#19 Hockey Hosts Sixth Desert Hockey Classic

TEMPE – After a month-long hiatus, the No. 19 Arizona State hockey team returns to NCAA competition as hosts of the sixth Desert Hockey Classic on Jan. 3-4. The Sun Devils welcome participating schools No. 16 Cornell, Massachusetts (RV), and Robert Morris to Mullett Arena for non-conference play to start the New Year. 

The Sun Devils rang in the New Year in ideal fashion: hot on a five-game winning streak, a home sweep of conference foe Minnesota Duluth before the holiday break, and a road sweep of then-No. 1 Denver under their belt. With the break in NCHC play, ASU looks to gain key PairWise points against historically strong East Coast collegiate hockey programs.

Four NCAA conferences are represented in the Desert Hockey Classic. ASU is tied for the lead in the NCHC, Robert Morris is tied for fifth in the Atlantic Hockey America, Cornell is tied fifth in the ECAC, and UMass tied ninth in the Hockey East. 

All games of the Desert Hockey Classic will be streamed on NCHC.tv (subscription required). The ASU games will play on the airwaves of FoxSports910 with Tyler Paley and Alex Coil.

DESERT HOCKEY CLASSIC SCHEDULE

Friday, Jan. 3 
3:00 p.m.: #16 Cornell vs. RV UMass
7:00 p.m.: Robert Morris vs. #19 Arizona State

Saturday, Jan. 4 
3:00 p.m.: Robert Morris vs. #16 Cornell or RV UMass
7:00 p.m.: #16 Cornell or RV UMass vs. #19 Arizona State

ASU NOTABLES

• ASU is 5-0-0 in the last five games and 7-3-0 in the last 10
• ASU is 5-0-0 when leading after two periods. On the flip side, the Sun Devils are 0-3-0 when trailing after two periods
• The Sun Devils are 7-1-0 when scoring the first goal of the game
• In three of the last four games, ASU has allowed between 30-39 shots by its opponent. In each of those contests, ASU has won despite being outshot.
• The line centered by Shlaine and flanked by Ryan Alexander and Kyle Smolen controls 67 percent of ASU chances this season. The line combines for 30 points. 
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Series History vs. RMU (4-0-0)
The two programs first met in 2019-20, the season that was ultimately cut short due to COVID-19. ASU swept RMU at Oceanside Ice Arena in what became part of a seven-game winning streak for the Sun Devils who contended for an NCAA Tournament bid for the second-straight year. Three years later, the Sun Devils returned the travel favor with a trip to Pittsburgh to meet the Colonials on their home ice. Between those two meetings, RMU had its program cut (due to COVID) and reinstated and ASU had its new facility, Mullett Arena, built, opened, and played-in for two seasons. At RMU, the Sun Devils extended their winning record with 4-1 and 8-3 victories. 

Last Meeting vs. the Colonials (Dec. 16-17, 2023)
In Saturday night's 4-1 victory, Matthew Kopperud shined on the power play, scoring two goals. Kopperud's performance boasted him to the title of the nation's leading power play goal scorer with eight at that point in the 2023-24 season. ASU's victory was supported by Jackson Niedermayer and Ty Murchison's first goals of the season. The Sun Devils put up 43 shots on goal while holding the Colonials to less than 10 shots in each of the first two periods.
In game two of the series in Pittsburgh, the offense was firing on cylinders as ASU collected a dominant 8-3 win over RMU. Team captain Tyler Gratton tallied his first career hat trick while alternate captain Lukas Sillinger issued a five-point night to reach 100 career points. His 26 points this season ranks third among all NCAA skaters at that point in the 2023-24 season. The road sweep was ASU's first since the 2021-22 season. ASU's 56 shots on goal is a new single game program record. The previous record was held at 53 shots on goal. ASU's eight goals ties the program record for most goals scored in a game. 

Series History vs. Cornell (2-4-1)
The Sun Devils and Big Red met three times in 2023-24, most notably in the championship game of the Adirondack Winter Invitational. ASU defeated Cornell in a shootout to collect the tournament trophy, although the game went down as a 2-2 tie in NCAA records. Kyle Smolen tallied the shootout winner. The next weekend, Cornell traveled to Tempe and swept ASU in Mullett Arena with 3-2 (OT) and 4-1 wins. During the 2021-22 season, ASU once again hosted Cornell, this time in the final year at Oceanside Ice Arena. In Friday night's game, ASU stunned then-No. 9 Cornell with a 5-2 victory and handed the Big Red just their second loss of the season. The New Year's Day victory was the first top-10 win for ASU since defeating No. 8 Clarkson in January 2020, and the five goals tonight were the most scored against Cornell all season. ASU completed its first sweep over a top-10 team since defeating No. 9 Quinnipiac in November 2019 with a 3-2 victory in game two. The very first meeting between the two programs was in 2018-19 and the Big Red came away with a series sweep. 

Series History vs. UMass (3-1-0)
The Sun Devils and Minutemen first met in ASU's second season as an NCAA program. ASU traveled to Massachusetts and collected a series sweep with dominant 4-1 victories on both nights. The next season (2017-18), ASU opened its season as host to UMass at Oceanside Ice Arena. ASU won the series opener, 5-3, but ultimately split the series with a 4-2 (EN) loss on Saturday night. 

LAST TIME OUT

• In Friday night's 5-3 victory, the ASU offense was bolstered by goals from five different skaters who helped nab three conference points from Minnesota Duluth. Dylan Jackson scored the game-winning goal, his second of the season.
• Saturday's showdown extended into overtime after goals from Dylan Jackson and Ryan Kirwan couldn't topple UMD's two. Kyle Smolen broke a scoring spell that spanned 13 games with the game-winner in three-on-three overtime. As a rookie last year, he tallied seven goals including two clutch game-winners.
• Luke Pavicich made his sixth and seventh consecutive starts as the No. 1 goaltender on the ASU roster against the Bulldogs.
• The twins, Ty and Dylan Jackson, let the twin telepathy fly against the Bulldogs. Together, they combined for seven points in the series. Both scored a goal and tallied an assist on Friday before continuing to cook on Saturday as Dylan put up another one goal, one assist night and Ty tallied an assist.

DOUBLE TROUBLE
Twins Ty and Dylan Jackson signed off of 2024 with a venegance. The pair combined for seven points in the series against Minnesota Duluth to close out the first half of the season. Dylan earned a four-point weekend with one goal and one assist in each game. Ty nearly carbon copied his brother with a goal on Friday night and assists in each game. Dylan's goal on Friday night was credited as the game-winner. Dylan and Ty are the team's fifth and sixth top point scorers. 

PAVICICH RUNNING HOT
Luke Pavicich has made seven consecutive starts for the Sun Devils and boasts a 5-2-0 record in that span. His overall record in 2024-25 is 6-4-0. He made 111 saves in the month of November, including against two top-20 ranked teams. The netminder boasts a 2.29 goals against average and .919 save percentage.