(Photo: Scott Mussomano)
Entering its second-to-last series of the regular season, Arizona State’s postseason aspirations are in extreme jeopardy. With only eight of the nine teams in the NCHC earning a bid to the conference tournament, leaving one team on the outside looking in, the eighth-place Sun Devils have teetered over the edge for several weeks, barely staying afloat in the conference standings.
The Sun Devils enter Friday with 19 points in the NCHC standings, as they host last-place Omaha, which is a mere one point behind with 18, this weekend in a potential season-defining series. With each regulation conference win accounting for three points, a regulation sweep would secure all six points up for grabs, punching ASU’s ticket to the NCHC Tournament.
What’s at stake is no secret to anyone, and as for the players, there is no need to sugarcoat what this weekend means.
“I think our season’s on the line here,” senior defenseman Tucker Ness said. “You look at the standings, nobody’s oblivious to it; We’re right there with them. We got to play our best hockey and give our fans a show.”
The Sun Devils have not been able to give their fans a show lately, going 1-7 in their last eight games. They have yet to record a win in the month of February after being swept at home by St. Cloud State and, most recently, another sweep on the road against No. 4 Western Michigan.
Junior forward Kyle Smolen described the 0-4-0 start to the final month of the regular season as “frustrating.” The bumpy road has not stopped ASU from looking ahead to the opportunity it has this weekend.
“In spite of everything that’s gone wrong, we’re still in it,” Smolen said. “We still have a chance. We just have to give it 100 every single day this week and do everything we can to get six points. We have to. What an opportunity we have.”
The Sun Devils have not swept a conference opponent all season. Omaha is in a similar position, having only swept then-No. 15 Colorado College during NCHC play back on Halloween weekend. With everything on the line, both teams will look to change that trend.
“I think, for this group, our best hockey is still ahead,” Ness said.
The Mavericks have a 6-4-0 record against the four teams they hold at least one conference win against. Versus those same opponents, ASU is 3-7-0. During NCHC play, Omaha holds a minus-28 goal differential, while the Sun Devils sit at minus-26.
Even with freshman forward Jack Beck and sophomore forward Cullen Potter out for the season due to injury, there is potential for a high-scoring series in Tempe.
Senior forwards Bennett Schimek and Cruz Lucius are in the top five in the NCHC in points with 38 each. Despite the two Hobey Baker nominees tearing the ice up for the Sun Devils, their team has given up a collective 116 goals, the most in the NCHC. Omaha isn’t far behind, though, in second-to-last, allowing 104 goals as the only other team in the conference in triple digits.
The Mavericks’ goalie tandem, made up of freshman Dawson Cowan and senior Simon Latkoczy, holds a combined goals against average of 3.47. On the other side of the ice, ASU’s options of senior Connor Hasley and freshman Samuel Urban have struggled as well, with a 3.59 GAA.
While those two numbers are the highest in the NCHC, both teams have also been peppered with the most shots in the conference. The Sun Devils have faced the most shots in the conference by a wide margin, with 1026, compared to Omaha, which has the second-most at 880.
The Mavericks have not had their dream special teams this season, owning a .206 power-play percentage, good for sixth in the NCHC and 29th in the country. They will look for leading goal scorers, sophomore forward Maxime Pellerin and freshman forward Marcus Nguyen, to capitalize this weekend, as the Sun Devils lead the NCHC in penalties with 147 trips to the box this year.
The Mavericks got their hearts broken on Valentine’s Day last weekend after getting swept on home ice by No. 8 Denver. It was the team’s Senior Night celebration, sending off seven players with a night very representative of the rest of the season.
ASU will hold its Senior Night on Saturday, celebrating Lucius, Schimek, Hasley and Ness.
“I’m so blessed to be able to play here for four years,” Ness said. “It was a dream of mine. It’s the only school I ever wanted to go to. I can’t thank the coaches, and staff and all the boys enough for everything that I’ve experienced over the years. It’s truly just been a dream of mine.”
While both teams have had unforgettable 2025-26 seasons after top-five finishes in conference play a year ago, every game up to this point is a fight for their seasons. The two have been in eighth and ninth place for over a month, as they look to win their way into the NCHC tournament. With ASU having to go on the road to No. 8 Denver next week compared to Omaha’s home series against unranked Miami to close out its regular season, the Sun Devils can use all the points they can get this weekend.
“End of the day, six points and we’re in, and we take care of the rest in the playoffs,” Smolen said. “That’s got to be the mentality.”
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