(Photo: Marlee Smith/WCSN)
Arizona State Men’s Hockey (7-7) opens up a two-game homestand against a team that they are all too familiar with – the No. 12 ranked Denver Pioneers (8-4) – on Friday. The Sun Devils faced the Pioneers two times earlier this season, dropping both of the contests in Colorado, the first by a score of 8-3 on Oct. 8, and the second by a score of 4-3 the following day.
Because the two matchups were played almost at the beginning of the season for the Sun Devils, the Pioneers were perhaps able to expose a roster that was still learning to play with each other.
Due to the unfamiliarity of the team, the Sun Devils played hesitant, and didn’t show the physicality that ASU Head Coach Greg Powers likes to see out of his teams.
“We just didn’t play fast, we didn’t play physical, and you have to against that team if you’re gonna have a chance at beating them,” Powers said. “They’re just too deep, too skilled, too good, and you got to let them know that you’re here to compete from the first shift.”
However, Powers thinks this weekend’s series should look slightly different from the last two meetings, not only because this series will take place in Tempe, where his team is 6-2 on the year, but because he believes the Sun Devils have found a sort of groove nearing the midpoint of the season after a 6-4 win against Bemidji State on Nov. 26.
“I think we’re closer to really playing to a consistent identity, and figuring it out,” Powers said. “Back then, there were still tons of new faces to our program, figuring how we want to play, and what we need to play like collectively to have success. Now, they’ve felt that they know what they need to do, they just have to go out and execute it.”
One area where the Sun Devils will likely need to execute this weekend is at the goaltender position. In the last series against Denver, sophomore Cole Brady started both games, where he allowed 11 total goals. In game one, Brady allowed seven goals in 35 minutes, and was benched for junior Ben Kraws, who allowed only one goal in the remaining 25 minutes of the game. Powers stuck with Brady for game two, where the Pioneers put the puck past him four times.
Denver is entering the series against the Sun Devils with a four-game win streak, and has recorded 21 goals within those four games. To match the Pioneers, ASU will likely need quality play between the pipes in order to have a chance to get revenge against Denver. This time, it figures to be Kraws in the net, who has seemingly taken the job from Brady as the starter.
The Sun Devils will be seeking their revenge without fan favorite senior forward Johnny Walker, who Powers says will most likely miss his second consecutive series this weekend. Walker has recorded four goals this season, one of them coming against Denver on Oct. 9.
“He hasn’t really been 100% since last year’s injury at Michigan,” Powers said.
With Walker out, Powers will be forced to rely on some players deeper down the depth chart to step up and fill the role that is missed with Walker sidelined. But, the head coach still has faith in his team to give the Pioneers a tougher battle than the last time the two met.
“I think they’re gonna be better than what we saw in the first series, and we certainly believe we’re a lot better than what they saw,” Powers said. “Hopefully we flip the script and get a couple wins.”
