September 18, 2015
Las Vegas, NV
It seems like ages ago since the University of Utah Skatin’ Utes last took to the ice back at nationals in March. Over 170 days since that 5-3 win over Northeastern on the last day of pool play, the Utes will get back on the ice this weekend as they head to Las Vegas to take on UNLV.
“Everybody’s just really excited just to get some competition, we’ve been on the ice for about a month now, the guys are working really hard and I think it’ll be nice to get an opponent in front of us,” said Utah head coach Brett Huras, who takes the helm this season for the Utes.
The Utes will look to build off their success from last season, where the Utes finished sixth in the nation after going 29-13-3 and 2-1 in pool play at Nationals and just missing out on the semifinals. Most of that top-ten team is back for another season including four of their top five leading scorers on offense.
“We’re really excited to get down there and compare ourselves and see where we’re at,” said forward Josh Dangel, who has led the team in scoring the last two seasons. “It’s been a long time of us just battling man on man, teammate on teammate so we’re all pretty anxious to get going and get ourselves on the ice and go against some competition.”
In addition to the skilled players coming back, the Utes have added a very deep rookie class, all looking to make a name for themselves here at the U.
When asked about this weekend, rookie forward Brett Myer called the games, “an opportunity to be competitive.”
The Utes will be taking on a UNLV squad that they haven’t seen in almost five years, where the Utes beat the Skatin’ Rebels 9-1 in the Beehive showcase during the 2011-2012 season. Despite the lopsided score several years ago, the entire Utah squad is expecting a tough battle this weekend in Vegas.
“They’re a program on the rise,” said Huras. “They’ve picked up some pretty good players for this year.”
UNLV finished the season unranked last season but did receive votes in the poll for most of the season as they finished with an 8-16-2 record. Forward Christopher Jones is back for the Skatin’ rebels after leading the team in scoring last season with 36 points in 21 games. UNLV in fact returns all three of their top scorers from last season, as Austin Shannon and Drew Bryan will also look to post goals for the Rebels against the Utes this weekend.
Friday’s season opener will be at the Las Vegas Ice Center at 9:30pm MT and Saturday’s weekend finale will also take place at 9:30pm MT. Both game are expected to be broadcasted live on Utah Hockey Game Day Live.
