From The Leader-Telegram
By Allan Brown
While they realize that it’s early in the American Collegiate Hockey Association’s 2023-24 season, the UW-Eau Claire Blugolds’ men’s hockey club still probably wishes it could replay this weekend’s two games against the University of Minnesota-Duluth.
In fact at one point Saturday, the fans at the Hobbs Ice Center were hoping for some free hockey when the Blugolds started a come-from-behind attack toward the end of the third period where one more home goal could have possibly sent the game into overtime.
Following a 5-4 loss to the Bulldogs on Friday, the Blugolds were ahead by one goal entering the third period early Saturday afternoon, but allowed four consecutive goals in the final stanza of play to suffer a 6-4 loss to the Bulldogs.
Following the losses, the Blugolds stand at 1-2-1 on the young season.
In an exclusive interview with the Leader-Telegram following Saturday’s game, Blugolds’ Head Coach Luke Myhers said that his team got “a little lackadaisical” in that third period of the matinee game and that Duluth has “a couple of nice passes and got goals.”
While the Blugolds’ lead was collapsing, Myhers stressed to his team from the bench to focus on playing their game and to get back into the zone, so to speak, to get back into the game.
Which they did.
Two Blugolds’ goals late in the period made the game a one-goal contest, before Duluth got the final score of the afternoon on an empty-net goal with 57 seconds left in the contest.
“I told our guys to man up and stay with your man, which except for a few little hiccups they did,” Myhers said.
As the first-year coach of the club, Myhers explained that his players are still getting acclimated to a new style of play on the ice.
“The keys are teamwork and communication on the ice. Those are very important toward working to the common good,” the head coach said.
“I’m very confident with our systems and the way we’re running everything,” Myhers said, noting that his players are adapting to the schemes on ice and all they need to do is to “trust the system.”
Myhers emphasized that he is also very pleased with how the freshmen on the squad, who were not used to plays under the old coaching regime, are adapting to the systems he and his coaching staff have put into place.
Forward Adis Ultanbekov, a key cog in helping his team get back into Saturday’s game, told the Leader-Telegram that he and the other players zeroed in on coming back on the ice to help. He got a goal and an assist in that comeback bid in the final stanza.
While Ultanbekov said he and his teammates were disappointed in the weekend’s results, he feels the team is coming together well and will only continue to improve as the season progresses.
In addition to their usual Tuesday and Thursday practices, the club will have a full week in front of them this week, as they travel to Baldwin to take on the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers in a Wednesday contest. Game time is set for 6:45 p.m.
They return to the ice at the Hobbs Ice Center for Friday and Saturday games against Wisconsin. Puck drop is set for 7:10 p.m. Friday, with Saturday’s start time set for 11:40 a.m. Admission to home games is $5.
(Originally published at https://www.leadertelegram.com/sports/local-colleges/blugolds-club-on-ice-drops-two-to-duluth/article_48fd5826-6c70-11ee-ac06-af914e87bed8.html)
