The Ooks men’s hockey team battled the U of A Golden Bears in a back-to-back exhibition series over the weekend, and the team’s growing pains showed. They lost 9-1 in the first game on Oct. 9, but the Oct. 10 game showed improvement.
A new coach and nine new players means new strategies, and head coach Ty Valin opted to run a different neutral zone look and turn game two into a “track meet” to stretch things out. “But that involved a lot harder work for these guys,” said Valin.
“Our returning guys are very strong leaders and very good teammates … right away, they amalgamated the new guys into the group.”
Despite a 4-2 loss, Valin said the Ooks adjusted from the previous game. “They bought in and they made it,” he said.
In the first period, NAIT struggled to create space. They were hemmed in their zone by the Bears, who took advantage at the earliest possible chance. When NAIT rookie William Hooson was sent to the box for tripping, a snapshot from the blue line led to a scrap in front of the Ooks’ net, and a waiting Golden Bear struck. At only 13 minutes in, the score was 1-0 for the Bears, with 10 shots for the U of A to the Ooks’ two.
With NAIT trying a man-to-man defensive coverage, the Ooks found themselves on the dangerous end of a three-versus-one rush. A pass from across the boards to Draisaitl’s office and a well-placed one-timer allowed the Golden Bears a two-nil lead only three minutes later.
“We went down early two-nothing, and then it was like [the team] said, ‘No, we’re going to work,’” said Valin. “And they all just flipped a switch, and they buckled in.”
Not wanting a repeat of the Oct. 9 loss, NAIT took the puck behind the Golden Bears net after the second period started. While the goalie was trying to locate it, Ooks forward Evan Arnold glided to the other side and scored NAIT’s first goal of the night.
NAIT’s first power play came from a trip behind Ooks goalie Wilson Maxfield’s net. This gave them a chance to create offensive pressure in U of A’s third of the ice. NAIT’s power play seemed similar to the Oilers — playing around the outside but taking plenty of shots to keep the goalie under pressure. Defenseman Avery Trotter saw his chance and fired a laser at the Golden Bears keeper, slotting the puck into the top shelf and finally bringing NAIT level with the U of A.
The third period stayed as intense as the second with hits and shots being taken by the Ooks at every chance. They stayed competitive on both ends of the ice, but a shot through traffic trickled past Maxfield to give U of A the lead.
However, NAIT was not out of the game yet. Ooks forward Decker Mujcin, the infamous thorn in every opposing team’s side, struck again. A Golden Bears player earned a penalty after giving Mujcin a baseball swing to the helmet with his stick. Now with four minutes of power play late in the game, NAIT had a real chance to tie things up. However, the growing pains showed as NAIT could not score, and U of A finished the game with an empty netter and a final score of 4-2.
With Ooks forward Ty Whitford out injured and dual-athlete defenseman Brophy Dunne at golf nationals, playing against a Canada West team proved to be challenging. And with a fresh coach and fresh players, growing pains are expected before the Ooks’ conference season begins. But there’s also promise.
“[There’s] a lot of new faces here, there’s nine new players in total, so that’s a big turnover,” said Valin. “But our returning guys are very strong leaders and very good teammates … right away, they amalgamated the new guys into the group.”
Ooks captain Ethan Leyer told the Nugget that the team has been focused on conditioning and systems to ensure they’re in shape. Leyer also said the team is working on getting their defensive, offensive and neutral zones “up to par for [their] regular season.”
“It’s still our sixth game, and it’s still new to all the guys in there, so we’re just trying to figure it out,” said Leyer. “We’re still also learning from each other, so this week we’re really gonna hammer on it and make sure that we get those mistakes out of our game.”
Overall, NAIT seemed unbothered by the final score of 4-2 and happy with the experience against a very strong and composed U of A Golden Bears team.
A new system and coach is a big ask for the core that was familiar with former head coach Scott Fellnermayr’s strategy, but you can never count NAIT out. They still bring their signature aggression, and the new faces have molded well into the lineup.
“It’s been a lot of fun having some new faces in the room this year,” said Leyer.
Despite a massive player turnover, Valin and the Ooks have laid the building blocks for a strong season. Fans can look forward to a team that loves to hit hard, dig in along the boards and terrorize across the ice.
