KALAMAZOO, Mich. – After tying the game twice in the final two periods, the Sun Devil men's ice hockey team lost a close one, 4-2, against No. 9 Western Michigan on Friday night at Lawson Ice Arena.
The Devils (10-19-2) generated several scoring chances in an attempt to tie the game for the third time, but freshman goaltender Ben Blacker survived the flurry for the Broncos (15-7-3) victory.
"That is one hell of a hockey team that our boys competed with for 60 minutes," said head coach Greg Powers. "It definitely hurts worse when you know you competed hard enough to win, and that's how our guys feel right now. However, we can build off that effort moving forward into tomorrow night."
The first period started with several scoring chances for ASU out of the gates, with freshman Joey Daccord picking up where he left off against Quinnipiac.
While the Broncos struck first eight minutes in on a broken play, the Devils kept their momentum into the second period.
Sophomore forward Anthony Croston netted ASU's first 11 minutes into the second frame for his team-leading 11th goal and third in two games. The assistant captain now has seven goals and an assist in his last five games.
Six minutes later, WMU retook the lead on their first power play of the game, as sophomore forward Colt Conrad jammed in a loose puck for his second of the night.
Again, the Devils pushed on as they started the third period down a goal. Like the Broncos, they would also execute on the power play, as redshirt junior Wade Murphy buried his ninth of the season on a blast of a one-timer with just over 12 minutes remaining in the game.
ASU continued to pressure in the waning minutes of the third, but Western Michigan's Corey Schueneman found an open area for a blast that snuck through traffic and passed Daccord.
Four shots on goal and a flurry of loose pucks in the final minutes wouldn't bounce the Devils way. Sophomore Bronco Griffen Molino buried the empty net with 13 seconds remaining to seal ASU's fate.
Daccord finished his night with 35 saves on 38 shots.
On special teams, ASU went 1-for-1 on the power play and 2-for-3 on the penalty kill.
Game two starts at 5 p.m. MST on Saturday night and can be viewed on NCHC.tv.
The Devils (10-19-2) generated several scoring chances in an attempt to tie the game for the third time, but freshman goaltender Ben Blacker survived the flurry for the Broncos (15-7-3) victory.
"That is one hell of a hockey team that our boys competed with for 60 minutes," said head coach Greg Powers. "It definitely hurts worse when you know you competed hard enough to win, and that's how our guys feel right now. However, we can build off that effort moving forward into tomorrow night."
The first period started with several scoring chances for ASU out of the gates, with freshman Joey Daccord picking up where he left off against Quinnipiac.
While the Broncos struck first eight minutes in on a broken play, the Devils kept their momentum into the second period.
Sophomore forward Anthony Croston netted ASU's first 11 minutes into the second frame for his team-leading 11th goal and third in two games. The assistant captain now has seven goals and an assist in his last five games.
Six minutes later, WMU retook the lead on their first power play of the game, as sophomore forward Colt Conrad jammed in a loose puck for his second of the night.
Again, the Devils pushed on as they started the third period down a goal. Like the Broncos, they would also execute on the power play, as redshirt junior Wade Murphy buried his ninth of the season on a blast of a one-timer with just over 12 minutes remaining in the game.
ASU continued to pressure in the waning minutes of the third, but Western Michigan's Corey Schueneman found an open area for a blast that snuck through traffic and passed Daccord.
Four shots on goal and a flurry of loose pucks in the final minutes wouldn't bounce the Devils way. Sophomore Bronco Griffen Molino buried the empty net with 13 seconds remaining to seal ASU's fate.
Daccord finished his night with 35 saves on 38 shots.
On special teams, ASU went 1-for-1 on the power play and 2-for-3 on the penalty kill.
Game two starts at 5 p.m. MST on Saturday night and can be viewed on NCHC.tv.