(Photo: Gabrielle Mercer/WCSN)
Over the weekend, it looked as though head coach Greg Powers’ “process” is starting to return some positive results.
Arizona State (2-8-0) defeated New Hampshire (4-5-2) 5-4 in overtime on Saturday night before falling 3-1 to No. 3 Boston College (10-2-1) on Sunday. Despite the score, the Sun Devils held their own against the Eagles – a testament to the strides the second-year team continue to make.
The biggest improvement on the weekend was the lack of penalties on the part of the Sun Devils, who entered Saturday as the most penalized team in Division I hockey.
Arizona State was called for eight penalties on the weekend.
The power play, however, lacked in both games. Of the 10 opportunities the Sun Devils had, on just one occasion did they make good on the advantage.
The team also struggled on the penalty kill, letting up three goals on seven opportunities.
Freshman Joey Daccord was thrown into the fire on Sunday and delivered, allowing three goals and posting 38 saves.
It was Robert Levin on Saturday who earned his first win of the season – he allowed four goals and saved 32 shots.
Still, the weekend saw Arizona State capture its first road win of the season and hold its own against another storied collegiate hockey program.
Powers and the Sun Devils won’t return to Arizona before playing two games against No. 12 Penn State (9-1-1) next weekend. It will be the first time the two programs play each other – Penn State made the jump to the Division I ranks in 2012 and has provided a blueprint for new collegiate programs like Arizona State.
