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ASU Hockey: Sun Devils vs. Crimson Preview

By Ethan Schmidt

Dec 13, 2014; Tempe, AZ, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils mascot Sparky reacts during the second half against the Pepperdine Waves at Wells-Fargo Arena. Sun Devils defeated the Waves 81-74 Mandatory Credit: Allan Henry-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 13, 2014; Tempe, AZ, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils mascot Sparky reacts during the second half against the Pepperdine Waves at Wells-Fargo Arena. Sun Devils defeated the Waves 81-74 Mandatory Credit: Allan Henry-USA TODAY Sports /
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The ASU Hockey team welcomes the No. 13 Harvard Crimson to the desert this weekend for a two-game series.

The Sun Devils come back home after a trip to Boston where the team played the No. 17 Northeastern Huskies. Arizona State fell 2-5 in the first game, and also lost the second, 1-6.

Graduate transfer Robbie Baillargeon scored all three of the Sun Devils’ goals against Northeastern. Freshman forward Tyler Busch was unable to continue his goal-per-game streak.

No. 13 Harvard (0-0-0) comes into Arizona to play their first games of the season. Arizona State (1-5-0) has already played six games thus far.

The series is the first time the Sun Devils and Crimson have ever played in the history of both programs.

The Crimson are in the Ivy League Conference, and all of its teams are just now beginning their season this weekend. Harvard will play six currently ranked teams this season, including fellow Ivy League rival, Yale.

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Harvard is loaded with experience as the roster features 15 seniors and juniors, tied for second-most in the NCAA. The team is led by senior forwards and captains, Alexander Kerfoot and Devin Tringale.

The Crimson power play ranked fifth in the nation last season, scoring on 27.4% of their chances. Harvard’s 3.41 goals-per-game average ranked ninth nationally.

Harvard was the co-winner of the 2016 Ivy League championship last year, splitting the award with Yale. In last year’s NCAA Tournament, they lost in round one to Boston College, 4-1.

The Sun Devils continue their ranked opponent stretch. Despite the tough schedule, the team is getting better with staying out of the penalty box and figuring out ways to compete in NCAA Division-I Hockey.

After six games, captain and red shirt sophomore Dylan Hollman leads the team in points with one goal and five assists. Robbie Baillargeon and Tyler Busch both have four goals on the season.

Arizona State’s three-man rotation of goaltenders has yet to have a real standout. Freshman Joey Daccord and senior Robert Levin have split the six starts so far, but both have save percentages under .900.

Both games will start at 7:05 p.m. MST. The game on Friday will take place at Gila River Arena and can be seen on Pac-12 Network, while Saturday’s game will see the Sun Devils return to Oceanside Ice Arena and can be seen through a Pac-12 Twitter livestream on Saturday. The games will also be streamed on Arizona State’s Blaze Radio.