In the 2025-26 hockey season, no team in ASU's conference, the NCHC, has made more saves than the Sun Devils. In fact, ASU's 1,026 saves tower above the next best mark of 880.
Despite this, no team in the conference has given up more goals than the Sun Devils, with only four teams in the country surpassing ASU's mark of 116.
Off the back of a series that saw the Sun Devils get swept by No. 4 Western Michigan with a combined score of 13-4, ASU has just four games left in the regular season. The Sun Devils currently sit with a conference-worst 3.63 goals against average, a stark contrast to last season's 2.78.
The primary contributor to the increase in goals against lies in the shots ASU has given up. Facing 35.69 shots per game, sophomore forward Logan Morrell highlighted how important improvement on defense is.
"Defense wins championships, we always say, and that's definitely a huge area we've got to improve in," Morrell said, per Sun Devil Athletics. "It's an area we will improve in and we'll just continue to get better."
Despite facing so many shots per game, ASU's goaltenders have been able to put in some strong performances. With freshman Samuel Urban and senior Connor Hasley both sitting in the top 50 for save percentage in the country, sophomore forward Ty Nash added onto Morrell's comments.
"With the goalies we have back there, we're super lucky," Nash said via Sun Devil Athletics. "They've definitely won us the majority of our games this year."
Despite placing low in many defensive statistics, one positive for ASU has been blocked shots. The Sun Devils have blocked an NCHC-high of 490 shots, over 100 more than second-place Miami University's 387. This mark also places ASU second in the country in blocked shots.
For captain and junior forward Kyle Smolen, blocking shots is more than a stat to rack up; it's a necessity when he steps on the ice.
"Blocked shots are not a request, it's a requirement," Smolen said. "When you don't get that done, you have to look yourself in the mirror and be like, 'Did I really want to block that shot?'"
One factor that could contribute to the increase in goals against is ASU's penalty numbers. The Sun Devil's 79% penalty kill is a decrease from last year's 83.5%, but still good enough to place in the top 40 in the country. However, ASU ranks fifth in the country in power-play goals against. This primarily comes down to the volume of penalties the Sun Devils have taken.
In seven fewer games, ASU has already committed 18 more penalties than last season. These penalty stats came to a boiling point in the Sun Devils' matchup against No. 3 North Dakota on Jan. 23 and 24, where ASU took 16 penalties, eight in each game. Captain and senior forward Bennett Schimek looked at the penalties in causing the results.
READ MORE: ASU hockey swept by No. 4 North Dakota in crucial conference series
"When the penalties are (eight) to three, back and forth, it's tough to win hockey games," Schimek said. "That's one of those things you've just got to look inward. That's got to get fixed."
Giving up a combined 12 goals in one weekend, head coach Greg Powers highlighted the same issue.
"The depth is good enough," Powers said. "But when you take as many penalties as we did, it kills you. It doesn't matter how deep we are; we got tired."
Since the series against North Dakota, the Sun Devils have continued to struggle on defense, giving up an average of five goals per game in the following six games. With the season's end on the horizon, Powers explained the team's mindset going forward.
"Just stick with it, be hard, it's as simple as that, just be hard. We've got to find a way to get over the hump," Powers said per Sun Devil Athletics. "We're not finding ways to win them. We have to just stick with it and do more and dig deeper and every cliché you can possibly conjure up to get over the hump."
Edited by Alan Deutschendorf, Senna James and Pippa Fung.
Reach the reporter at aswift10@asu.edu and follow @alexswiftsports on X.
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