The men who have been around the game call it anything from a “donnybrook” to a “dance.”

Whatever you call it, though, the fights during Oct. 15’s loss to Davenport University certainly made for a tense weekend series, one in which ISU coach Al Murdoch had to insert five players to replace those suspended from the fracas.

“We have a pretty deep team,” Murdoch said. “I am very proud of the five guys that game in. They played solid.”

The young squad halted its five-game losing streak Saturday, beating the Panthers 5-3 with four unanswered goals. Murdoch sensed the difference in the two games.

“It was thrilling for the fans and the players,” Murdoch said. “That’s a big swing, winning that game. They were very coachable and did what we said.”

Senior forward Mike Lebler, who took on the bulk of the scoring attack during the DU series, saw his teammates start to jell more and more.

“We learned a lot as a team, and we have each other’s back,” Lebler said. “It’s good to see we had the confidence to come back on Saturday.”

The Cyclones will have to ride that confidence when they take their first road trip of the season this weekend. Iowa State will play a weekend series in Champaign, Ill., against the Fighting Illini.

A unique aspect of the series will be the ice itself. The arena is built for a rink larger than Olympic-size and larger than the ice sheet at the Ames/ISU Ice Arena. Murdoch instituted a few drills this week in practice to try to simulate the wider space.

“I went there my first season, last year, and it’s huge,” said sophomore Justin Wilkinson. “It’s like an ocean.”

Freshman Chris Cucullu will be playing his first game on the larger sheet of ice, and he realizes conditioning will play a major role.

“We are learning in practice how to play on the bigger ice surface,” Cucullu said. “If you don’t prepare for it, you are going to kill yourself skating around all game.”

As for the product on the ice, Murdoch will be without his captain for Friday’s game and potentially the Saturday matchup. Cort Bulloch left the game Friday after being involved in the fights. He was diagnosed with a separated shoulder, the third of his career.

“He was a full go today during practice,” Murdoch said. “He bounced back well. We will hold him out on Friday and maybe Saturday.”

The first road test will be just that for the young Cyclones.

The Fighting Illini are known for playing with confidence at home, and their arena is a large part of that. More than 4,000 rowdy fans will be on hand when Iowa State rolls into town.

Murdoch said the fans dress up like him, and the Cyclones are the most popular team the Illini face. But if the current Cyclones are anything like previous squads, Murdoch will have his team ready.

“We play even better on the road,” Murdoch said. “It is the power of positive thinking.”

Wilkinson played there last year and knows what to expect from a hostile environment.

“They have crazy fans and a good squad, too,” Wilkinson said. “It’s a good rivalry. We just need to play our game and keep things simple.”

Cucullu will have his first taste of a road game Friday, but unlike one would suspect, he relishes playing away from home.

“It frees me up and gets me riled up,” Cucullu said. “The crowd will just get me amped up. It is going to be a good test for us.”

The Illini have not lost in regulation time this year, going 7-0-1 on the season. However, they have benefited from a rather weak schedule. Despite that and their own youthfulness, Lebler said he expects a close game.

“Illinois has always had a good team,” Lebler said. “They are fast and have all that room to skate in. We need to play smart, defensively, in the zone, and our offense will come out of that.”

Playing smart has been an issue for the Cyclones. Penalties and missed opportunities have plagued the team.

To win this weekend, Murdoch stressed the importance of discipline and consistency.

“We need to show some maturity and it’s got to be now,” Murdoch said.

The Cyclones play the first game of the series at 7:30 p.m. Friday at the University of Illinois Ice Arena.