Familiar foes meet this weekend in Buffalo, as the Oswego State Lakers travel west to take on the Buffalo State Bengals. The last time these two met, the Lakers knocked off the Bengals in the NEWHL semifinals at Buffalo State Ice Arena. But even with half of Oswego State’s roster being new this season and Buffalo State also having roster turnover and a new coach, the rivalry remains.

“It’s just fun. It’s become a great rivalry – a fun rivalry,” head coach Diane Dillon said. “And there’s been success on both sides. We know these players, and they know us.” 

From the players’ standpoint, there is no love lost between the two teams.

“We look at it more of a rival than we do the other league games,” said Oswego State forward Leah Czerwinski.

Czerwinski, a Buffalo native, represents one of many connections between western New York and the Oswego State hockey team. Before landing with the Lakers, she played for the Buffalo Bisons travel team.

“I love going and playing them, and I know a lot of the girls on the team and I know a lot of people in the stands when we go,” Czerwinski said. “It’s nice to be in your hometown.”

Along with Czerwinski, senior goaltender Mikaela Ditonto also hails from western New York. She was a member of the Buffalo Stars before playing for Oswego State. Although the senior mainly sees it as being just another game, it is always fun to go home.

“It means a lot. We’re primarily focused on the game, but it’s always a fun environment,” Ditonto said.

The game between the Lakers and the Bengals often draws a nice crowd, as both parents and alumni from the Buffalo area show up to support their Lakers.

“We always have a lot of people in the stands, so it’s fun to see a lot of green and gold in a visitor’s rink,” Dillon said.

Dillon represents another connection with Buffalo. She hails from Tonawanda and lived there before playing hockey for Cornell University and eventually becoming an assistant coach for the Big Red.

Aside from the connections to Buffalo, the two sides always seem to play each other tightly. Although Buffalo State held a 3-1 advantage in four regular-season games last year, the Lakers were able to win the NEWL semifinals 5-0 to send them to the NEWHL finals against Plattsburgh. That win also represented the first road win for Oswego State in Buffalo since 2013. As for the lack of regular season success, Dillon knows the Lakers need to jump right out of the gate.

“We played OK, but we just were kind of flat,” Dillon said. “We didn’t come out with that kind of energy and exuberance that we need at the beginning of the game. We’ve been notorious for our slow starts.”

Although Czerwinski has only been with the team for two years, she also sees the approach that needs to be taken by the Lakers to flip the regular-season script.

“We have to have a better start,” Czerwinski said. ”We have to have a good warmup and focus on the practices before. We need to be strong every day.”

The biggest key to this weekend lies in the power play for Oswego State against the penalty kill of Buffalo State. The Bengals have committed 17 penalties through four games this season.

“We know they tend to take a lot of penalties, but on the other side of that, they’ve scored a couple of shorthanded goals this year,” Dillon said.

The good news for Buffalo State is that only one of those 17 penalty kills yielded goals for the opposing team. To change that, the Lakers must stay aggressive on the power play.

“It’s going to be about puck movement,” Dillon said. “They’ve been very aggressive in the past. They force you to make plays against them. As long as we are prepared and know two passes ahead what we’re trying to accomplish, you can really exploit an aggressive penalty kill like that.”

Perhaps the most pressing question dug right into Dillon’s western New York roots. If one is eating wings in Buffalo, Duffs or Anchor Bar?

“I got to go with Duff’s. I love Anchor Bar and the history of it, but if you want the wings and the fries, you’ve got to go Duff’s,” Dillon said.

Photo by Maria Pericozzi | The Oswegonian