In-state rival visits IU

After a grueling road trip against the Division I Arizona Icecats, the IU Hockey team returns to the ice this weekend with two games against in-state and conference rival Purdue.\nDespite losing one game and tying another, the Hoosiers outplayed Arizona in front of more than 3,000 fans, who were treated to a closer contest than most expected. Offensive play from freshman forward Richard Young and sophomore forward Reed Schafer put the pressure on the Icecats, while freshman goalie Sam Veith tallied an impressive 33 and 38 saves in Friday and Saturday's games, respectively.\n"It was great for us to be able to go out to Arizona and play a team like that," Schafer said. "Playing a Division I team is always good, as far as getting to play some good competition. Both games were close and could have gone either way. It definitely helped us prepare for this last stretch of division games."\nIU (8-4-7-1) faces a tough stretch of games in its final two months of season play, needing to hold on to the No. 3 spot in the division, as only the top three teams advance to nationals.\nPurdue, ranked sixth in the division, enters this weekend's play as the consensus underdog. But according to coach Brad Lutsch, rivalry games have a tendency of leveling the playing field.\n"When you have such a big rivalry, you should expect your opponent to play better than is expected from their talent level," Lutsch said. "Friday night's game up in Fishers should be packed, and hopefully for the game Saturday, here, we can get a good crowd. Our rink here is small and may not look like much, but it makes for a great scene for a rivalry game."\nWith the combination of the Hoosiers' fast-paced offense and their shot-stopping net-minders in Veith and senior Josh Block, this meeting of in-state rivals will likely be hotly contested.\nThe small rink, when teamed with IU's offense, should give Purdue its biggest test of the season.\nGame one of this two-game series begins at 8:30 p.m. tonight in Fishers, Ind., with the rematch at 4 p.m. Saturday at The Frank Arena in Bloomington.\nFreshman forward Wyman Flynn said for sports fans, it doesn't get much better than this for heated rivalries.\n"We have a nice, small arena," Flynn said. "There's not a bad seat in the house. And for those who like a fast, hard-hitting game, this is the place to be."\n-- Contact staff writer Jeff Fuldauer at jfuldaue@indiana.edu.