Sports
Ohio Hockey Returns Home to face Jamestown
By: Robbie Dipaola
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After the team’s first road trip of the season to conference rival Robert Morris, the fourth-ranked Ohio Bobcats (7-0-1) return home in what looks to be an exciting weekend for the Green and White.
For the first time in the team’s history, their game on Friday against Jamestown will be featured on ESPN3 and everyone associated with the Ohio hockey program is ecstatic about this opportunity.
“I am pretty excited and I know all the boys are too,” senior assistant captain Patrick Spellacy said. “It’s the first time that Ohio hockey will have a chance to (play on ESPN3) so everyone is pretty pumped up and ready to show people what we have here.”
As for their opponent this weekend, they are a first year team but head coach Sean Hogan knows just because they are a new team does mean Ohio can take them lightly.
“They are a very well coached team,” Hogan said. “Their coach Dean Stork coached nine years in pro hockey and I know him pretty well so that’s what they have going for them, they won’t make a lot of mistakes but if they do make mistakes, we need to capitalize on them.”
The previous two weekend series for Ohio saw them battle it out with two top-ranked teams and for this weekend, Spellacy knows not to overlook this Jamestown team just because they are not nationally ranked like their last two opponents.
“We just want to be consistent regardless of the opponent,” Spellacy said. “Jamestown is going to be a good club coming in and we aren’t going to underestimate them so we are just going to come out and play our game and I think we’ll be fine.”
Ohio is now at that point of the season where injuries are starting to become a bit of a factor for them. Captain Matt Hartman will more than likely miss this weekend with a broken hand and a couple other players are dealing with other minor injuries as well. But Hogan as well as several players have reiterated this season that they are deep team and they know other players will step up when called upon.
“Hartman being out hurts, he’s our captain for a reason,” Spellacy said. “But we have a pretty deep team here and new guys will play and fill roles and we’ll just do what coach Hogan stresses and that is do our job. We’ll have to battle through adversity but I think we will be alright.”
With their captain being less than 100 percent, Hogan was happy with how Spellacy played and led the team last weekend and has high expectations for the senior forward for not only this weekend but also the remainder of the season.
“Last weekend was his best weekend so far this season and he a lot of the little things so hopefully that rolls into this weekend as well because when he’s playing consistent he is one of the better players in this league,” Hogan said.
As for what Hogan stressed this week in practice, he wants the players to do a better job holding their emotions in check and not committing an unnecessary penalty that could cost their team a game. Hogan knows that ultimately falls on him and he made sure to address in practice.
Hogan also made it a point to tell his team on the importance of capitalizing on scoring chances when they present themselves because as the season goes on and the games get tougher he knows that quality-scoring chances will be hard to come by.
“We’re really stressing when you have an opportunity to score you need to bury it so this week we have really done a lot of scoring drills like tight area drills where you have to win puck battles because that’s where I think we lost the game last Saturday.”
The puck drops at 7 p.m. on Friday and 7:30 p.m. on Saturday.