Roadrunners knock Aggies out of national contention
“Anything less than nationals is a failure,” Aggie forward Alec Moser had said in the weeks leading up to the American Collegiate Hockey Association Western regional playoffs, hosted at the George S. Eccles Ice Center.
Utah State University was down a goal to Metro State University-Denver with less than two minutes remaining in the game on Sunday afternoon. The team pulled goaltender Titan Anderson off the ice for another skater in a last-ditch effort to find a tying goal.
Then Metro State intercepted an errant pass and calmly shot the puck into the back of the net, sealing their victory with a 3-1 scoreline. The game was over, and Utah State was not going to nationals.
Quiet filled the Aggie locker room after the game. The athletic trainer who would normally tend to the team’s injured players sat quietly in a chair with nothing to do. Next to her, forward Sean Johnston sat on a large white plastic table, staring downward at the ground, wishing the game had gone another way.
“It’s tough. A lot of us are thinking, ‘What if I did this or that instead,’” Johnston said. “We are also feeling down for the seniors. This was their last game of competitive hockey, maybe forever.”
The last player to enter the locker room was defenseman Brendan Woolcott, who held his head high. Woolcott was considered a leader and a “great locker room presence” by the whole team throughout the season.
“That’s playoff hockey,” Woolcott said. “Someone’s got to lose, and someone’s got to win. And I think both teams battled it out, and they just got the better of the opportunities.”
Woolcott spoke highly of his team and showed respect to Metro State after the game. He said the Roadrunners deserved the win and fought hard to get to where they are now after the last three years. Last season, Utah State had defeated Metro State to make it to nationals.
“There is a lot of behind-the-scenes adversity that the team went through,” Woolcott said. “But I think us even getting here is huge. It really goes to show that this is a really good group of guys that can get things done.”
Woolcott’s comments have weight. With injuries to key players, losing head coach Rob Girard early in the season and dealing with consistent locker room mentality issues throughout the campaign, the Aggies showed resilience by making it as far as they did.
Many players were still visibly upset and didn’t make eye contact as they left the locker room. Jackson Ferry didn’t stick around to talk; he instead went out of the back door to try and leave as quickly as possible.
“It’s a little dark in there,” senior captain Ben Carlson said about the locker room. “But the sun always comes out after the storm. We have a bunch of leaders and a good hockey team that will take care of this program.”
Interim head coach Sam Lindquist reflected on the season while processing the result inside the small, dimly lit coach’s office.
“I think the second semester of our season was very up and down,” Lindquist said. “But we managed to turn it into something that took us here today.”
Lindquist said the team is feeling the weight of the loss, but he and the coaching staff emphasized the importance of not dwelling on the negatives. He specifically mentioned it was difficult for the seniors on the squad.
“It’s never easy to lose the last game of your competitive hockey career,” Lindquist said. “It’s painful, but it’s also a valuable experience.”
Carlson’s normal soft-spoken manner had a very clear side of sadness with it, and his eyes seemed as though they had lost something integral.
Carlson is one of the seniors who will not be back for the next season. He said he has been playing hockey for almost twenty years, referring to it as a “privilege” and his “life.”
“I think I’ve done a good job soaking it all in the past couple of years. I don’t have any regrets looking back, but I am going to miss it,” Carlson said.
Carlson said he took the opportunity to give his underclassmen one final piece of leadership advice before leaving the locker room for the last time.
“I just reminded them that hockey is a good medium where you can be the best version of yourself,” Carlson said. “Don’t take it for granted. Take it seriously.”
This marks the official end of the season for Utah State hockey. In April, the team will begin actively recruiting new players and begin brainstorming ideas for fundraising. The next season will begin at the end of August.
Assistant coach Olli Jansson recommended fans check the team’s Instagram page @usu_hockey for the latest updates during the coming spring and summer.