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Line systems will determine game against BYU, but Aggies' coaches aren’t worried

For the first time in as long as Brigham Young University has been playing the Utah State hockey team, the Cougars have enough depth to run four full lines against their opponents, wearing them down for the Cougars to strike. But the Aggies have similar systems. USU’s head coach CJ Westlake said matching lines will be a huge factor in the outcome of the game on Friday, but he’s unfazed. “BYU’s an incredibly aggressive team,” Westlake said. “They’ve got set systems, but with aggressive play like that, you can fall out of the systems if you’re not careful.” Morgan McJimsey, an assistant coach for USU who Westlake complimented for the success in matching the Utes’ lines in the game on Saturday, said he’s not worried “in the slightest.” “When we played BYU earlier this season we were still trying to figure out our identity,” McJimsey said, ”and I feel we have found it after this past game against Utah. We had to run through all our lines due to injuries and equipment malfun...
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Aggies snap five game losing streak on Olympic ice

By the end of the second period on Saturday's game against the Utah Skatin' Utes, the Utah State Aggies had set a pace that the Utes couldn’t match. Because of this, the Utah State Aggies beat the Utes while at the Salt Lake County Sports Complex f or the first time in more than five years . “We’re a fast and physical team this year,” said Keegan O’Brien, who scored the third power play goal of the night for the Aggies. “When we’re able to control the puck at our top speed, it’s hard for teams to battle with us.” Though the Utes snatched the first two goals of the game at the end of the first period, their lack of discipline led to a five-on-three advantage for the Aggies. Those two minutes were crucial for USU’s first and second quick-succession goals by Drew Decker and Dalton L’Allier, according to Brett Fernandez. “We pressured them so they had to move the puck quick,” Fernandez said, “and they couldn’t keep up with that.” Speed was also a factor for Chris ...
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USU hockey team honoring veterans, past and present

The players of the Utah State hockey team want to honor and recognize the sacrifices of past and present servicemembers at today’s Military Appreciation game at the Eccles Ice Center. Rather than wearing jerseys sporting their own names, the team has chosen to bring awareness to friends, family member, and even strangers who have or are serving in the military. In honor of the 100 year anniversary of the Armistice that ended WWI, three members of the team will be wearing jerseys dedicated to some of the local soldiers who died in the Great War. Maj. Klint Kuhlman, head of USU’s Army ROTC and has served in the military for 21 years, will be dropping the puck to start the game and giving the players a pre-game speech. Kuhlman commended the Aggies for their jerseys, which gives the team an “opportunity to honor those service member and take pride in wearing someone else's name who sacrificed for this country.” “It’s a very visual representation,” Kuhlman said. “It persona...
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Aggies look to control penalties, power plays

According to the most recent ACHA computer rankings, the Utah State Aggies are No. 14 in the D-II West; this is four spots down from where they were before the Beehive Showcase tournament two weeks ago. Today they face off against a Division I team: the Utah Skatin’ Utes. While the Utes are ranked No. 28 of the entire division, they’re 7th-ranked among their conference. Head coach of USU’s team, CJ Westlake — along with the players — thinks the Aggies will come out on top at an exciting rivalry game on Friday. As long as they minimize penalties. “The game will be a good match-up as our systems are similar,” Westlake said. “Even though the showcase didn’t go the way we wanted, we learned a lot as a team.” Power plays and penalty kills will be key, according to Westlake. “All we need to do is stay out of the box,” Westlake said. In the 17 games they’ve played, the Aggies are averaging 22 minutes of penalties. The Utes' average is 18 minutes per game. ...
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Military Appreciation game important to show support for service members

More than 329 million people live in the United States of America. Yet less than one percent of that population is willing or able to serve in the military, according to ROTC leaders at Utah State University. For those serving in the military, every day is about honoring those who have served their country, according to Lt. Col. Steven J. Smith, the commander of USU’s Air Force ROTC. Smith said it’s important for every American to recognize the sacrifices made by the military. One way to show support is to go to USU hockey's Military Appreciation game on Friday. “If an event like this helps the public remember and honor our military, then of course we support it,” Smith said. Maj. Klint Kuhlman, the head of USU’s Military Science department and the officer over the university’s Army ROTC, said little things like “simply saying ‘Thank you,’” or attending the Aggies’ Military Appreciation night, are huge for those who serve in the military. “Any time you can bri...
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Midseason injuries are adding up for Aggies

The Aggies are 10 weeks into the 2018-2019 hockey season, and as they get closer to the halfway mark, the injuries are starting to add up. Starting today, the team's already short roster will have to play with the least players available so far this season at the Beehive Showcase at the Eccles Ice Center.  Top defenseman Trace Farr is suffering from mononucleosis. Another key defensive player, Keegan O’Brien, is out for two weeks because of a pneumothorax — an air pocket around his lung.  Hunter Wood has a broken rib. Austin Moser is still recovering from tearing his ACL and MCL at the last home game in the 2017-2018 season. But Utah State’s head coach CJ Westlake isn’t concerned. “We’ll be down two more guys,” Westlake said, “but we were down two guys in the Weber game last week, too.” The Aggies came out of that game with a 6-3 win over the Wildcats, but the Aggies will be down more players this weekend. “It gives an opportunity for other players to get ...
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Aggies Hockey GM made fan interaction priority, grown fan base

She’s never played hockey. Yet in the five seasons she has managed the Utah State hockey team’s social media, Diane Meifert has not only grown the team’s fan base, but increased opportunities for fans to interact with the players. “We’ve been targeting very unconventional fans,” said the 24-year-old grad student — who is also the Aggies’ hockey general manager and the university’s marketing graduate assistant. “Now, the fans are not just fans, but they’re super fans.” The Aggies are often not believed when they tell other hockey teams how packed the Eccles Ice Center is on game nights. “At nationals, we tell them we average about 2,000 fans,” forward Chris Cutshall said. “They don’t believe us. They’re averaging like 50.” Benson Hoopes been a fan of the Aggies since the first time he went to a game about five years ago. He’s noticed the changes in the social media posts after Meifert started running the team’s page. He said it’s the extra things the team does now t...
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