The Sun Devils' spirits are high as they are looking forward to this weekend with hopes of breaking their 11-game losing streak.
Last week, the Sun Devils hosted the Desert Hockey Classic and did not have a strong showing. The Sun Devils went 0-2-0 in the tournament while being outscored 7-0.
The team is showing an inability to be aggressive and get shots in goal. In the first game, they were outshot by a margin of 40-12. Following their loss, they were outshot 29-20. As a result, it was evident that they could not get much going toward the net.
With the Sun Devils being repeatedly dominated this past weekend, Wednesday's practice had an emphasis on offense. The team was put into a plethora of situational scoring drills, allowing them to practice aggressively and get the puck on the net.
Head coach Greg Powers mentioned that his team needs to get back to the basics with goal scoring.
“We showed the guys all the goals we scored all year today on film," he said. "We are trying to play fancy and get perimeter goals; that’s not who we are. We need to manufacture goals and pick up garbage up front.”
Freshman goalie Ryland Pashovitz thought that the defense in front of him played well, even though the Sun Devils allowed seven total goals for the opposition over the weekend.
“I thought they were good, I know a lot of the shots came from the outside,” Pashovitz said. “I know they did a good job of pushing the puck outside. They gave me a lot of help out there.”
Although the team didn’t have a good showcase, they have no time to dwell on their previous struggles.
This week, the team prepares to go on a road trip to Minnesota to face off with Bemidji State. The team has a game on Friday and Saturday evening.
The team considers both games very winnable. The Beavers currently have an 8-9-4 record. In contrast, the Sun Devils will be going into this weekend’s games with a 6-17-2 record with an 11-game losing streak.
Powers said the team is not fixated on the win-and-loss column.
“We are focused on who we want to become and what we are dealing with here," he said. "All we are focused on is winning Friday night. We still believe we can win on any given night.”
The team battled hard in practice at Oceanside Ice Arena.
“We competed and battled for almost an hour," Powers said. "They were going hard against each other, so hopefully that translates to the game.”
Powers said they need to outwork Bemidji State in order to be successful.
“They are a very good team. They are the epitome of 'if you don’t outwork them, you are done and they will bury you.'"
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ASU hockey outplayed by elite schools in first Division I season
Reach the reporter at chaz.frazier@asu.edu or follow @chazf on Twitter.
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