Hockey team starts second half of season with Eastern Washington
Jason Turner, sports writer
They say patience is a virtue. But for a team that consistently plays in excess of 30 games a year and two games a week, the wait has been long enough.
Having last played against Weber State University on December 9 of last year, the USU men’s hockey club will make its post-Christmas break debut against Eastern Washington University Friday night at 8:30 at the Weber County Ice Sheet.
Following this non-league game, the Aggies will play teams from the Rocky Mountain Collegiate Hockey Association (RMCHA) the remainder of the season, starting with cross-state rival Colorado State University on Jan. 27.
“We’re definitely pretty excited to get back out on the ice,” said USU defenseman Danny Wilson. “The guys are motivated to get on the ice.”
Although the Eagles play in a different conference than the Aggies, Wilson said every game from now until the end of the season is important, especially since any shot at qualifying for nationals hinges on Aggie victories for the rest of the season.
“All of the games are big games at this point of the season,” Wilson said.
He said he doesn’t know much about the Eagles, only that they’ve struggled in their conference, but a victory Friday night would give them a big momentum boost going into the CSU game.
“Any win will help us,” he said. “I can’t stress that enough.”
Despite not playing for over a month and adding a few new players to the mix, Wilson said he’s confident USU fans will see some exciting hockey.
“I think the fans will see a different team this half of the season,” he said.
The team is especially excited to play on its home ice at the Ice Sheet in front of Aggie fans, Wilson said.
“The fans are like a sixth man on the ice,” he said. “Utah State hockey wouldn’t be where it is today without the fans that support us night in and night out.”
USU will continue its homestand next Saturday against Colorado State.