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With playoffs nearing, MU travels to Bowling Green

D6716 Hockey vs Denver
D6716 Hockey vs Denver

By Harrison Schwarz, Staff Writer

The Miami University hockey team (11-13-3, 6-10-2 National Collegiate Hockey Conference) kicks off a three-game road stretch against Bowling Green University (16-9-6) this weekend. Instead of the usual two-game weekend series, the 'Hawks play one game against the Falcons Friday.

After a rough start to the season, MU has gone 5-2 in the last month, which includes a 3-2 win against No. 3 St. Cloud State University last weekend, a 3-1 win against then-No. 13 University of Denver on Jan. 29 and a sweep of then-No. 7 University of Nebraska-Omaha on Jan. 22 and 23.

Head coach Enrico Blasi isn't surprised about the team's improvement.

"It's more of what we expected," Blasi said. "We expected this team to compete every night, give ourselves an opportunity to be in games and execute plays that might allow us to win some games. That's the way we thought the season was going to go from start to finish. It obviously didn't go that way in the first half and those are things we can't control. At the end of the day, the results are going to be what they are going to be."

The RedHawks last faced Bowling Green on Jan. 19, when junior forward Anthony Louis scored with two seconds left in the third period to lift Miami to a 2-1 win.

Blasi expects another tough game this weekend.

"We know that they are a good hockey team," Blasi said. "They play hard, have good skill and are well coached. We are going to have to go in playing our best and make sure we are focused on the details and playing a good team game."

Seven regular season games remain on Miami's schedule, and the NCHC Playoffs are approaching. League insiders say if the 'Hawks can win six of their remaining seven games, they will have great odds of making it to the Frozen Four.

The only ranked opponent left on the schedule is Bowling Green. MU also plays a two-game series against both Colorado College and Western Michigan University, the two worst teams in the conference this season. The last series of the regular season is against University of Minnesota Duluth in Duluth, Minnesota.

Freshman forward Keifer Sherwood is optimistic the team will finish strong.

"It's our last stretch so we're trying to put together a good run," Sutherland said. "I think we're well-rested and we know what we need to do. It's all about executing now and we have a lot of energy."

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Puck drop is at 7:07 p.m. Friday in Bowling Green, Ohio.

Correction: A previous version of this article misstated the location of the hockey team's final two games. They will be played in Duluth, Minnesota, not Oxford, Ohio.