In a span of just over 24 hours, Oregon hockey scored 25 goals and accrued two shutouts. Not bad for a squad that endured a first-half schedule playing shorthanded.
Oregon rolled Stanford by scores of 15-0 and 10-0 on Friday and Saturday.
Senior Cam Forni had been out of pads all season up until last Friday’s game recovering from a torn ligament. Forni’s return to the ice has already paid dividends for the Ducks, as he has already scored multiple goals in his first two games back.
“Cam added a new element to our team,” captain Sam Cehula said.
Forni’s last semester of eligibility will be focused on winning the Pac-8 title. Oregon sits atop the conference, and the Portland native likes what he saw from the bench in the first half schedule.
“Nobody butts heads, this is the closest team I’ve been a part of,” Forni said.
Forni should know. The business major started his collegiate hockey career at the University of Denver before moving to Division I hockey at Oklahoma, and then finding his way back to the Pacific Northwest.
“The University of Oregon has been the best hockey experience I have ever had,” Forni said.
Forni’s impact on the Cardinal last weekend was part of a team effort. Six Ducks got in the scoring column, with Chris Takla and Jack Barry combining for shutouts in net.
Stanford traveled only eight players for the contest, and with the Cardinal at 1-7 in conference play, the Ducks believed they were fortunate to get a shot at them before facing stiffer competition in the coming weeks. Kevin Trihey acknowledged that winter break negatively affected Oregon early.
“We didn’t start off real strong against Stanford, but we were able to shake off the cobwebs,” Trihey said. “Arizona State would have probably beaten us if we came out that way.”
Trihey has moved down on the depth chart with Forni’s resurgence, but because of the relationship this team has, it has only strengthened the bond of this team.
“Well, myself, (goaltender) Jack Barry and Kevin all live together,” Forni said. “And we definitely hang out with each other more than with other people.”
Looking ahead, the Ducks travel to Arizona to face Arizona State and Northern Arizona University. The NAU Ice Jacks are ranked in the top 20 in American Collegiate Hockey Association standings.
Arizona State is also no Stanford. Couple the Sun Devils’ talent with the fatigue of a long road trip to Tempe and Flagstaff, and the Ducks appear to have their hands full.
“This road trip will really show what we’re made of,” Cehula said. “But the distractions of being in (Eugene) are all gone, so I think the going on the road can help us.”
These matchups kick off Oregon’s most difficult two-week stretch of games on paper, as the squad gets another crack at Washington the following week.
With the winner of the I-5 Cup yet to be determined, Oregon players can hardly wait to face off against the Huskies, the only team to have beaten them in conference.
“Talent-wise, ASU is a little stronger,” Trihey said. “But the arena in Washington is intense; it gets loud.”
Oregon and Washington play four games over the course of the Pac-8 regular season conference schedule. If the squads are knotted at two apiece when play concludes in game four, a shootout will determine the winner of the prestigious I-5 Cup.
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