By Abby Doperak · KNOXVILLE, TN – The Tennessee Ice Vols return to Knoxville this weekend for their home opener against West Virginia University. After opening the sea…
KNOXVILLE, TN – The Tennessee Ice Vols return to Knoxville this weekend for their home opener against West Virginia University.
After opening the season with two road games, the Ice Vols are eager to bounce back and show improvement in front of their home crowd.
Tennessee began the season with a 6-0 loss to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The following night, the Ice Vols showed signs of progress but still fell short, losing 4-1 to the University of Kentucky. Despite the tough losses, the team noted better puck movement, more cohesive play, and increased scoring chances in the second game of the season.
Senior and assistant captain Kyle Stober has a strong understanding of what the team needs to work on heading into this weekend.
“We’re a little sloppy in our zone, neutral zone, and the defensive zone,” Stober said. “We need to create more offense and just get the puck towards the net.”
West Virginia comes to Knoxville having played just one game last weekend – a tight 6-5 loss to Denison University. Unlike the Ice Vols, the Mountaineers had no trouble generating offense in their opener.
Tennessee has had two weeks of practices since their last game and has focused on refining key areas of their play in preparation for the home stand.
“Our first weekend we all got banged up a little bit,” Stober said. “So, it was a good week for us to recover, recuperate from everything, and I think it was a positive thing.”
Both teams are still in search of their first win of the season, setting up a competitive weekend as they each look to make a statement early in the season.
“Being away is fun and all, but we love Knoxville,” Stober said. “We love playing for our crowd, so it’s good to be back, and hopefully we can get a win.”
The Ice Vols will host West Virginia at 10:10 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 19, and again at 12:30 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 21, at Cool Sports Icearium in Knoxville. Fans are encouraged to attend and support the team in their first home games of the season.