Twenty-five minutes into the 2017 matchup between the Oswego State men’s hockey team and The College at Brockport, 736 teddy bears were sent flying onto the ice for the Lakers’ annual Teddy Bear Toss. The Lakers went on to win 3-0.
At the time, Oswego State was ranked No. 5/6 in the nation with a 6-1-1 record. The College at Brockport was not part of the ranking talks, with a 6-3-1 record before it headed to the Marano Campus Center.
Now, the tides have turned for the Golden Eagles. While they are not nationally ranked, they have received several votes to be considered. The College at Brockport is also 7-1-1 and on a three-game win streak. Oswego State, ranked No. 6/8 with a 4-1-0 record, has maintained its early season dominance. The matchup between the two teams this season is the annual Teddy Bear Toss.
Heading into their sixth game of the season, the Lakers were able to bounce back at Buffalo State following a loss to SUNY Fredonia on Nov. 16. Senior captain Devin Campbell said he was able to use the loss as a motivation factor heading into the coming weekend.
“I think it just goes to show you how tight everything is and that anybody can beat anybody,” Campbell said.
The College at Brockport scored 28 goals in its first nine games compared to Oswego State’s 20. The defensive output is similar, with the Lakers allowing 10 goals and the Golden Eagles allowing 12.
Head coach Ed Gosek, after watching film on the Golden Eagles, said the team has been playing consistently and using depth to its advantage, along with strong goaltending and special teams.
“Anytime you have special teams and goaltending, you’re going to be in hunt and you’re going to be competitive,” Gosek said. “They keep things simple and they play hard.”
Going into the game, Oswego State is coming off a 1-1 weekend. The Lakers fell 3-2 to SUNY Fredonia but came back to win 4-1 against Buffalo State. The College at Brockport had two games over Thanksgiving break, with a 5-1 win against Anna Maria College followed by a 3-0 win against Castleton University.
Despite the hot streak that the Golden Eagles are on and the shaky weekend the Lakers faced, Campbell said Oswego State is preparing as if it is playing against any other team.
“When bounces don’t go your way, and you don’t play your best hockey, it’s what happens,” Campbell said. “I still have all the faith in the world in these guys.”
From a coach’s perspective, Gosek said the team is excited to play again after the weekend off during Thanksgiving. He also said he is looking forward to the test of the weekend overall, both against the Golden Eagles and No. 2/2 SUNY Geneseo on Saturday.
But Gosek said there is also a lot happening both on and off the ice. As athletes, the players are preparing for their final stretch of game before the winter break rolls around, but as students, Gosek said different finals are looming in the near future.
“We certainly want to end in a positive direction,” Gosek said. “It’s crunch time with our schedule with four league games to head us into winter break.”
Gosek said he has been using film to help Oswego State prepare for the coming game, both internally and to see what the Golden Eagles might bring to the Marano Campus Center Ice Arena.
He said this weekend, the general mindset is going to be improving the team themselves, all while trying to come on top against The College at Brockport and come out on top.
“We’re constantly using film to learn from our mistakes,” Gosek said. “We feel we’re just scratching the surface with where we’re at and we can improve in a lot of areas and make ourselves a better team.”
Looking past this weekend, Campbell said he is confident in his team heading into the next couple weeks, with some crucial matchups coming up before the fall semester ends.
“I think we are going to come out the next couple weeks here and make some noise and head into Christmas on a roll,” Campbell said.
The game against The College at Brockport is about more than just hockey this season. With the Teddy Bear Toss this weekend, Campbell said he cannot wait to see the teddy bears fly should the Lakers score a goal.
“[We] scored, so [we were] happy and we went to Berry, and all of a sudden you’ve got teddy bears flying at you,” Campbell said. “It’s a cool scene to have that many teddy bears just fly onto the ice.”
Graphic by Shea McCarthy | The Oswegonian
