Just before Oregon played the Washington State Cougars in football, they faced off on the ice for Washington State’s second and last game in Eugene.
Oregon, who split their opening weekend at home 2-2, once again defeated the Cougars, but this time it was with a 16-2 score.
The stands may have been empty, but the back of Washington State’s net wasn’t.
After what first seemed like a rocky start this weekend against Utah, Oregon’s club hockey team pulled through against WSU and won the third game in their four-game homestand.
At first, it looked as if the Ducks were repeating their previous two nights when the Cougars scored the first goal of the night on goalie Ty Anderton only 3:12 into the first. It went straight downhill for the Cougars after that. One minute and 41 seconds after that first goal, Oregon tied it up and began the eight-goal scoring streak which lasted halfway into the second.
When the 2012-2013 club hockey season ended for the Ducks, they faced a new opponent: debt. Oregon hockey had accumulated around $17,000 worth of cost during their season which needed to be paid — and soon.
The NHL and the NHL Players’ Association (NHLPA) did what hockey fans thought they wouldn’t be able to do—come to an agreement. After 510 regular-season games, including the Winter Classic and the NHL All-Star game, were cancelled due to labor disagreements, hope looked lost for the season. So, when hockey officially kicked off this Saturday with 15 games, fans rejoiced… for the most part.
For some people though, the lockout left a bitter taste in their mouth. They see the lockout as a battle between the rich and the richer, brought about solely by greed. They see the abbreviated season, 48 regular-season games per team, as an insult to fans and season ticket holders. They see this whole thing as something that had hurt and will continue hurt teams with smaller fan-bases as well as the sport of hockey in general.
All lockout-drama aside, Dan Effinger, defenseman for the Oregon Ducks hockey team, is excited to finally have the season back.
This past weekend, Ducks hockey took the University of Washington in Eugene for games three and four of the I-5 Cup.
The I-5 Cup is held annually between the two rival teams, with two games being played in Washington and two games being held at home. The winner took home both bragging rights and a trophy to call their own until the next year.
The series started in Washington, where both the Huskies and the Ducks came away with a win a piece.
With the 5th annual Monster Mash Run/Walk taking place in Alton Baker Park this Sunday, October 21, expect to see crazy costumes running, literally running, around the trails near the Willamette River.
As senior Trevor Rogers was taxied onto the Montgomery Field runway, he took a deep breath.
“Montgomery Tower, Cirrus six-three-zero-sierra-foxtrot holding short two-eight right for an eastbound departure,” he said into the radio.
“Six-three-zero-sierra-foxtrot clear for eastbound departure two-eight right,” the tower crackled back.
Here’s how Mr. Fousek’s fourth period AP Government class spends the week before Thanksgiving break: by studying for Thursday’s unit test and catching up on their reading; by having the mock trail Justices convene in the hall and have the attorneys debate the outcome in another room; by hoping that, besides the test, there won’t be any hard work to be done; and (if you’re senior Amani Raymond or senior Taylor Petersen) by planning a secret pizza party.
For the roller hockey boys, it’s all about trust.
They trust that their teammates will be in the right place on the rink. They trust that, once they pass the puck, their teammates can, and will, make the shot. They trust that if a play turns sour, their team will be right there behind them to back them up.
However, for seniors Dylan Dixon, Kyle Clements and Willy Morrison, it’s more than just trust. It’s chemistry. It’s knowing one of them will be there to receive a pass, even without checking. It’s knowing that, when one of them takes it to the net, someone will drop back to play D. It’s knowing that someone has their back, no matter what. It’s the kind of chemistry that takes years to build.
Sophomore Lois Kim smacked against the rink floor.
During her first game of her first year of roller hockey, she was flattened by the largest player on the opposing team. “Decked,” she called it.