Club hockey pleased with No. 1 ranking – ready to play in Logan
The Utah State University club hockey team is right where they want to be.
“Our No. 1 goal is to be ranked No. 1 going into nationals this year,” team captain Paul Amidon said early in the hockey season.
Rankings have been released three times already this season, and the Aggies have been ranked No. 1 in all three rankings. They’ve also posted a domineering 16-3-1 record.
The Aggies began the season taking care of business against Colorado State (ranked fifth in the West). They then pummeled BYU and Eastern Washington before splitting with Weber State University.
The Aggies won the Rocky Mountain Collegiate Hockey Association Invitational defeating the University of Utah (ranked third in the West) in the championship game, 4-3.
Then California got a taste of the Aggies adding four more wins to the Aggie record. The first ranking was released after these games, and the Aggies were on top in the Western Region.
Arizona State University, a Division I competitor, was the first team giving the hockey team a real challenge and the Aggies lost a close 5-2 game. Since then, they have been able to win four more games with six goals being the closest margin of victory before being caught by surprise at the University of Utah for a loss.
The Aggies have shown their domination of the Western Region and have won games consistently in the wind of adversity and the team feels it is starting to pay off.
“Last year, at the end of the year, we were ranked eighth. It was really disappointing,” Amidon said. “We didn’t want to let that repeat.”
The team hasn’t repeated much about last year’s season and it can only get better with a new rink that will cut about “eight hours of travel time a week,” team president Deryk Anderson said.
“[I feel] complete and utter joy” about the new rink, he said.
The Aggies have also added four new players to their roster that should improve the team even more. Ryan Bancroft comes from Helena, Mont., where he was playing goalie fulltime for the best team in the Great Falls Americans Junior A league. The league has been compared many times to a single-A baseball league for hockey players.
Ben Froehle comes from Bartlett High School in Anchorage, Ala., that boasts the second best high school hockey program in the country.
Don Weisweaver is transferring from Weber State University. He is currently the Wildcat’s third-leading scorer.
Ryan Froerer will also be returning after playing for the Aggies last season.
“With the new rink in North Logan opening and with four great new players joining the team you can expect USU to build an unbeatable legacy of hockey,” Amidon said. “It’s great for the fans. They’ll be on both sides of the rink and it should be louder than the Ogden Ice Sheet because of the lower ceiling.”
The Aggies have begun that legacy with five straight years of appearances at nationals until last year. Now the Aggies will realize their real potential.
“We’re definitely where we need to be,” assistant coach Nate Anderson said. “The real key difference isn’t effort but belief.”
The Aggies will play Colorado (ranked second), Colorado State (ranked fifth) and Wyoming before their first game in the Eccles Ice Center which will be played on Jan. 23 at 8 p.m. against Weber State University.