The past two days, 16th-ranked University of Notre Dame faced off against 20th-ranked Arizona State University in a two-game series as part of the Big Ten’s first-half schedule. Notre Dame was coming off of a two-game sweep of the University of Michigan, while Arizona State doing the same against the University of Wisconsin. The result of the series was a split, with the Sun Devils taking the first game, 6-3, while Notre Dame stole the second game by a score of 5-4. In game two, defenseman Nick Leivermann scored the game-winning goal with 5.4 seconds left, and Islanders center prospect Jake Pivonka tallied a goal and two assists in the two-game set. Prior to the series, University of Notre Dame Head Coach Jeff Jackson spoke with the media about the sweep of Michigan and their season up until that point.

.@N_Leivermann called GAME.

The junior buried it with five seconds left to give us a 5-4 victory over No. 20 Arizona State!#GoIrish☘️ pic.twitter.com/khckcJgAxB

— Notre Dame Hockey (@NDHockey) December 5, 2020

Jackson had high praise for his team coming off of the series sweep at Michigan. “Last weekend, I thought the guys were good, great execution of fundamentals and details.” The key factor of their series of Michigan was that they played a skilled, defensive game. “They were dialed in, not just because they were playing at Yost (Ice Arena). They played with a level of intensity of a good team.” He thought everyone played well, especially goaltender Ryan Bischel, who was starting his first two games of the season.

Looking into the series that just took place, he spoke highly of his opponent. “As far as ASU, they started off slow, but have gotten better each weekend. They were top-15 in the initial NCAA polls and returned a lot of offense… They have good defensive depth, are an older team, and have got some ability. They showed it against (University of) Wisconsin, and I expect them to compete.”

A major x-factor to the series against Michigan was the play of brother Graham and Landon Slaggert. Graham, a junior, and Landon, a freshman, who was also named to the USA World Juniors Camp, have been playing with sophomore Trevor Janicke recently, and have picked up the pace. “Their strengths complement each other and got better as the game progressed (last) Saturday (against Michigan).” Both Slaggerts hit the score sheet during Notre Dame’s series against Arizona State, with Graham scoring on Thursday, and Landon, a 2020 third-round pick by the Chicago Blackhawks, scoring his first NCAA goal on Friday.

One aspect of their game that needs improvement is their power-play, as Jackson said that they don’t have that true quarterback like they have had in the past with defensemen like Jordan Gross and Bobby Nardella. “It’s still a work in progress, we’re not quite where we’d like to be. We’re similar to where we were at the end of last year where we just need to get guys to buy in the roles that they need to play.” Referring to Gross and Nardella, he said that “We have a couple of guys that have the potential to do that, but we’ve got guys who are more shooters than playmakers.” Jackson mentioned that they do have some defensemen that play like that coming over the next few years through their recruiting classes that always seem to be towards the top of the NCAA.

When it came to traveling, Jackson spoke highly of the athletic department and medical staff for helping prepare for both protocols on-campus and traveling to away games. He also said that “we have to learn to embrace inconvenience and being uncomfortable, and to use that to help us better understand adversity.” They took two separate buses to Ann Arbor to comply with social distancing. When they arrived, they were all tested at Crisler Center, Michigan’s basketball arena in the mornings before going to skate. The meals were served by team staff instead of the hotel staff, with extra precautionary measures in place when dining.

The University of Notre Dame continues their six-game homestand with two games against Ohio State University on December 12th and 13th, while Arizona State heads to University Park for two against Penn State on December 11th and 13th.

SEF