Written by: Mickey Gonzalez

Last week, the UCF ice hockey team traveled all the way to Plano, Texas for the ACHA National Championship Tournament. The Pool Games, set in the Starcenter Community Ice Rink, began on March 26. 16 teams. 4 pools. 3 games. The players took to the ice.

The Knights’ first game of the week was against the Farmingdale State Rams. The game was difficult, full of penalties and struggles to gain control of the puck. Ultimately, the Rams dominated, but the Knights did get in three of their own goals. A couple of minutes into the second period, Andrew Schneider put UCF on the board. After a particularly rough second period, UCF put in extra effort to try and lower the gap in the third. Farmingdale managed one last goal in the period. UCF got two. Donovan McClellan, assisted by Rodney LaLonde, got a power play goal. Gonzalo Ruiz followed that up with another goal, assisted again by LaLonde. Despite UCF’s final push, they just couldn’t close the gap. The game ended with a score of 12-3.

UCF headed into the second game determined to come back from the hard loss the day before. They faced the Air Force Academy Falcons with victory on the mind. The first period was rather even. The teams each scored one goal, both made during the same Air Force penalty. The Falcons managed a short-handed goal, which Liam McGrath, assisted by Ruiz and Tyler Avron, quickly followed with a power play goal for UCF. In the second period, Ruiz, with assists from Hunter Chard and Shane O’Donnell, pulled UCF ahead with another goal. And they stayed ahead. Though the Falcons tried their hardest to catch back up—even racking up quite a few penalties to do so—they never got it. Schneider, assisted by Ruiz, got UCF another goal and secured their win. The final score was 3-1, Knights.

Thursday brought the final game of pool play. With one hard loss and one win, the results of this game determined UCF’s eligibility for the semi-final round of Nationals. The last team the Knights faced off against were the Grand Valley State Lakers. With a potential National Champion title on the horizon, both teams went into the first period with a real push. Grand Valley scored first. But Schneider, assisted by Avron, tied the score up with a power play goal. The Lakers pulled themselves ahead with a short-handed goal right before the end of the period. They then scored three times in a row in the second period. UCF worked hard to push themselves back into the running. Schneider netted another goal for the Knights, with assists from Ruiz and Blaszczyk. Despite UCF’s efforts, they couldn’t catch up. The score remained unchanged throughout the third period. The game ended 5-2, Lakers.

And with that, the 2018-2019 season draws to a close for the UCF hockey team. This season proved just how strong the Knights are. Even with new coaches, a shallow roster, and many other complications throughout the season, the Knights charged on. They kept themselves in the playoff picture. They prevailed at Regionals. And they played in the National Championship Tournament. Looking back, the team had a difficult season, but one to be proud of nonetheless.

Now it’s time to look forward to a wonderful 2019-2020 season. See you in September, Knight Nation!

#GKCO