Icers ready for rematch with struggling Scranton

By MICHAEL PALM
Collegian Sports Writer

The first time the American Collegiate Hockey Association's No. 1 Icers played Scranton, it was no contest.

The Icers scored 18 goals in the victory on Jan. 10. But the Royals have had over a month to regroup.

"That was a real crushing defeat for (us)," Scranton Coach Bill Fitzgerald said. "They were more in awe going into that game. We gave up some real cheap goals and that broke our back."

Scranton (1-19) will get a chance for redemption at 9 p.m. today at the ice pavilion. The Icers (21-4-1) will also play Kent State (11-14-2) at 3 p.m. tomorrow at the ice pavilion. The team will then travel to Buffalo, N.Y. to meet Canisius (13-5-4) at 2:10 p.m. on Sunday.

A Division I independent team, Canisius arranged to play Penn State to fill out its schedule. The Icers are the only club team on Canisius' schedule this season. But Ice Griff Coach Brian Cavanaugh, who works at Penn State's summer hockey camps, said his team will not be playing any differently.

"They're going to give us a good game," he said. "They're capable of playing at our level, no doubt about it."

The Icers will have a tougher time because of some injuries. Freshman forward Jeff Adams suffered a concussion in Wednesday's practice and will be out seven to 10 days.

Senior forward Dave Raymer is still sidelined with a hand injury. Junior forward Chad Markowitz, usually paired with Raymer and Adams, will be joined by freshman Mike Pietrangelo and senior defenseman John Farrall on a line.

"We've been dealt some tough blows lately," Icer Coach Joe Battista said. "The mark of a championship team is whether they can suck it up and overcome adversity."