The University of Arizona men’s hockey team swept a two-game home series against ASU over the weekend, winning the first match 5-4 on Dec. 6 and the final matchup 7-0 on Dec. 7 in tha Tucson Convention Center.
Game 1
Arizona began the first game against the Sun Devils with Haydn Gould in net. Coming into this series, Gould had started 10 games for the Wildcats, boasting a 7-5 record after starting all three games in the Maryville Invitational Showcase.
ASU got its first points on the board after Matthew Gross scored a goal to lead 1-0 through the first period.
Arizona tied the game 1-1 in the second period off a goal by defensemen Nicholas Chiocca. Chiocca set a new career high with this goal, scoring his 7th goal of the season.
The Wildcats went on the power play with 9:40 left in the second period and capitalized on a goal by forward Dylan Walker, giving Arizona a 2-1 lead.
Forward Riley Ruh was able to score late in the frame and ASU found no answer, trailing 3-1 heading into the third period. With 17:12 remaining in the third period, forward Tyler Shetland scored his first goal of the season, further extending the Wildcats’ lead to 4-1.
Despite being down 4-1, the Sun Devils were able to rally and scored 3 straight goals in the last 14 minutes to send the game to overtime. The overtime period saw no goals scored between either team and the game headed to a shootout.
Forward Justin Hughes ended the shootout after scoring the game-winning goal in the third round, giving Arizona the 5-4 win and its first victory in the back-to-back matchups against ASU.
Game 2
Gould started once again for Arizona, with the team’s hopes set on a potential series sweep. Forward Brian Ericsson started the scoring for Arizona with a first period goal to give the team a 1-0 lead. The score was quickly doubled as Walker scored his second goal of the series to extend the Arizona lead to 2-0. This score was held until the end of the first period.
The Wildcats had complete control of the game and recorded their best period of the season in the second frame, scoring 5 consecutive goals. Will Josephson, Walker, Chiocca, Carter Hanrahan and Ruh each contributed to the scoring spree.
Arizona stunned the Sun Devils, dominating the game with a 7-0 lead heading into the third period.
Gould continued his strong play in the third period, posting a shutout in a 7-0 Arizona Cactus Cup.
Looking ahead
Arizona is now ranked No. 7 in the WCHL standings with 16 points on the season. The Wildcats will play their next game on Dec. 12 against Minot State University, whom they recently lost to 3-2 on Nov. 21 at the Maryville Invitational Showcase. After facing Minot State, Arizona will have a break until Jan. 10 with an important January schedule ahead.
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