Brian Tedder/ Collegian

If ever you were able to see a turning point coming, the Massachusetts hockey team’s rematch with Boston College Friday night at the Mullins Center would seem too huge to fit inside the cavernous arena.

The Minutemen’s seven-game winless streak came to a halt last Saturday with a 5-3 win over Maine, the first meeting between the team’s since last year’s NCAA quarterfinal.

With their three-week skid behind them and a tick in the wins column for 2008, the Minutemen (10-9-6, 5-8-5 Hockey East) turn their attention this week to one of the top college hockey programs in recent years.

The Eagles (13-6-7, 8-4-6 HEA) reached the last two National Championship games (they lost both), but have had trouble with their Western Mass. neighbors over that stretch.

Although they are just 9-36-3 all-time against BC, the Minutemen are 4-1-1 in their last six meetings, and the timing could not be more perfect for a team in dire need of a meaningful victory.

The Mass Attack won a home-and-home series back on Nov. 16 and 17, tying the first game, 1-1, in the Mullins Center before defeating the Eagles, 5-3, on their home ice. BC needs to win to force a split of the season series and are coming off 4-3 overtime win against Boston University in the first round of the Beanpot Tournament.

With a win behind them, UMass coach Don Cahoon is eager to build some momentum moving into the final month of the season. A win over the daunted Eagles would be a major move in that direction.

One of the keys for the Minutemen will be stopping the Eagles on the power play. BC currently holds a 24.5 percent success rate with the man advantage.

“We can solve a lot of our problems by making sure two things occur,” Cahoon said. “We have to stay out of the [penalty] box and minimize that exposure, and when we do have to kill a penalty, we’re real effective and real thorough.”

UMass normally plays two games each weekend, but has this Saturday off, meaning the full focus of the team is concentrated on its Friday night meeting with BC.

“The fact that we’ve only got one game means we can put all of our focus into that game,” captain Mike Kostka said. “It puts more emphasis on the fact that you don’t have a chance that second night to redeem yourself if you don’t play the way you want. You’ve got to take care of business on Friday night because it’s your only chance for a win.”

The single game also affords Cahoon more flexibility in his lineups, as he won’t have to save a few players’ legs for another game the next night.

“I’m going to try to construct a lineup that’s prepared to play with an energy and a level of confidence and a thoroughness that will allow us to succeed,” Cahoon said. “We’ll put it all out there on Friday and move on from there.”

The intensity is always high when two Hockey East teams square off, but in recent years, when BC comes to the Mullins Center, the crowds are bigger, the games are more intense and the Minutemen seem to play harder.

“They’re always going to be one of the best teams in Hockey East and the country, so I think it just gives us that much more motivation to want to beat them and prove that we’re one of those good teams,” center Cory Quirk said.

The Minutemen have not only been successful against BC at home. They’re 2-1 over the past two seasons on the ice at Kelley Rink at Conte Forum.

On Feb. 2 of last year, UMass jumped out to a 3-0 lead on the Eagles in the first period and cruised to a 5-3 win.

“They’re always a great team, and you gun for the teams at the top,” Kostka said. “We were shown that when we were one of the teams at the top (ranked No. 5 in early January), and we had a lot of teams gunning for us.

“They’re an extremely proud team and a team that competes a lot. We just know we have to be ready and we have to play hard because if we don’t, they’re probably going to walk all over us.”

Jeremy Rice can be reached at [email protected].