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ASU Hockey: No. 19 Sun Devils head to Princeton to conclude road trip

By Ryne Redd

TEMPE, AZ - OCTOBER 10: Arizona State Sun Devils mascot Sparky spikes the pitchfork at center field after the college football game against the Colorado Buffaloes at Sun Devil Stadium on October 10, 2015 in Tempe, Arizona. The Arizona State Sun Devils beat the Colorado Buffaloes 48-23. (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images)
TEMPE, AZ - OCTOBER 10: Arizona State Sun Devils mascot Sparky spikes the pitchfork at center field after the college football game against the Colorado Buffaloes at Sun Devil Stadium on October 10, 2015 in Tempe, Arizona. The Arizona State Sun Devils beat the Colorado Buffaloes 48-23. (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images) /
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ASU hockey (10-6-0), after having an off week, is prepared to take on the Princeton Tigers (3-6-1) in the second oldest rink in the nation at Hobey Baker Memorial Rink.

Head Coach Greg Powers stressed the need for a weekend off.

“We needed it. We were the only team in college hockey that hadn’t had a weekend off,” Powers said.

The Sun Devils lost both games against the Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks in Omaha, yet closed out the series with some impressive hockey even though the players were exhausted.

“It was a long stretch of games for our guys. We played really well on Saturday,” Powers said. “If we play like that the rest of the season, we’re gonna win a lot more games than we lose”.

Princeton has faced adversity as of late, losing five straight contests, yet the Tigers are still receiving votes in the USCHO poll.

The Tigers’ record does not represent the quality that the team possesses, as Princeton has faced many of the top hockey schools early on this season.

“They have one of the best lines, if not the best line, in the country,” Powers said.

The Tigers feature the nation’s best penalty kill and one of the best in senior Ryan Kuffner.

Kuffner, a forward, leads the Tigers with 16 points in eight games. That is good enough to put him at fifth in the country in points.

https://twitter.com/NatStatMHK/status/1070042607311572992

“There will be no taking anybody lightly, especially this weekend,” Powers said.

It will likely be a battle between the pipes of junior goalie Joey Daccord for the Sun Devils, and sophomore goaltender Ryan Ferland for the Tigers.

Daccord has maintained the net well for ASU with a .919 save percentage over 16 games this season.

Both the ASU and Princeton have seen difficulty capping off scoring chances; this weekend is a chance at redemption for two of the hungriest squads in college hockey.

ASU Hockey: Sun Devils’ meteoric rise though the D-I ranks. dark. Next

Arizona State hockey will take the ice Friday and Saturday at 5 p.m. MST.

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