Cyclones travel to Cleveland for the ACHA National Tournament
Photo: Grace Steenhagen/Iowa State Daily
Freshman forward J.P. Kascsak dribbles around the Lindenwood defender. The Cyclones fell to Lindenwood 4-3 on Friday, Dec. 2, in sudden death after the Cyclones tied the game up in the final seconds of the third period.
March 1, 2012
The No. 8 ISU hockey team has one more weekend and one more goal to worry about before the season comes to an end. This weekend, the Cyclones will be traveling to Cleveland for the ACHA National Tournament.
The Cyclones have a first-round bye, while seeds 13 through 20 will play Friday. The Cyclones will play their first game Saturday against No. 9 Oklahoma.
The last time the Cyclones (28-9-5) played the Sooners (25-12-2) on Sept. 30 and Oct. 1, they struggled to score and split a two-game series at the Ames/ISU Ice Arena. The Cyclones won the first game 1-0. Peter Alexander, who is no longer with the team due to concussion symptoms, had the shutout. The Cyclones lost the second game 3-2.
“We weren’t very productive and we weren’t getting shots on net,” said freshman forward J.P. Kascsak. “In a game like Oklahoma, it’s going to be a big game, so we’re going to have to get a lot of shots on net, keep driving the net and create scoring opportunities.”
Kascsak is leading the team in goals this season with 25 and points with 44 while only missing two games.
The Cyclones’ offense has come a long way since that weekend. They now average more than six goals a game this season.
“I think our shooting has really improved a tremendous amount to a point where a lot of our players, you know, I can call them ‘snipers,’ because they can, the smallest little hole, our guys will find it,” said ISU coach Al Murdoch.
The last time the Cyclones played the Sooners, they ran into penalty trouble, which eventually cost them the second game. Iowa State had six penalties in the first game, including a bench minor for too many men on the ice. The Cyclones had five penalties in the second game, which eventually led to the Sooners’ game-winning goal on the power play.
“We’ve got to stay out of the penalty box,” Murdoch said. “If we take three or four [penalties] we’re probably alright, if we take much more than three or four, it’ll make it tougher.”
The Cyclones get a 45-minute practice in Cleveland on Friday and then the game is on Saturday against Oklahoma at 3 p.m. at Hoover Arena.
