The UA Icecats reach the midpoint of their three-week road swing tonight and Saturday in Tempe against No. 13 ASU.

The Icecats (10-9-1) head into ASU's (13-5) Oceanside Arena on the momentum of an upset win over No. 9 Weber State over the weekend.

"Saturday's win was big," junior defenseman D.J. Pelletier said. "It really helped with our morale and our confidence."

Icecats head coach Leo Golembiewski said the 8-5 Weber State victory was a watershed moment for his team, leading into a series for which he said "the rivalry speaks for itself."

"The offense scoring against DePaul didn't mean much, but scoring eight goals against Weber State was huge," he said.

According to Golembiewski, the Icecats' offense has struggled at times this season, but the eight scores posted in their last outing could indicate a breakthrough on that end of the ice.

To punch their tickets to nationals the Icecats must earn a top-16 ranking in the final American Collegiate Hockey Association regular season poll.

Another road upset is vital to the cause, Golembiewski said.

"This weekend is huge if we're going to make any noise (on the national scene)," he said.

ASU comes into the weekend off a tough road series of its own, splitting a pair of games with No. 12 Iowa State last week.

The Sun Devils are looking to pad their record and remain in a position to play in Bensenville, Ill., site of the national tournament, something D.J. Pelletier said should give the Icecats an advantage in the two-game set.

"Because we're on the outside looking in, and they're trying to stay in, the pressure's all on them," he said.

For Arizona to apply pressure of its own on the Sun Devils, the offense must continue to execute at the level it did against Weber State, Pelletier said.

Goal production will not come easy, as the Icecats face one of the toughest goaltenders in the ACHA.

ASU junior goaltender Colin Cook held the Icecats to eight goals in the teams' previous four encounters, three of which the Sun Devils won.

In those matches, forwards Tyler Pongrancz and Joe Ahern, and junior Ryan Esner led the ASU attack, each producing at least one goal in both two-game series.

Golembiewski said he is looking to the defense and senior goaltender Bryan Aronchick to come up big.

D.J. Pelletier will lead the five-man defensive front, and Golembiewski is hoping for another performance like the 42-save outing Aronchick had last week.

Once again, the team will be without co-captains Mickey Meehan and Mike Pelletier, who both are injured.

"You cannot replace the talent of Mike and Mickey," Golembiewski said. "But we're a good hockey team. We'll just have to work harder and rise to the occasion."