A week removed from their series split against Western Michigan, the Ferris State Bulldogs will head to Plymouth, Michigan to play Simon Fraser University Red Leafs, followed by the United States National Team Development Program Under-18 (USNTDP U-18) on Friday, Oct. 17, and Saturday, Oct. 18.
Ferris State (1-3-0, 0-0-0 in CCHA) will start the weekend by playing Simon Fraser (2-4-1, 0-0-0 in BCIHL), a team hailing from British Columbia, Canada.
Through the first four games, the Bulldogs are led in scoring by senior forward Josh Zary (3-1-4). Five Bulldogs are in a tie for second in scoring, each with 3 points. One of these players is senior forward Gavin Best (3-0-3). Sophomore goaltender Martin Lundberg leads the goalies with a 1.000 save percentage after playing only one period. Junior goaltender Hobie Hedquist (1-1-0) has the best record among the goalies, as well as leading with 117 minutes played and with 72 saves on the year.
Best talks about the bounce back the team will need to have after the rocky start to the season.
“I mean, all throughout the year, especially this point of the year, it’s just about getting better each game,” Best said. “So obviously, we just played a really talented team, and we feel that we can play right with them. We’ll see two more talented teams next weekend, and we’ll look to do the same. We just need to clean up the areas that we need to clean up, the areas that we need to continue doing better in.”
The Red Leafs are led in scoring by forward Greye Rampton (1-4-5), who has one goal this year. There are two players in second place with four points, including Zachary Maxwell (2-2-4) with two goals on the season. Simon Fraser has played three goalies so far this season. Steven Bacovsky (1-0-0) leads the net-minders with a 2.23 goals against average and a .949 save percentage while logging in just under 54 minutes played. Jesse Makaj (1-1-0) leads with 130 minutes on the ice, as well as leading the goalies in saves with 64 so far on the year.
Redshirt freshman defenseman Brian Morse is looking forward to the weekend ahead.
“I think this weekend coming up is huge for us,” Morse said. “This past weekend, we proved that we can beat any team in the country when we play our best brand of hockey. The goal now is to consistently play with that type of selflessness and heart. We play two good teams and will have to bring our A game. Having a good weekend will set the stage for us to bring some momentum into league play, so we are looking forward to it.”
The USNTDP (4-13-0) is led in scoring by University of Minnesota Duluth commit, forward Victor Plante (3-4-7), with forward and Notre Dame commit Sammy Nelson (2-4-6) right behind him. Goaltender Brady Knowling leads the goalies with 276 minutes played and 130 saves for a save percentage of .890. Knowling is 1-2-1 on the year.
Head coach Brett Riley talked about matching up against the two programs.
“We got to keep taking steps forward every weekend,” Riley said. “Miami (OH) was a good foundation for us. This weekend, we proved we can compete on the biggest stage. Next weekend, we’re treating it like a playoff series where, at this league, if you want to win your series, you got to win two games. So, we’re going to go out there and focus on Friday. It’s [Simon Fraser] a program I’ve got some familiarity coaching against, and they’ll compete, so that will be a fun one. And then, obviously, anytime you get a chance to play the US program, it should be a really good test as well.”
Ferris State plays Simon Fraser University on Friday, Oct. 17, at 3 p.m. and the US National Team Development Program on Saturday, Oct. 18, at 7 p.m. Both games will be played at the USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth, Michigan.