(Photo Courtesy – Samantha Maxwell)
With the new year came a new low for Arizona State Men’s Hockey (13-16-0) – a four-game losing streak, the Sun Devils’ longest of the season. In the span of about two months, injuries and offensive woes turned a team on the precipice of a top-20 ranking into one nearly mathematically eliminated from the NCAA Tournament.
Posting a 5-9 since a statement victory over then-No. 2 Minnesota on Nov. 26, an often-shorthanded ASU squad simply couldn’t keep up with the stiff competition it faced every week. Averaging just over two goals per game during this rough patch, the Sun Devils were swept three times, each at the hands of top-20 opponents.
The Sun Devils wrapped up an otherwise-disastrous January on the right side of a sweep, defeating St. Thomas 4-0 and 6-5 respectively to conclude a 10-game, seven-week homestand at Mullett Arena. On its first road trip of 2023, ASU will visit Alaska – Fairbanks (13-9-2), a team that has become the closest thing the Sun Devils have to a rival, on Friday and Saturday.
Coming off an extended stretch of games in Tempe, ASU hopes a change of scenery will symbolize a reset, especially as the Sun Devils’ focus shifts to finishing the season strong.
“It’s going to feel good to get out on the road,” head coach Greg Powers said. “We’re excited to get out and just be with each other for the first time in a long time, and go up and play a really good team in Alaska.”
ASU’s history with UAF has been special from the start. In 2015, the Sun Devils narrowly defeated the Nanooks for their first victory at the NCAA level. Since then, the head-to-head has been as evenly matched as possible – both teams have mirroring 4-4-1 records against each other.
The matchup adopted a true rivalry feel just last season, when an intense second-period brawl featuring then-freshman defenseman Ty Murchison and graduate forward Sean Dhooghe headlined a disappointing Sun Devil loss at Oceanside Ice Arena.
In four consecutive contests against Alaska during the 2022 campaign’s final month, ASU went 0-3-1, a span that effectively removed Powers’ group from the NCAA Tournament picture. The tables have turned this year, as the Sun Devils have a chance to play spoiler against a Nanooks team fighting to keep their postseason hopes alive.
“We played them last year at the end of the year when we were ahead of them, and they kind of took it to us and ended our season,” sophomore forward Josh Doan said. “They’re a good team, and we’re going to have to bring our A-game.”
This season, UAF has built a strong resumé that could help the program earn its first NCAA Tournament berth since 2009-10, an appearance later vacated due to sanctions. Despite a rocky start to the season, the Nanooks are 8-2 in their last ten games with two of those wins coming at then-No. 19 Notre Dame and then-No. 1 Denver.
While the Nanooks don’t necessarily possess an offensive superstar, they do have the makings of one in sophomore forward Payton Matsui. The Lakeville, Minnesota product has recently hit his stride after starting the year off slow. Matsui has quickly become UAF’s most dangerous playmaker, racking up 13 points (4G, 9A) in his last 12 contests.
UAF also has multiple forwards with a scoring touch. Graduate Jonny Sorenson has a team-leading eight goals on the year, while sophomores Chase Dubois, Brady Risk and Harrison Israels have lit the lamp seven times each.
Despite a solid core of key contributors, Alaska’s success doesn’t stem from an elite, high-scoring offense. Averaging just 2.6 goals per game, the Nanooks rely on a defensive-minded and physical approach meant to shut down the opposing offense and limit scoring chances.
So far, emphasizing defensive prowess has worked wonders. UAF limits opponents to 2.3 goals/game (10th-fewest) while conceding just 23.7 shots/game (5th-fewest). What’s more impressive is that in two-game sets against Denver and then-No. 7 Penn State, two of the nation’s most explosive offenses, the Nanooks gave up more than three goals only once – a 7-2 drubbing at the hands of the Pioneers.
Even when Alaska allows an above-average number of shots, senior goaltender Matt Radomsky is likely up to the task. Appearing in all 24 of his team’s contests this season, the former Holy Cross netminder has a .909 save percentage and 2.13 goals against average.
UAF’s dominance in its own end could pose a problem for the Sun Devils’ sputtering offense. Through two contests against a defensively-sound Minnesota State group in early January, ASU posted a lone goal and struggled to create scoring opportunities.
However, the Sun Devils have some momentum after a bounce-back series against St. Thomas. Forcing Tommies goaltender Aaron Trotter to make 67 saves over two games, ASU excelled at getting pucks on the net from any angle, something Powers wants his team to do more of going forward.
“Just throw pucks at the net,” Powers said. “Just throw it at the net and go to the net, and good things happen (…) It’s not rocket science. So if we commit to doing that, we’re going to win a lot more games this year.”
Another encouraging takeaway from last weekend is the variety of contributors on offense. Seven different Sun Devils scored against St. Thomas, with four enjoying multi-point performances throughout the series.
Friday and Saturday’s games can be viewed on FloHockey (subscription required).
