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ASU hockey edged out by Alaska Anchorage in overtime

The Sun Devils tasted defeat for the first time in their 2015 NCAA campaign, falling 3-2 Friday night

ASU Hockey Robert Levin WarmUp

Junior goaltender Robert Levin warms up for the Sun Devils before ASU hockey's game against Arizona on Saturday, Oct. 3, 2015 at Gila River Arena in Glendale.


Sun Devil hockey achieved a historically significant milestone in ASU's first loss of its Division I era, falling to the University of Alaska Anchorage Seawolves  3-2 in overtime.

Game two of the Kendall Hockey Classic at the newly renovated George M. Sullivan Arena in Anchorage featured the Seawolves, fresh off a frustrating 1-0 defeat at the hands of Mt. Royal, and the young Sun Devils (0-1) traveling far north following their rout of rival Arizona 8-1.

Coach Powers committed to the experienced talent for his starting lineup versus the Division I Seawolves. On the ice for the Sun Devils was junior goaltender Robert Levin, with freshman defensemen Joey Raats and graduate Brock Krygier in front of him. On the faceoff dot was graduate forward Garrett Peterson, flanked by junior Ryan Belonger to his right and standout freshman Jack Rowe on his left.

After some fast-paced back-and-forth to start the first period, ASU found themselves on the power play first, ultimately coming up empty. Levin showed flashes of brilliance, fending off both a 2-on-1 and 3-on-1 rush, utilizing his quick post-to-post movement to keep the Seawolves off the scoreboard for as long as possible. But the dam would finally break, and UAA entered the first intermission leading 1-0 off a powerplay goal.

With under six minutes to play in the second, following a sequence of shots that rang off the post for UAA, the Sun Devils tagged on an equalizer also on the power play. Rowe would net the equalizer on the man advantage, the stat later being corrected to credit both fellow starters Belonger and Raats. ASU threw 14 shots on net in the period, and after only the one squeaked through, the teams entered the final third tied 1-1.

The Devils broke the tie early as graduate forward and captain Liam Norris put ASU up 2-1, assists credited to junior forward Eric Rivard and freshman forward Jordan Masters. The lead would not last, and before long, a 4-on-4 goal knotted the competitors back at 2-2, a score that would last the rest of the regulation time.

The first overtime of the season for the Sun Devils ended almost as quickly as it started after UAA scored the game winner, sealing a 3-2 victory in their home arena. Levin faced 40 shots on the evening, more than four times the amount in his previous start.

ASU will have to shake off the loss quickly as they prepare for day two of Kendall Hockey Classic play versus Alaska Fairbanks on Saturday at 3 p.m. 


Reach the reporter at csafran@asu.edu and follow @ChrisSafran on Twitter.

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