All students can get excited for Friday nights. They are done with school, and get to enjoy the early hours of their weekend without thinking about the studies they will return to on Monday.
KSU’s club hockey players are also extremely excited for Friday night as well, as they will hit the ice for the first time this season in what is arguably KSU’s most popular sport on campus.
The Owls will open their season this Friday, Sept. 21 at 10 p.m., facing off at home against their rival, the Georgia Bulldogs.
The team will hope to start its 2012-13 campaign with a win, after finishing last season with a 7-5 loss to Virginia Tech in the first round of the playoffs.
“Our goal last year was obviously to win a national championship,” said team president Jake Garrison. “We definitely fell way short of that.”
KSU departed Division II of the American Collegiate Hockey Association this year, and returned to Division III. The Owls will compete in the Southeast Region where they are ranked third in the preseason.
The team will have to overcome key losses from last year, as they will be without Dylan Morrison and Jerry Holden. Morrison was a four-year captain for the team, and Holden was the all-time leading scorer in KSU history. Holden will remain with the team, but as an assistant coach.
After falling short of their team goal, the Owls will rely on young talent to accomplish what they set out to do last season.
“Last year, we had to come together to win. It wasn’t just talent alone. We had to buy into the system,” Garrison said. “We’ve got a ton of good players but if we don’t buy into the system it is not going to do us any good. Our same goal is to win a national championship, and we’ve got the team to do it this year.”
The team looks to use speed and talent to challenge their opponents this season, rather than physicality and intimidation, which were attributes that made them a tough competitor in past years.
“We’re a whole different team than last year. We were a bigger team that hit a lot and tried to intimidate guys. This year, we have guys with a lot of speed and talent on our team,” Garrison said.
The Owls defeated UGA 9-2 in their season opener last year. Their second game of the season will come at home against a formidable foe in Alabama.
“That’s the first game we’ve got starred on our calendar,” Garrison said. “We are entering this year ranked number three and Alabama is ranked number two. We are playing them at home so that is going to be clutch for us to come out with a win.”
The Owls have had tremendous support over the last few seasons, with fans piling into IceFourm to catch the games. Garrison hopes the team will have the same support this year.
“With us moving to Division III this year and being preseason ranked so high, we’re expecting that kind of attitude to continue,” he said. “We want everyone to think we have a shot at winning nationals this year and want them come out and check it out. We have a lot more talent and a lot more speed, so hopefully it will be more fan-friendly.”
You can follow the team on Facebook at Kennesaw State University Ice Hockey or on Twitter @ksuhockey.
All home games will be played at the IceForum on Busbee Parkway, across from KSU Stadium.
