ASU Men’s Hockey: Sun Devils rally to win series opener against Colorado College

(Photo: Kylee Meter/WCSN)

After a brutal opening period and an early 2-0 deficit, Arizona State found themselves by the midway point and rallied back against a high-powered Colorado College team, coming out on top 4-2 against the now Tigers.

ASU’s four goals came off the sticks of freshman Joshua Maniscalco and sophomore Johnny Walker, as each skater had two in the win for the Sun Devils (13-6-0). For Walker, the performance shot him back into the nation’s lead for goals scored with 15, while Maniscalco tripled his goal total on the year.

“He’s dynamic, we just let him play, he makes us look smart,” coach Greg Powers said of Maniscalco, before pointing at a laughing Walker sitting next to him during the postgame press conference. “This guy, I don’t know though.”

The interaction felt like two friends making fun of each other.

Despite only being down 12-11 in shots and keeping the score tied at zero, ASU was slow out of the gates in the first period. The Sun Devils struggled to contain the Tigers (7-8-2), who generated multiple dangerous early scoring chances, on the defensive end. Colorado College’s puck movement led to nine different skaters putting shots on the net, all of which were saved by ASU junior goaltender Joey Daccord.

The Sun Devils struggled to get pucks deep offensively as well. The Tigers were active on the defensive end, blocking four shots in the first and forced many ASU turnovers that led to opportunities at the other end. While six of ASU’s 11 first period shots came from the point, the Sun Devils had few, if any, shifts that gave them total control of the puck.

“We just didn’t manage the puck well at all,” Powers said. “We were a little flat and sloppy.”

The second period was the complete opposite for ASU. The Sun Devils found success offensively — but not before giving up two goals to the Tigers. An interference call on Jake Clifford gave Colorado College a power play, which it capitalized on thanks to, once again, great puck movement. Tigers winger Nick Halloran got it down to the corner where the opposite winger, Trey Bradley, snuck the puck behind Daccord’s back for the 1-0 lead. Soon after, Colorado College went up 2-0 on a fast break goal by Ben Copeland, who lasered it in past Daccord.

“There was zero panic on our bench whatsoever,” said Powers of the deficit. “It was like a wake-up call.”

The Sun Devils, who were sparked offensively even before surrendering the two goals, battled back. They started possessing the puck for longer stretches and delivered big hits to get the offense going. The wake-up call worked.

Finally, Maniscalco got the puck at the top of the zone and fired a one-timer into the back of the net.

“(I’ve) got to give credit to [forward Tyler Busch] on the first one,” he said of the goal, calling Busch’s pass “very clean.”

The rejuvenated Sun Devils offense later struck again five minutes later. Walker, the NCAA’s current goal leader, got the puck in the right corner of the zone and zipped it through Tigers goalie Alex LeClerc’s legs, tying the game at 2-2.

ASU had a chance to take the lead before the intermission thanks to a Colorado College penalty, but only managed one shot on the man-advantage.

ASU’s second-period spark continued into the third, when the Sun Devils controlled the chances, the puck, and the flow of the game.

“We played the right way,” Powers said. “We locked down pretty good. Thirteen shots in the last two periods … pretty good.”

But the lead was still up for grabs, and ASU didn’t let it get away.

Halfway through the period, Sun Devils sophomore Jacob Wilson rifled a shot from toward goal, allowing Walker, who was hunkered down near the net, to tip it in as Leclerc slipped and fell on his back, his legs across the goal line and the puck between one his skates, in the cage. As the goal was being reviewed, Walker was confident it was in from the bench, and turned out correct.

“The puck beat his pad there,” said Walker after the game. “So I knew there was no way [it wasn’t a goal].”

That go-ahead goal was the game-winner for the Sun Devils, who got the fourth goal on empty-netter by Maniscalco.

“I just try to take it game by game and do as much as I can, play when coach tells me to play and do as I’m told,” Maniscalco said, putting a victorious smirk on Powers’ face.