Following its 6-2 loss to South Carolina last Friday, the Clemson club ice hockey team is gearing up to rematch the Gamecocks this Friday, Nov. 10, and the Tigers are prepared to best their rival this time.
Last weekend, the Tigers suffered a two-goal deficit in the first period, as the Gamecocks scored at the 13:12 and 17:26 marks for a 2-0 lead entering the second. Halfway through the middle frame, Clemson forward Alex Wallace scored his second of the season to put the Tigers on the board, assisted by Mike McKeon.
With just under four minutes left in the second, South Carolina’s Carson Skove netted his second of the night to give the Gamecocks a 3-1 lead. However, the two-goal difference did not last long, as Cade Heinold found the back of the net with two minutes left to decrease South Carolina’s lead to one.
Unfortunately for the Tigers, the Gamecocks scored three more times in the third period for a 6-2 final. Despite this result, the Tigers know where improvement is necessary and are confident heading into this weekend.
“I’m confident that we can win,” Wallace said. “We had a few minor mistakes last week that cost us a few goals. I know we can eliminate those mistakes and beat the Cocks.”
As per usual, when it comes to a cross-state contest, Clemson is fueled by its rivalry with the Gamecocks. The Tigers recognize that they’ve leveled up this season; if they continue to play as cohesively as they’ve demonstrated they’re capable of, there’s no opponent too great for Clemson.
Clemson captain Thomas Samuelsen highlighted a few areas he believes the team can improve in before Friday:
“Our expectation going into the game is to match them physically and bring a lot of energy,” he said. “Our conditioning is something that we have improved a lot this year, so I expect us to be able to bring it home in the second and third periods…We need to do a better job at controlling the puck and generating offense. We did not have enough scoring chances last week, and considering their goalie resembles a block of Swiss cheese, that would be helpful.”
Wallace added some expectations of his own, saying, “(we’re going to) use our speed, get pucks deep and wear out the defense like we normally do. When we play our game, we can beat anyone.”
Clemson will travel to Irmo, South Carolina, on Friday for its second of three total matchups with South Carolina this season.
