still so young and will continue to improve with experience. And what more can you say about the offense. It showed that it could flex its shooting muscles and carry this team on its back when needed, quickly becoming one of the most lethal and feared in college hockey.

These Black Bears are a joy to watch. One of the only negatives Black Bear fans may take away from this weekend is an anxiety that the two Nadeau brothers are so good they may not grace us with their presence long. Talk about a good problem to have.

Let's enjoy them while they are here.

Let's enjoy the whole team, as they most certainly deserve it. They clearly all fight so hard for the name on the front of their sweaters, not the one on the back.

A lot of Mainers will need new hats this Christmas.