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ASU Hockey: Quinnipiac comes to the desert to battle the Sun Devils

By Josh Schaefer

LAS VEGAS, NV - MARCH 09: Arizona State Sun Devils mascot Sparky the Sun Devil performs during the team's quarterfinal game of the Pac-12 Basketball Tournament against the Oregon Ducks T-Mobile Arena on March 9, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Oregon won 80-57. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV - MARCH 09: Arizona State Sun Devils mascot Sparky the Sun Devil performs during the team's quarterfinal game of the Pac-12 Basketball Tournament against the Oregon Ducks T-Mobile Arena on March 9, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Oregon won 80-57. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /
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ASU hockey, coming off a split versus UMass Lowell, continues their home stand as they host Quinnipiac for a two-game series.

The Arizona State Sun Devils hockey team (7-13-4) earned its biggest home win of the season on Saturday, a 4-0 win over Hockey East defending champion UMass-Lowell.

The Sun Devils have not lost consecutive home games at Oceanside Ice Arena this season. On Friday, they’ll host the Quinnipiac Bobcats (8-12-3), a team that is slightly struggling after an exciting 2016-17 campaign.

“This is an exciting month for Sun Devil Hockey with now yet another elite college hockey program coming into Tempe in Quinnipiac,” said ASU head coach Greg Powers. “Their success from infancy has been one of the models we’ve looked at and hope to one day emulate.”

However, after Friday’s game, the Sun Devils will leave the safe confines of their Tempe rink to host the Bobcats at Gila River Arena in Glendale on Saturday.

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ASU is 1-6 at the home of the Arizona Coyotes since advancing to the NCAA Division I level, with their only win being a 5-2 triumph over No. 18 Air Force last season.

The Sun Devils split the season series with the Bobcats in 2016-17, winning the second game. That loss would prove to be costly for Quinnipiac, as they fell just short of qualifying for the NCAA tournament last season.

This season, both the Sun Devils and the Bobcats are very similar teams, which should make for a fantastic series.

The biggest similarities between the two teams comes down to special teams. Quinnipiac’s penalty kill unit ranks 11th in the NCAA, while ASU’s ranks 12th. The teams’ penalty kill percentages are separated by a tenth of a percent.

Similarly, the ASU and Quinnipiac power play units nationally rank within two spots of each other. Both squads have had lackluster performances on the man advantage this season, as Quinnipiac’s power play ranks 56th in the NCAA, and ASU’s ranks 58th.

Sophomore defensemen Brinson Pasichnuk leads ASU into Friday night’s game having totaled three goals and four assists in his last four games. Likewise, Quinnipiac charges into Friday’s contest behind Odeen Tufto’s recent point streak. The Bobcats’ freshman forward has tallied two goals and four assists in his last four games.

Furthermore, the Sun Devils will be forced to rely heavily on goaltender Joey Daccord. The sophomore recorded his first collegiate shutout in Saturday’s 4-0 win over UMass-Lowell, and he will be called on again against Quinnipiac. The Bobcats rank third in the country in shots per game with 35.39.

Next: ASU Hockey: Johnny Walker turning heads in his debut season

ASU has not won a home series yet this season, but they will have a good opportunity to do so this weekend when they host the Bobcats at Oceanside Ice Arena Friday, and Gila River Arena Saturday.

All quotes in this article were obtained firsthand by Devils in Detail unless otherwise noted.