TEMPE, Ariz. --- It was 1,587 days between the day Vice President for University Athletics Ray Anderson and Sun Devil Athletics announced men's hockey would make the transition to NCAA Division I and the announcement of the Sun Devils were heading to their first-ever NCAA Tournament.
Saturday night, the fastest startup program in Division I history to qualify for the tournament takes the ice in Allentown as the No. 3 seed to face off against No. 2 seed Quinnipiac at PPL Arena.
"Everything we were working towards as a new program and the vision from the get go becomes a reality Saturday night," said head coach Greg Powers. "We've played in big games, big arenas, against top-ranked teams, and all of it was to prepare our guys for this moment. The goal wasn't to 'make the tournament' and we're not content with playing in the tournament. We're here to win."
Accumulating 13 more wins than last season, the Sun Devils finished the historical season 21-12-1 and jumped 43 spots in the Pairwise rankings from last season going from 53 all the way to No. 10 -- the biggest improvement in all of college hockey.
Of the six conference championships, the Sun Devils played three conference champions during the 2018-19 season with a 2-1-1 record in those games. They also played three of the runner-ups with a record of 3-3-0.
Quinnipiac is a familiar face for ASU, as this will be the fifth meeting between the two teams with the Bobcats holding the edge, 1-2-1.
However, two seasons ago, the Sun Devils split the series against then-No. 17 Quinnipiac on their home ice. Then-freshman goaltender Joey Daccord walked away with the 4-2 win while picking up his career-high and a program-best 53 saves.
In the win, Anthony Croston netted two goals while teammates Jakob Stridsberg and Brinson Pasichnuk picked up a goal a piece. All three will play Saturday night.
The two teams also faced off last season in Arizona, with Johnny Walker and Steenn Pasichnuk scoring in the 2-2 tie at Oceanside Ice Arena on Friday night before falling to the Bobcats the following evening, 5-3.
Quinnipiac enters the NCAA Tournament boasting a 25-9-2 record after being swept in straight games to 8-seed Brown in the quarterfinals of the ECAC playoffs as the 1-seed. This, however, without Hobey Baker finalist Chase Priskie who was serving a two-game suspension.
Priskie, along with forward Odeen Tufto, pace this Quinnipiac offense with 81 points between the two of them -- Priskie with 17 goals and 22 assists and Tufto with 15 goals and 27 assists.
Six times throughout the season, the Bobcats beat ranked opponents including then-No. 1 UMass, Princeton, Boston College and Clarkson. However, six of their nine losses came against unranked opponents.
Behind the success for the Bobcats is netminder Andrew Shortridge, who went 17-6-2 this season with a 1.51 goals against average and a .941 save percentage. Shortridge, like junior Joey Daccord, are both finalists out of five goaltenders in the 2019 Mike Richter Award, announced by Let's Play Hockey on Thursday morning. Both trained together one summer a few years back.
For the Sun Devils, Johnny Walker led the nation during the regular season with 23 goals and paced the country overall in goals per games played (0.74). On the other end of the ice, Daccord finished the season with the NCAA's most shutouts (7), tied for second in wins (21), and top-10 in save percentage (.926).
The freshmen have been key contributors of this Sun Devil squad with a total of 75 points including 20 from NHL fourth-round draft pick for the Calgary Flames, Demetrios Koumontzis. Fellow forward PJ Marrocco paces all freshman with seven goals in his rookie NCAA campaign.
Puck drop between ASU and Quinnipiac is set for Saturday, March 30 at 7:30 p.m. EST/4:30 p.m. PT at PPL Center in Allentown on ESPN3.
The winner of the ASU-Quinnipiac game will play the winner of the matchup between No. 1 seed Minnesota Duluth and No. 4 seed Bowling Green on Sunday, March 31 for the right to advance to the Frozen Four.
Saturday night, the fastest startup program in Division I history to qualify for the tournament takes the ice in Allentown as the No. 3 seed to face off against No. 2 seed Quinnipiac at PPL Arena.
"Everything we were working towards as a new program and the vision from the get go becomes a reality Saturday night," said head coach Greg Powers. "We've played in big games, big arenas, against top-ranked teams, and all of it was to prepare our guys for this moment. The goal wasn't to 'make the tournament' and we're not content with playing in the tournament. We're here to win."
Accumulating 13 more wins than last season, the Sun Devils finished the historical season 21-12-1 and jumped 43 spots in the Pairwise rankings from last season going from 53 all the way to No. 10 -- the biggest improvement in all of college hockey.
Of the six conference championships, the Sun Devils played three conference champions during the 2018-19 season with a 2-1-1 record in those games. They also played three of the runner-ups with a record of 3-3-0.
Quinnipiac is a familiar face for ASU, as this will be the fifth meeting between the two teams with the Bobcats holding the edge, 1-2-1.
However, two seasons ago, the Sun Devils split the series against then-No. 17 Quinnipiac on their home ice. Then-freshman goaltender Joey Daccord walked away with the 4-2 win while picking up his career-high and a program-best 53 saves.
In the win, Anthony Croston netted two goals while teammates Jakob Stridsberg and Brinson Pasichnuk picked up a goal a piece. All three will play Saturday night.
The two teams also faced off last season in Arizona, with Johnny Walker and Steenn Pasichnuk scoring in the 2-2 tie at Oceanside Ice Arena on Friday night before falling to the Bobcats the following evening, 5-3.
Quinnipiac enters the NCAA Tournament boasting a 25-9-2 record after being swept in straight games to 8-seed Brown in the quarterfinals of the ECAC playoffs as the 1-seed. This, however, without Hobey Baker finalist Chase Priskie who was serving a two-game suspension.
Priskie, along with forward Odeen Tufto, pace this Quinnipiac offense with 81 points between the two of them -- Priskie with 17 goals and 22 assists and Tufto with 15 goals and 27 assists.
Six times throughout the season, the Bobcats beat ranked opponents including then-No. 1 UMass, Princeton, Boston College and Clarkson. However, six of their nine losses came against unranked opponents.
Behind the success for the Bobcats is netminder Andrew Shortridge, who went 17-6-2 this season with a 1.51 goals against average and a .941 save percentage. Shortridge, like junior Joey Daccord, are both finalists out of five goaltenders in the 2019 Mike Richter Award, announced by Let's Play Hockey on Thursday morning. Both trained together one summer a few years back.
For the Sun Devils, Johnny Walker led the nation during the regular season with 23 goals and paced the country overall in goals per games played (0.74). On the other end of the ice, Daccord finished the season with the NCAA's most shutouts (7), tied for second in wins (21), and top-10 in save percentage (.926).
The freshmen have been key contributors of this Sun Devil squad with a total of 75 points including 20 from NHL fourth-round draft pick for the Calgary Flames, Demetrios Koumontzis. Fellow forward PJ Marrocco paces all freshman with seven goals in his rookie NCAA campaign.
Puck drop between ASU and Quinnipiac is set for Saturday, March 30 at 7:30 p.m. EST/4:30 p.m. PT at PPL Center in Allentown on ESPN3.
The winner of the ASU-Quinnipiac game will play the winner of the matchup between No. 1 seed Minnesota Duluth and No. 4 seed Bowling Green on Sunday, March 31 for the right to advance to the Frozen Four.