ASU hockey dropped their 12th defeat in a row Friday, a 5-0 road loss to Bemidji State in which the Sun Devils were outshot and struggled on the power play.
The Beavers' victory improved the team's record to 9-9-4, while the loss for ASU put's the team's record at 5-18.
An early goal by Bemidji State freshman forward Jay Dickman forced the Sun Devils to play from behind for almost the entirety of the game. It was Dickman's second of the season.
As was the case with the team’s previous games, ASU simply could not get the puck out of its zone. Playing most of the game on its side of the ice, ASU was forced to defend 39 Beaver shots while only putting 17 of their own on target.
The Beavers scored two on 16 first-period shots, Dickman and sophomore forward Gerry Fitzgerald credited with each tally, respectively. In the second, two of Bemidji State's 10 shots found the back of the net, both from junior defenseman Ruslan Pedan.
The second period was one of opportunities for the Sun Devils, managing to have the advantage via power play on three separate occasions. The first advantage came at the 8:04 mark when BSU’s freshman defenseman Dan Billet was called for cross-checking. A two-minute penalty gave ASU a chance to tie the game early in the second.
On that power play, ASU only managed to get one shot, off the stick of graduate student and forward Garret Peterson, only to be saved by BSU goalie Michael Bitzer. The Beavers would go on to kill all of ASU's five powerplays.
The Beavers would net a fifth goal in the third period, taking their final 5-0 lead on Dickman's second goal of the night.
BSU out-dueled the Sun Devils at the circle, winning the faceoff battle 42-19. Bemidji State senior forward Cory Ward won 19 out of 23 faceoffs.
For Bitzer, it was the netminder's third shutout of the year in just seventeen games. He currently carries a .909 save percentage.
The Sun Devils' Peterson was one of the few bright spots for ASU in the defeat, sending two shots on goal and managing to win four of his five faceoffs. However, Peterson was still only able to post a -3 plus/minus while on the ice; and not the only one to do so on the team.
ASU will try to find opportune shooting and better game management tomorrow as they attempt to even the series with BSU. Game starts at 6:07 (MST).
Reach the reporter at Braxton.Fox@asu.edu or follow @braxton_fox_II on Twitter.
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