Weekend Preview – Alabama-Huntsville
It wasn’t long ago – until just two months ago, in fact – that The University of Alabama-Huntsville Chargers thought they were playing in their final season at the Division I ice hockey level. At times, it seemed like they are as pitiful as my adult rec league team, having been shut out for the weekend by Ohio State in Huntsville, followed by another shutout loss at the hands of Providence. UAH got on the board after those 3 consecutive shutouts, but the Chargers were again shut out for a weekend by Merrimack and UMass-Lowell, and finally were shut out for their weekend series against Bemidji State.
The men’s Division I Ice Hockey program is on life support, as UAH is the only remaining independent team Division I men’s ice hockey, and the team’s 2011-12 results may be an indication of that uncertainty for the program. If you are in love with have a man crush on NCAA hockey like the Redskin Warriors, go HERE to support the Save UAH Hockey cause, as the future of the program still swings somewhat in the balance.
As of recently, the newly installed President at the university has re-pledged his support to the hockey program, and it seems to have lit a small spark under the student athletes from hockey’s southernmost college program.
Huntsville’s record may be a weak 2-26-1, but don’t be fooled. On January 6th, they took down then 10th-ranked Denver. Two weeks ago, UAH stood strong against Current #2 Minnesota-Duluth, losing twice, but both were 1-goal games. Last Friday, the Chargers almost upset Maine. The Chargers were up 3-0 after two periods, but Maine flexed their muscle and came back for a 4-3 overtime victory. After being up 3-0, UAH allowed 9 unanswered goals, however, and lost Saturday night 5-0 as well. That was the 10th time overall the Chargers have been shut out, and Miami will be the team’s last 2 regular season games before playing the USNTDP in 2 weeks.
In addition to the hockey series in Oxford, Cody Reichard will be featured for his off-ice accomplishments as well. His charitable organization, Swoop’s Stoop will be featured this Saturday in a number of ways. First of all, to raise additional funds for the charity, the RedHawks will also wear a special jersey on Saturday night to honor Reichard and the children he supports. The jerseys will later be auctioned off to Miami fans and supporters, with all proceeds to benefit the charity. Before the start of the game, a pregame ceremony will feature Cody, and you can bet that he’ll be in net on Saturday night for the Hawks.
For his efforts, Cody was nominated as a Hockey Humanitarian Award Finalist last week. The Humanitarian award will be presented at the Frozen Four on the same night as the Hobey Baker award, Friday April 6th in Tampa, FL. According to MURedHawks.com, Reichard is “one of just five finalists for the BNY Mellon Wealth Management Hockey Humanitarian Award, presented to college hockey’s finest citizen.”
For more information on Swoop’s Stoop, check out the above links as well as the following:
- Visit the MU RedHawks Swoop’s Stoop page which will link you to a few other stories.
- Make sure to Vote for Cody in the CLASS Award here. He needs your votes to continue on to the award finals!
- Reichard Named a Finalist for Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award – Cody is one of 10 finalists, 5 of which come from the CCHA.
- Swoop’s Stoop Facebook Page
In addition, if you haven’t seen Cody’s helmet featuring Swoop’s Stoop, here’s a sneak peak of what he’ll wear this weekend, as well as the online photo album. (click on the picture for a larger view)
If skating around with 20 year old young men who smell like hockey after skating their rear-ends off for 2.5 hours is your thing, join the RedHawks for their annual Skate with the Hawks night on Saturday as well.
Good luck to the Lady RedHawks this weekend as well! Miami’s Women’s Club Ice Hockey team heads to Grand Rapids, Michigan for their conference tournament. They kick off play against Ohio State Friday night. We’ll keep you posted on how the RedHawks fare this weekend.
Weekend Notes:
- UAH Comes in having scored just 35 goals on the season and allowing 119. This could be the weekend the ‘Hawks need to re-open the scoring gates after being limited to just 1 goal last weekend. To contrast, Reilly Smith has 20 goals himself.
- The Chargers are led by Freshman Kyle Lysaght with 7 goals and 6 assists, and Sophomore Mac Roy, who has 6 goals and 6 assists.
- Miami was shut out for just the 2nd time this season last Saturday at Michigan. If it makes you feel any better, those 2 shutouts came against Ferris State and Michigan, the #1 and #3 teams in the CCHA, and the #2 and #4 teams in the PairWise.
- Miami stands at #18 in the PairWise, and need all the wins they can get in order to make the NCAA tournament for the 7th straight season.
- This weekend’s series is the first time since December 2-3 that their opponent isn’t a ranked team. Northern Michigan was not ranked that weekend, although they are now ranked #19 by USCHO.
Miami will come out strong and bury the weaker foe both nights. 5-1 on Friday. Cody’s night wouldn’t be complete without taking the all-time shutout mark at Miami. Cody gets the shutout 4-0 on Saturday.Both games this weekend will air on ONN in the state of Ohio. Friday’s puck drops at 7:35 and on Saturday, things get started around 7:05 after the Swoop’s Stoop/Cody Reichard recognition ceremony.
Posted on February 9, 2012, in Cody Reichard. Bookmark the permalink. Leave a comment.
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