Icecats look ready to sweep Colorado again

Dan Kampner Arizona Daily Wildcat Goalie Mark Meister chalks up one of his 33 saves in the Icecats' 6-3 season opening victory against Minot St. Oct. 9 at the Tucson Convention Center. The Icecats face off with Colorado this weekend at the TCC.

The Icecats (3-0-1) are led by their starting goalie, junior Mark Meister, who, combined with backups Jason Morgan and Mike Tesi, blanked Southern Cal in two games Oct. 16 and 17.

"I'm delighted by the play of our goaltenders," Icecat head coach Leo Golembiewski said. "The shutouts are a testament to great team play."

Meister, who allows an average of 2.84 goals per game, a microscopic number in the wide-open play of collegiate hockey, has solidified himself in the starting role.

A transfer from Villanova, a Division I hockey school, Meister seems to have found a place in Arizona and provided the Icecats with the consistency in goal they lacked last season.

The Icecats face a major test this weekend in Colorado, which is admittedly a more physical team than USC.

"They're bigger and more punishing," Golembiewski said. "But we've always been small and quick, and that's the way we do things."

So far, it's been working. The Icecats are ranked in the top 10 of the American Collegiate Hockey Association and have been the top college team in the west for the better part of 16 straight years. For a team that dressed 13 first-year players last year and boasts only two seniors this season, the Icecats are hardly a work in progress.

A 6-3 season-opening victory over Minot State coupled with the Southern Cal series that saw the Icecats outscore the Trojans 25-0 in two games, have made Arizona a contender in the ACHA yet again.

"This game is definitely important because, as it is with any sport, we'd like to keep our ranking," Golembiewski said. "Colorado should be a good barometer for this team." Golembiewski intends to dress four lines and seven defensemen, trying to play the kind of defensive hockey that held the Trojans scoreless for 120 minutes of play.

"We're four games into the mission," Golembiewski said. "Those games have given us a good foundation going into the meat of our schedule."

With the puck dropping at 7:30 both nights this weekend, the Icecats will try to sweep Colorado for the second year in a row.

Ryan Finley can be reached via e-mail at Ryan.Finley@wildcat.arizona.edu.