BOSTON — Matt Mangene had a simple explanation why the University of Maine isn’t just winning hockey games but beating teams it couldn’t as recently as December.

“We’re listening. We’re paying attention to what we’re being told.”

Listening to the team’s senior leadership, like captains Brian Flynn and Will O’Neill. Listening to Tim Whitehead when some of the head coach’s harshest critics have accused players of tuning him out at times over the past four years.

By beating Boston University again, this time with a 3-1 victory Saturday night, Maine swept another Hockey East rival in two games. Last weekend Boston College went down in two games.

Beat BU? The weekend victories were only Maine’s fourth and fifth in 25 games between these teams since the start of the 2005-06 season. For the legions of Maine fans who remember when the late Shawn Walsh personalized this rivalry, turning the heat up whenever these teams met, the more recent losses were unacceptable.

Which may be why there didn’t seem to be more than a couple of hundred Black Bears fans in Friday night’s announced crowd of 5,066. In fact the BU partisans were so smug, it took them more than two periods to realize their team might be going down.

“Coach told us to stay disciplined and stay out of the (penalty) box,” Mangene said after Friday’s 4-2 win. “We were focused. We were able to carry over how we played last weekend.”

Teammate Nick Pryor said much the same thing Saturday, using different words. Beating the so-called iron of the conference is a welcome feeling and guess what: The team likes it.

Nearly a week between games can kill momentum. Through a full week of daily practices, said Mangene, the senior captains beat the drums. Too many times before Maine would take two steps backward after one nice jump forward. Mediocre teams do that.

Don’t call Maine mediocre.

Mangene scored four goals last weekend to spark Maine’s offense. “It felt good,” said the junior forward, whose quickness was always noticed. “You have to remember four goals was my total for my first two seasons (36 and 29 games played).”

On the road in Boston, he allowed himself to look back at last weekend in Alfond Arena, especially in last Saturday’s game. “In my three years at Maine I have never heard the Alfond that loud.” The noise was appreciation for a style of play and an effort that had been missing for too long.

The kid from the eastern tip of New York’s Long Island didn’t have much time to savor last Saturday’s personal three-goal performance. He went out to eat after the late afternoon game, got back to his apartment and a couch, and fell asleep. The night was still young but he had checked out.

“I was that tired,” said Mangene. That’s good to hear because the fatigue came from prolonged effort, not from too few wind sprints in practice.

He was tired again after Maine beat BU on Friday night. Many of his teammates felt the same. They expended so much energy in the game’s last six minutes when Boston University kept coming after them in waves, trying to tie the score at 3.

After his four-goal series last weekend, Mangene was shut out in Friday night’s game. He got a couple of looks but nothing paid off. That was OK with him. Maine won.

In the last minute of Saturday night’s game, he poked a loose puck away from BU’s reach and skated in on an empty net. He tapped the puck home and the subtlety of it all actually made it seem like a slam dunk. Game over. Maine beats BU again.

It’s tough to sweep teams nowadays, said Mangene. Programs are so equal. Boston University came back to earth on Friday night after its five-game win streak was exploded. Maine simply wouldn’t expose its own flaws.

Hockey East may yet see again the team that could steamroll a schedule, but more and more it’s the team that gets hot at the right time, the team that can maximize that elusive thing called momentum.

“We’re finding our identity,” said Mangene. “We’re finding what works for us.”

Better late than never.

Staff Writer Steve Solloway can be contacted at 791-6412 or at:

ssolloway@pressherald.com