Hockey: Irish play host to Falcons
By JUSTIN SCHUVER
Sports Writer
The Irish hockey team hopes to give their fans an early Christmas present as Notre Dame takes on Bowling Green in a two-game series that will be the last home games for the Irish in 2002.
The Irish (5-6-2, 4-6-0 CCHA) will take on the Falcons (3-8-1, 1-7-1 CCHA) Saturday at 7:05 p.m., and again on Sunday, at the scheduled time of 5:05 p.m.
Notre Dame is coming off a heartbreaking trip to Alaska-Fairbanks, in which the Irish fell in both games by one-goal deficits.
Irish goaltender Morgan Cey said that he believes the team is looking forward to the Bowling Green series as a way to regain a little respect among its CCHA peers.
"I think there's a little more motivation [for this series]," he said. "We know we're a top team in this league. It's hard to lose two games that we thought we should have won."
Special teams have been a recurring problem for the Irish, and that weakness was exposed in the second game of the Alaska-Fairbanks series. The Irish lost 5-4 and allowed four power play goals.
"Last time we had a bit of rough luck on special teams," Cey said. "We've been working on it in practice and are going to be ready for Bowling Green, who despite their record are a good team. We're going to have to be on the top of our game for them."
The Falcons, despite having one of the worst records in CCHA play, have played extremely well as of late. In its last two games, Bowling Green got an overtime win against Michigan State and a tie with sixth-ranked Michigan.
The Falcons are led offensively by defenseman Kevin Bieksa, who has scored three goals and collected seven assists. Forward Mark Wires leads the team with five goals.
In goal, sophomore Jordan Sigalet has been the most impressive starter, with a goals against average of 2.74 and a .926 save percentage. He was also between the pipes for the Falcons' win over Michigan State and the tie with Michigan.
The Irish have been successful against the Falcons lately with a record of 7-2-1 in the last ten meetings between the teams. Last season, the Irish went 3-1 against the Falcons, including winning both games at home.
After a 1-3 road trip, the Irish are excited to be returning home, where their last performance was a 2-1 win over Miami of Ohio back on Nov. 9.
"I think we're excited to play at home again," Cey said. "Our fans pack the rink for us and we can play with that extra effort to come out with the win."
The Irish will need to make the most of their home ice advantage. Following the Bowling Green series, the team's next seven games are on the road, with the next home matchup not until Jan. 17 against Yale.
All Sports Stories for Friday, December 6, 2002
