Of the 43 Division I American Collegiate Hockey Association teams, Kent State and Ohio are the only two located in Ohio.
When the Golden Flashes (8-16, 2-14 Central States Collegiate Hockey League) come to town, in-state pride will be on the line tonight and Saturday night.
High school hockey players in Northeastern Ohio are forced to decide between the two schools. Bobcat forwards Robbie Farmer and Casey Fitzpatrick are both from Northeastern Ohio.
Farmer and Fitzpatrick have friends and former teammates on the Kent team.
I played with about half the roster from Kent State
Fitzpatrick said. They are kids I used to get along with. We want to be the best team in Ohio.
Farmer said that beating Kent would mean a lot to him not only because he has friends on the team but because it is a league game.
It's kind of like the home stretch Farmer said. It's important not to take a step back. It's important for us to play hard this weekend. (The in-state rivalry) is just extra incentive for us.
Despite Kent State being closer to home, neither Farmer nor Fitzpatrick ever considered going to Kent State.
I knew the program here and the program there said Farmer, who is in his last season with Ohio. It was a no-brainer. I never really thought about it.
Kent and Ohio are two teams heading in opposite directions.
The Bobcats (20-4-1, 14-0 CSCHL) are coming off a sweep of previously-undefeated and then-No. 1 Illinois.
The Flashes have lost 10 of their last 14 games. They are fighting for the final spot in the CSCHL tournament.
This weekend is extremely important for us
said Kent coach Curtis Carr. We need to come down there
play well both games and get back on the right track.
Carr believes that Bird Arena is the toughest place to play in the country. Between the shorter rink and the intense crowd, Carr said that the Bobcats always play like the best team in the league on their home ice.
The Bobcats are only six CSCHL victories away from achieving one of their preseason goals: winning the regular season title. Ohio needs to keep their focus and take care of business this weekend to keep on towards their goal.
It's always tough to look at Kent's record and think that it isn't much of a challenge for us
said Ohio coach Dan Morris. If you take all of the intangibles
then it is a challenge for us. We get their best game
and we have to give them our best game.
The Ohio penalty kill was stellar last weekend versus Illinois. The Fighting Illini only had one power-play goal in 13 chances.
The Flashes have accumulated only 24 power-play goals this season in 24 games.
Ohio won two games at Kent earlier this season. The 'Cats outscored the Flashes 10-5 in those games.
The puck drops at 7:30 tonight and Saturday night in Bird Arena.
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