The Oregon Ducks defeated non-conference opponent Western Washington University in a double-header this past weekend, with scores of 12-0 on Friday and 9-1 on Saturday.
The Ducks end the regular season with a record of 22-3, the best in team history. The 2006-07 season is also Oregon’s third consecutive 20-plus win season.
The Ducks entered the weekend against Western Washington boasting a five-game win streak and hoped to keep that momentum going into the Pacific-8 Championships. They accomplished that mission with two relatively easy wins against the Vikings.
“This was a great warm-up and gave us a chance to work on our system, get the players working around the ice; hopefully that’s what we’re gonna take out to California next week,” said Matt Lutsch, the leading scorer on Friday.
Western Washington put up a fight on the defensive end at times both Friday and Saturday night, yet the Ducks still scored four goals in every period on Friday. On Saturday, the Vikings scored only one goal in the second period, but the Ducks already had scored nine.
“The defense they played was a clutch-and-grab game, so it was kind of tough to get by at times. The refs didn’t help us out too much on the offensive side,” Mike Hideghety, the team’s lone senior, said.
“They are a much lower team than us, so if we lose one game it could mean not getting in regionals. It was just a good time to get out there and practice some of the basic skills,” Hideghety added.
With the regular season concluded, the Ducks now prepare for the Pac-8 Ice Hockey Championship Tournament next weekend in Los Angeles. Oregon will battle third-seeded UCLA Friday evening at 8:30 p.m. in one semi-final game. The Bruins will host the four-game tournament at the Toyota Sports Center in El Segundo, Calif.
The Ducks have played in the Championships for the past two years. In the 2004-05 season, the Ducks clinched the Pac-8 title with a 3-2 win over Washington at Berkeley in 2005. The Ducks met rival USC last year in Eugene and lost 4-3 in overtime.
If Oregon wins against UCLA, it is slated to play in the championship game against the winner of the other semi-final game, USC vs. Arizona State. In the regular season, Oregon was 2-0 against UCLA and 1-1 against USC. The Ducks did not play Arizona State.
“We’ll play UCLA first. Hopefully we’re just going to take them and then we’ll (maybe) take USC, but we’re not looking past anyone at this point,” Lutsch said.
Following the Pac-8 Championships, the Ducks will be looking forward to regionals in Logan, Utah, Feb. 16-17. Team coordinator Jeff Gibb said that Oregon has secured the ninth spot in the American Collegiate Hockey Association’s West Region and will play San Jose State.