Ohio travels to the University of Illinois In an ACHA top 20 matchup.
A week ago, Ohio sat atop the American Collegiate Hockey Association poll at 8-0-0, garnering the league’s No. 1 ranking after an impressive sweep of then No. 5 Iowa State.
Heading into an away series against Illinois, No. 7 Ohio (8-1-1) has fallen six spots all the way down to seventh in the rankings after a rare weekend sweep at the hand of Lindenwood.
Ohio looks to begin the road back to the top of the conference Friday and Saturday in Champaign, Illinois.
“I think being No. 1, it just makes everyone you play automatically more pumped up,” coach Sean Hogan said. “Being No. 1 in October ... I want to be No. 1 in March. It keeps our guys hungry, knowing each week we’re going to play teams higher than us.”
No. 1 no more
Although Ohio was dealt its first losses of the season last weekend, Hogan didn’t institute drastic changes after just one weekend sweep.
“What I thought Lindenwood did a real good job of was they were just fast,” Hogan said. “They were quick on the forecheck, and it took us 30 minutes to adjust to the speed of the game. The emphasis for us was making sure we get back and getting pucks out quick.”
The penalty kill was an issue for Ohio against Lindenwood, as well as staying out of the penalty box.
The Bobcats committed 11 penalties during the weekend, including seven in Saturday's game, leading to three Lions' goals.
“As far as the penalties, we made some stupid ones. They really take you out of the game,” said junior defenseman Michael LaFrenier.
The lost No. 1 ranking will serve as a reminder of what the team once had, but it can also be used as a teaching point for the future.
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“You always want to be No. 1, but you never want to go into the end undefeated. You have to know how to lose, and learn how to lose throughout the year together,” LaFrenier said. “So, I think it’s good we got it out of the way early. It's not ideal, but it’s a good way to start stepping forward and moving onto the end of the year.”
Mo’ ice, Mo’ problems
Not only will the No. 17 Fighting Illini (5-2-1) be waiting for the Bobcats, an incredibly large playing surface will be as well.
Illinois’ ice arena, known as “The Big Pond”, was built in 1931, and is 197 feet by 115 feet. An NHL ice surface is 200 feet by 85 feet, and an Olympic sized surface is 200 feet by 100 feet.
The Bobcats will try to use the ice to an advantage however, hoping it creates extra offensive zone time.
“What we like to do, on the offensive side, is if there’s so much room in the corners, don’t give the puck up,” Hogan said. “We have time back there, hold onto the puck. On the defensive side, we don’t want to chase pucks all over the place.”
The large ice surface creates more of an offensive game, which could force the Bobcats to stay within their defensive system to be successful.
“You really just have to stay tight to your system,” LaFrenier said. “Make sure you don’t drift out too far and get lost watching the puck, stay within the system. That way everything works well together.”
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