ASU Hockey: Sun Devils moving forward after rocky third season

(Photo: Kylee Meter/WCSN)

After being swept by No. 13 Michigan in its final series of the season, the Arizona State hockey team will no longer settle for moral victories.

“These guys have seen it all now, they’ve literally seen it all,” ASU head coach Greg Powers said. “So, the excuses are off the table and now it’s time to execute and I believe they will.”

Powers’ new motto strayed from the norm throughout the season, when he consistently preached the “process” of building the program.

Two seasons ago, ASU finished with a 10-19-3 record and .359 win percentage. Now in their second-year of full NCAA Division-I play, the Sun Devils capped off the 2017-18 season with a slightly worse 8-21-5 record.

“We’re excited about the progress that we’ve made,” Powers said. “Did we get the wins we wanted? No, we wanted more wins. Are we content with our season? Absolutely not, but we certainly did enough where we can build off of it.”

The team struggled to uphold Powers’ season-long goal of playing a “full 60 minutes” – slow starts and early penalties plagued the Sun Devils, and the team had a 0-18-1 record when they trailed after the second frame.

Next season, Powers will focus on locker room mentality to ensure that ASU gets on the board first.

“I love our captains, but essentially leadership has to get the guys ready in the room and get them focused before the games and it’s not the coaches that are in there before games,” Powers said. “So, we’re gonna focus on what we can do differently with those guys to make sure that they prepare themselves in the locker room before games.”

After suffering multiple losses decided by one or two goals, the team’s effort in climbing out of deficits was the positive takeaway for Powers.

“We have the resiliency and the spine and the backbone, but we don’t have the talent – it’s not here,” Powers said. “So, we have to find a way and that’s going to come with experience.”

He emphasized that the talent wasn’t up to par “yet,” and recruiting a group to fill the voids would begin immediately.

“What I can say is every kid we’re bringing in next year, brings in something that we don’t currently have – literally, every kid,” Powers said.

ASU’s coaching staff will likely look to fill the more obvious holes in the offense. The team averaged a mere 2.26 goals per game and ended the season ranked No. 53 out of 60 NCAA D-I teams. Conversely, ASU’s defense allowed 3.62 goals per game, which means the team is also in need of blueliners who can take the pressure off of its goaltender.

In searching for new talent, Powers will need to consider players who can complement current top producers like forward Johnny Walker and defenseman Brinson Pasichnuk, the team’s two top scorers this year.

Walker was a member of this year’s ninth-ranked recruiting class and finished his season with 17 goals – the second-most for any freshman in the country.

“It was a good learning experience all around from the start of the year ‘til now,” Walker said. “I think I became a better hockey player and that’s what it’s about, taking steps and moving in the right direction in order to reach my maximum potential.”

One consistent component of ASU’s play was Joey Daccord’s performance in between the pipes. The sophomore ended this season with .909 save percentage, but Powers typically felt Daccord did his job by giving the team a chance to win.

“I think it was a strange season in terms of all the up and downs, but I think that’s to be expected with the way the program is going,” Daccord said. “I just tried to have the same mindset for every game and just stay even-keeled throughout the season, regardless of it was a big win or a tough loss.”

Despite being a 2015 Ottawa Senators draft pick, Daccord told Cronkite Sports he’s “99 percent” sure he’ll be back for another year.

“I felt like I could’ve done a little more, but overall I thought it was a good year and a good chance for me to grow for next season,” Daccord said.

Back in Tempe, Powers said the Sun Devils will enjoy a two-week long “summer” before returning to Oceanside Ice Arena for offseason conditioning. Powers said he’s committed to getting returners into elite shape, and even turning Walker into a “physical specimen.”

Later in the offseason, ASU will officially announce its 2018-19 signing class in April. Those six to seven freshmen will also have the opportunity to play in the future 5,000-seat arena being built on ASU’s Tempe campus, which is expected to be completed for the 2020-21 season.