One of the longstanding traditions at the University of Maine has been the Black Bears’ goaltending. From Mike Dunham and Garth Snow, to Alfie Michaud, Jimmy Howard and Ben Bishop, every run deep into the NCAA playoffs has had a backbone between the pipes.

If the Black Bears hope to live up the the heightened expectations — Hockey East coaches picked the team second, and the Bears are ranked seventh in the first national poll of the season — they’re going to have to break in a new keeper, and quickly.

“No doubt (goaltending) is where we’re least experienced,” Maine coach Tim Whitehead said. “We’ll have a sophomore with limited action and a pair of freshmen, but I think people are going to be pleasantly surprised by Shawn Sirman. I think he learned a lot last season in the games he got to play against New Brunswick, Merrimack and the U.S Development team. He’s come back this year in much better shape, he’s in great shape.”

In addition to Sirman, the Black Bears have a pair of freshman recruits chomping at the bit for playing time.

“(Dan Sullivan) is a 21-year-old freshman coming in, he played with the Texas Tornado and had the same coaches that Ben Bishop had,” Whitehead said. “He told me he really sees Sullivan as a good goalie down the road.

“(Martin) Ouellette is a true freshman out of Kimball Union (New Hampshire),” Whitehead said. “He has a ton of upside. It might be a larger adjustment for a freshman goalie, but we’re confident he’s going to grow a lot here and be a very good goalie for us.”

Helping the new crop of goalies along this season will be a large group of returning players, led up front by Hobey Baker finalist Gustav Nyquist.

“We’re very pleased to have him back,” Whitehead said. “He had a tough decision to make this year, and he could have signed with Chicago, but I think he and his family made a great decision to further his education and help the team take another step forward.”

The team will need his help. Maine dives right into its schedule with a rare Hockey East opener. For the first time in 17 years, Maine will open a season against a divisional foe when the Black Bears host the UMass-Lowell Riverhawks.

Last season, Maine defeated Lowell in their Hockey East quarterfinal series and went on to lose to Boston College in the league final.

The Riverhawks return 14 players from that 2009-2010 team, including Scott Campbell, who scored 16 goals and added 18 assists for 34 points, and David Vallorani, who chipped in with nine goals and 18 assists for 27 points.

Carter Hutton and Nevin Hamilton, who split time in goal for Lowell last year, both graduated.

For the Black Bears,20 letter winners return to help make life a bit easier for the rookie goalkeepers. After Nyquist, Brian Flynn chipped in with 19 goals and 28 assists for 47 points a year ago, while captain Tanner House scored 18 goals and added 21 assists for 39 points, including 10 goals on Maine’s tops-in-the-country power play.

Jeff Dimmen had 12 goals and18 assists for 30 points, and will be a key cog on the blue line for the Black Bears.

“One of the biggest positives we have is that the team has taken a step forward along with (Nyquist),” Whitehead said. “Not only is Gustav getting better, but everyone around him is, too.”

Freshman Mark Anthoine of Lewiston will also get his first taste of Hockey East action as a member of the team. Recruited by the Black Bears, Anthoine is the first Maine-born non-goaltender to make the team since defenseman Matt Duffy of Windham (2005-09), and the first forward since captain Greg Moore of Lisbon (2002-06).

The Black Bears will play a second game this weekend on Saturday, against non-conference foe Connecticut. The Huskies, who play out of the Atlantic Hockey conference, also have a Maine tie. Assistant coach Joe Dumais, once a captain at Quinnipiac University, is from Auburn and played high school hockey at St. Dom’s.

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