Clocking in at just less than six months, Ohio’s hockey schedule can safely be described as a marathon, not a sprint.
The first few steps of that race will be taken Saturday as the Bobcats take on the West Virginia Mountaineers in their season opener. That will be the first of 36 regular-season games on the team’s slate.
Entering his 11th season behind the Ohio bench, head coach Dan Morris has taken the tortoise-beats-the-hare approach to heart. Already at a bit of a disadvantage because of a late start due to OU’s quarter system, Morris focuses on getting his team ready for the long haul, even if that means sacrificing some sharpness early on.
“I think that, early in the year, some teams separate themselves quickly. I don’t think we’re one of those teams,” Morris said. “Hockey’s different from football, where you have to win every game. It’s a big-picture thing, and I’d rather have the guys playing great at the end of the year. Winning games at the beginning of the year is a bonus.”
Last season saw Morris’ philosophy vindicated in happy fashion. After starting just 3-4, Ohio turned on the afterburners in January and February, going 10-3 through the meat of the schedule to claim its seventh Central States Collegiate Hockey League playoff title.
Sophomore forward David Veitch said the expectations this year are no different.
“Every year, we set our goals pretty high,” he said. “To finish up in our league and to do well at nationals, obviously we’re striving towards winning nationals and the league each year, not just the playoffs but in the regular season as well. I think we have a good enough team this year where we’ll be able to reach goals like that.”
Ohio originally had been scheduled to play Washington & Jefferson in Saturday’s opener, but the Presidents had to cancel because of low turnout at their tryouts. West Virginia, Washington & Jefferson’s College Hockey Mid-America rival who was already scheduled to face Ohio twice next weekend, stepped in to fill the gap.
Morris said the move would be mutually beneficial.
“West Virginia stepped up and said, ‘We’ll play you three times in a row,’ ” he said. “I think West Virginia wants to play the best competition they can, and when they get the opportunity to play us, they kind of jump at it. It’s a good rivalry between the two states.”
Morris added he thinks the Mountaineers’ coaching staff sees an opportunity in playing a traditional power such as the Bobcats three times early on.
“Early in the year, I think, is the best chance any team has to beat us, just based on the amount of information that we give to our players is sometimes overwhelming,” he said. “And we don’t game- plan, whereas a team like West Virginia understands that that gap is probably pretty close early in the year, so they would definitely game-plan for us, which gives them an advantage.”
But despite downplaying its importance, the veteran coach is still anxious heading into the opener.
“I get nervous for every game,” Morris said. “If I didn’t get nervous or excited or whatever you want to call it, I think I’d have to look for another job.”
cd211209@ohiou.edu
