ACHA SELECTS GO UNDEFEATED ON EUROPEAN TRIP
Utah State team captain Kent Arsenault spent his Christmas vacation in a unique way this year: representing the American Collegiate Hockey Association against top-notch European club teams as part of the Inaugural ACHA Men’s Division II Select squad.
In five games against professional teams from Switzerland, Austria and the Czech Republic, the M2 Selects were undefeated. Arsenault was chosen out of 8,000 ACHA members nationwide due to his incredible performance last year as a freshman, when he led the nation in points.
Arsenault spent Christmas Day at his home in Summerside, Prince Edward Island, then met the Selects in Albany, N.Y., to practice together for the first time on Dec. 26. After taking team photos on the 27th, the team flew Lufthansa from JFK to Munich, then took a bus to Frauenfeld, Switzerland, to check into a hotel and practice on the Frauenfeld pro ice sheet.
Nearly every player on the 26-man roster is a team captain for his own team, and Arsenault said coach Paul Lowden addressed this on the first day of practice in Albany.
“At first when we all got together, we were stretching at center ice and Lowden said, ‘How many of you guys were captains on your respective teams?'” Arsenault said. “I think there was like 23 out of 25. Right from there he said this could either be a problem or it could be a good thing. In the end, we all just respected each other’s position on our respective teams and got along.”
Mike Truex of Eastern Washington concurred, saying, “It was incredible to see how the guys from all over the country bonded.”
Along with Lowden, who played NCAA D-I hockey at Ferris State and pro hockey in Germany, the Selects were coached by Paul Fioroni, the two-time Central Hockey League man of the year, and Denny Mclean, head coach of Grand Valley State. The athletic trainer was Mike Goicoechea, who has been head athletic trainer for numerous Western Professional Hockey League teams in Texas.
Some of the players on the roster with Arsenault included Eastern Washington’s Truex and goalie Andy Pate, ACHA M2 player of the year Adam Thomas from Davenport, defenseman Jordan Stover from Colorado State, Dayne Gluting of Wagner and Kevin Alpern from Colorado University. Arsenault was on a line with Thomas and Ryan Hernandez from the national champion Michigan State Spartans.
Arsenault said all the players quickly fit into the 2-1-2 forecheck and umbrella power-play system that Lowden installed.
“All the guys that went knew the game on their own,” Arsenault said. “We were disciplined enough.”
The five games against the European clubs were a battle of contrasting styles for the Selects, who found themselves in what Arsenault called a “total speed game. It was a totally different game from the ACHA. Our league is more physical compared to their standpoint. The tempo over there was unbelievable. There were no slow points in the game. It was constantly back and forth.”
Truex also said the European game is more finesse.
“There was a lot of speed and passing and not very much hitting at all,” Truex said. “I think it helped us to beat those kids because we brought a physical element that they weren’t used to.”
The first game was a 6-4 victory over Frauenfeld in which Truex and Arsenault both scored goals, followed by a 2-1 overtime win over SC Weinfelden, also of Switzerland.
Of the OT win, Arsenault said, “It was back and forth the whole game. It was probably the fastest game of the whole trip. Stover from CSU had the first goal and assisted on the second. It was a tight game and pretty much Stover made the difference.”
The team spent new year’s eve in Munich, which Truex said was his favorite stop on the trip.
“Everybody there was shooting fireworks everywhere and blowing stuff up,” he said.
On New Year’s Day, the Selects bussed into the Austrian Alps to play EHC Bregenzerwald on an outdoor rink, which Arsenault said was unforgettable. A huge USA vs. Bregenzerwald logo was burning on a snowbank above the rink all game.
“The experience of the outdoor game was pretty neat,” he said. “After the game, they had fireworks. It was something I’ll never experience again.”
Back in Bavaria, the Selects took on EV Weiden. Arsenault said Weiden’s A squad had a playoff game the next weekend and didn’t want to risk getting injured, so they sent out their B group, which was a mistake. Arsenault had two assists, and the Selects took Weiden apart, 15-0.
The final game was in the Czech Republic, against HC Kobra, Prague’s pro team.
Truex said Kobra had a player who was drafted by the Washington Capitols of the NHL, but the Selects overpowered them, 6-3, and Arsenault scored another goal to finish the trip with six points.
“Their pre-game warm-up drill was something I’ve never seen in my life,” Arsenault said of the European teams. “It’s amazing to watch some of those guys, their skating and their puck handling. The first thing they learn is to puck handle, and the first thing we learn is to shoot and skate.”
When they weren’t out on the ice representing the ACHA, the Selects got to see the sights and experience new cultures.
“They had a guided tour with us the whole time,” Truex said. “When we would go to each city, we would have a new tour guide specifically for that city take us around. Then we had our free time to go exploring around.”
Even though the Selects essentially played five games in six days and had a mandatory team breakfast at 8 a.m. every morning, Arsenault said the team had plenty of extra time to get a feel for the local color.
“We got to experience the Munich hospitality,” he said. “Every day we’d go for a tour in the cities. We toured Prague and got to see all the sights from when it was Communist.”
All of the fun of touring and making new friends with other elite hockey players from across the country was secondary, however, to handing business on the ice to represent the U.S. and Canada against the Europeans.
“It was a test to go over there and see where the ACHA skill level is at,” Arsenault said. “We wanted to show that the top skill level in ACHA can compete with pro hockey in Europe and in the states, and we did that.”
Aggie fans who want to get a look at some of the other ACHA Selects can go to the Aggie games against No. 1-ranked Colorado and No. 6-ranked Colorado State at the Eccles Ice Arena this weekend.
USU plays ACHA Select Kevin Alpert’s Buffaloes Friday night and Stover’s Rams Saturday night.
-graham.terry@aggiemail.usu.edu
during an outdoor game in the austrian alps vs EHC Bregenzerwald the names of the two teams burn on a nearby hill. Utah State left wing Kent Arsenault was chosen to be a member of the American Collegiate Hockey Association’s Men’s Division II Select team. Arsenault’s team won, 4-3. (Kent Arsenault)