With the start of a New Year only days away, the members of Atlantic Hockey are gearing up for a sprint to the finish. Only a few contests dot the schedule over the coming days, giving teams a chance to polish off any holiday rust.

Connecticut will have the busiest holiday of any Atlantic Hockey team over the coming weekend, playing the role of host for the UConn Hockey Classic. The Huskies will host league foe Holy Cross in the 4:30 p.m. tilt Thursday afternoon, with the game serving as a league contest. Merrimack and Brown will battle it out in the early game for a right to play in the championship on Friday. After wrapping up the tournament on Friday, Connecticut will ring in the New Year for Atlantic Hockey with a Sunday afternoon matchup at home against Union from the ECAC Hockey League.

Thursday will also see the final meeting of the season between Quinnipiac at Bentley in the only other league game scheduled for the week. The last time the Bobcats made the trip to the outskirts of Boston on November 19, they had to claw their way back into the contest on multiple occasions before skating to a 4-4 deadlock with the Falcons. Although Quinnipiac shutout Bentley 5-0 at home to close out the weekend series in November, a win for either team Thursday may tip the balance in favor of the victor, as Bentley sits one point ahead of Quinnipiac in the Atlantic Hockey standings.

The only other Atlantic Hockey team in action this week is Sacred Heart, who will host St. Clair in an exhibition match on Wednesday. The lone contest may be all the Pioneers need before a busy Tuesday next week, as their contest at home against Holy Cross is one of three league games that will occur on January 4.