Two weekends ago, Sun Devil hockey earned its first series sweep in the program's young history with two 3-2 wins over Lake Superior State in Michigan.
It was the best ASU (5-6) had looked all year, with the offensive production matching impressive play from freshman goaltender Ryland Pashovitz, who tallied 58 total saves that weekend.
Now, after the team's second off weekend in the last three weeks, ASU readies itself for a two-game tilt with Clarkson (5-4-2), which has played three teams ranked in the latest USCHO poll — No. 13 Merrimack, No. 14 St. Lawrence and No. 3 Quinnipiac.
The Golden Knights lost two of those three games and tied the third. But ASU won't be able to afford any drop-off in production playing on the road.
"We're going to have to win on the road," ASU head coach Greg Powers said last week. "With every trip we take, our guys are getting more settled in. They're becoming more accustomed to the way we want them to play, the way we need to play."
Clarkson forward Jordan Boucher leads the team with nine points, and the team's top scorer is A.J. Fossen, who has five goals in 11 games. The Golden Knights are a balanced team, sporting four players with seven points, Fossen included.
And while Clarkson features a veteran team that only lost two player's from last year's squad, which went 12-20-5, ASU's roster presents quite a contrast. The Sun Devils' freshman class ranks first in the nation with 55 points.
Although the statistic is perhaps a bit skewed because ASU has a such a large freshmen class seeing more frequent ice time, it's still an impressive indicator of the talent the Sun Devils will have to work with in the future.
Jordan Masters leads all undrafted freshmen in the country with five goals and seven assists for 12 points. Right along with him, though, is fellow freshman Joey Raats, who has 10 points, nine of which are assists.
"Jordan Masters has been awesome," Powers said. "What he's doing isn't a fluke, he's only going to get better. We're just thrilled that he's here."
But the level of experience on each team is not the only difference in the weekend matchup. ASU is 4-2 in its last six games, but Clarkson has lost five straight and is looking to get back on track before resuming its difficult Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference schedule.
Powers said he was trying to get David Jacobson a start in net at Lake Superior State, but did not end up doing it because Pashovitz was playing so well. While he noted that Pashovitz is the starting goaltender moving forward, he said it is nice to have three reliable options.
"They're a great trio," he said. "(David Jacobson) is a great team guy, he's supportive no matter if he's in or he's out...(Robert Levin) is a steady veteran presence...(Ryland Pashovitz) is just a dynamite freshman."
The weekend road trip will be ASU's fifth of the season. The Sun Devils have not played a home game since the Oct. 24 win over Southern New Hampshire and do not return home until Dec. 4.
However, Powers said the team vowed to not use travel as an excuse before the year started.
"I think we're embracing the travel," he said. "It's a great way to get a young team bonded and if we can learn to win on the road, we're going to be in good shape down the road for years to come."
Puck drop is at 5 p.m. Arizona time on Nov. 27 and 28.
Reach the reporter at Justin.Toscano@asu.edu or follow @justintoscano3 on Twitter
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