Forward Ryan Belonger vies for the puck with a Liberty defender. ASU had a close match with Liberty University at Oceanside Arena on Thursday, Oct. 23, 2014. ASU won 6-4. (Photo by Mario Mendez)From the NCAA announcement to dominating rival No. 20 UA (9-10-3) in the Cactus Cup, the No. 1 ASU (22-2) hockey team has had quite a season so far as the Sun Devils attempt to defend their national championship.
Here's how we got to this point:
ASU started off hot with an eight-game winning streak until No. 2 Central Oklahoma (20-2-1) ended it on Oct. 16, beating ASU 7-4. The team bounced back from its first defeat and went on another eight-game streak before losing by three goals to Stony Brook on Nov. 9. ASU has not lost a game since, and has regained its top spot in the ACHA rankings.
During the middle of the season, ASU athletic director Ray Anderson announced the University will be adding hockey as an NCAA Division I sport. Hockey supporters, including Don Mullet, father of former player Chris Mullet, made this move possible with a $32 million donation.
The team went through an exhausting stretch of play with many key players out because of injury. But after a Thanksgiving rest, ASU took the ice against rival UA, during its final weekend series of the semester, sweeping the Wildcats 6-0 and 3-1.
The latest win in Tucson, against UA at the "Cactus Cup", was a snapshot of the team’s season so far. ASU dominated during both games and is now in a strong position moving into the second half of the season.
ASU now not only has most of their guys back and healthy, but the players that were on the bench during the end of the first part of the season, including forwards Faiz Khan, David Norris, Patrick Yudez and defenseman Gianni Mangone, are now reportedly ready to hit the ice, but on the downside, forward Ryan Ostertag is reportedly not ready to return. The team is eager to have him back.
ASU resumes its season on Thursday against Oklahoma at 8:15 p.m. at Oceanside Ice Arena. ASU won both meetings between the schools when they played in Norman.
In its first week of games this calendar year, ASU also plays Central Oklahoma on Friday and Saturday. Both games begin at 7:30 p.m.
Reach the reporter at kewens@asu.edu or follow her on Twitter @katlynewens
Like State Press Sports on Facebook and follow @statepresssport on Twitter.
