After finishing a six-game road trip with a sweep against Princeton, No. 15 ASU hockey returns home to face Colorado College.
No. 15 Arizona State returns to Oceanside Ice Arena this weekend with a two-game series against Colorado College.
The Sun Devils (12-6-0) will lean on junior goaltender Joey Daccord, who lifted the team to a road sweep over Princeton last weekend, against the struggling Tigers (7-7-2).
“With the exception of the Omaha series, he’s been exceptional,” ASU head coach Greg Powers said. “He was just good there, he wasn’t exceptional – the result was we got swept.”
Daccord rebounded from the rough trip to Omaha with a 45-save shutout last Friday, followed by a 36-save performance in the team’s 3-2 win Saturday.
The junior netminder has started every game for the Sun Devils, posting a 2.28 goals against average and a .927 save percentage.
“For me, personally, I love knowing that I’m going every game. It helps me get in a groove, get in a rhythm and just feel like I’m in my zone 24/7,” Daccord said.
Across the ice, Colorado College will most likely start junior Alex Leclerc in net.
Leclerc has enjoyed similar success so far with a 2.48 GAA and .913 save percentage. He has not allowed more than three goals since a five-goal barrage on Nov. 10 at Minnesota Duluth.
Both goalies and defenses will be tested this weekend against high-scoring offenses.
Arizona State is tied for sixth in the nation with 61 goals, while Colorado College’s 51 goals ranks 16th in the country.
“Let’s play in their end,” team captain Brinson Pasichnuk said. “I don’t think anyone actually likes playing defense, so I think that just starts with us getting the puck deep in their end and keeping them hemmed in there – not allowing them to be in our end as much as possible.”
Each team has thrived offensively this season because of a well-balanced attack.
The Sun Devils currently have eight players with 10 or more points this season. Sophomore forward Johnny Walker has carried much of the goal-scoring load with an NCAA-leading 13 goals heading into this weekend.
Pasichnuk’s play from the blue line has been pivotal to the team’s success as well. The junior defenseman is second on the team with 14 points, including seven goals, on the season.
As for the Tigers, they have five players topping 10 points on the season. Senior forward Trevor Gooch has caught fire recently with four goals and six points in his last three games.
Although Colorado College’s forwards provide a bulk of the scoring, freshman defenseman Bryan Yoon has become a facilitator from the back end. Yoon heads into the weekend with one goal and eight assists in his first year.
The first game of the series will begin Friday, Dec. 14 at 7:05 MT. The puck will drop for the second game Saturday at the same time.
All quotes in this article were obtained firsthand by Devils in Detail unless otherwise noted.