TEMPE – Sun Devil Hockey was unable to even the series against St. Cloud State on Saturday night at Mullett Arena, dropping the contest 4-3.
Arizona State saw three different skaters notch a goal in the outing. Junior forward Sean McGurn, sophomore forward Noah Powell and freshman forward Carmelo Crandell each found the back of the net for the Sun Devils.
Powell has now recorded goals in back-to-back games for the first time in his career after scoring in both games of the series, while Crandell tallied his sixth goal of the season.
Arizona State (13-15-1, 6-10 NCHC) will be back in action on Friday, Feb. 13 at Western Michigan. Puck drop is slated for 5 p.m. MST and can be found on NCHC.tv with radio coverage available on Fox Sports 910AM.
Period-by-period breakdown
First period
- Sean McGurn got ASU on the board to start the night’s scoring with a power play goal.
- Despite a strong defensive effort by ASU, St. Cloud answered back with 6:12 remaining in the period.
Second Period
- St. Cloud broke the tie with a power play goal to make it 2-1.
Third Period
- 20 seconds into the third period, Noah Powell stripped a Huskie defender of the puck and found the back of the net to tie the game at two apiece.
- Four minutes later, St. Cloud scored again to take back the lead.
- Sophomore defenseman Joel Kjellberg’s strong feed to Crandell helped ASU tie the game up at three with just less than four minutes to play in regulation.
- A late goal from the Huskies resulted in a 4-3 final score.
Quotes from Sun Devil Hockey
Arizona State Head Coach Greg Powers on this weekend’s forecheck
“We had a really good forecheck all weekend. We created a lot on the forecheck and a lot of chances we didn’t convert on, but we were really hunting pucks and finishing checks. We were playing a heavy game, and I thought we were better than last night.”
On the rookie’s performance this weekend
“They are managing pucks. They are better than they are all year. This is their biggest learning curve as young players are managing pucks at this level, they’ve struggled in the first half and now they are starting to get it.”
Senior forward Bennett Schimek on the message to his team
“I told the group I was proud of them. We showed a lot of resilience in that third period. The messaging was to keep the shifts short and just keep pounding them shift after shift and I felt like we did that. We found a way to get ourselves back in the game. I thought we took a step tonight, and I was proud of our resilience.”
On his takeaway from the team’s performance this weekend
“I’d say we’re right there. That's probably the biggest thing, but it's being consistent, and we have to find a way to put a complete 60. For the most part, it’s the mindset.”
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