Playing Lakers hockey is the mantra for the 3-2-1 women’s ice team coming off a zero-point weekend versus SUNY Cortland and Plattsburgh State.

After losing a tight 2-1 affair against the Red Dragons, a game in which the Lakers won the shot battle 48-23, they dropped a big NEWHL game against the conference leader in the Cardinals. Last Saturday’s Teal Night match-up hosted the birds from up north ended up being the 11 straight Lakers loss in their last four years of games. Head coach of the green and gold Mark Digby said he understands the talent level with which Plattsburgh State plays and how his team had to adjust to their skill.

“Saturday [Nov. 13.] we came out and we were off to a good jump but the bench was relatively quiet and our focus was kind of timid when you play a good team,” Digby said. “Whatever switch was flipped after the first period we came out with a strong sense of urgency. I thought we played as close to our potential as we could.”

Digby also referenced his team’s intensity coming out of the tunnel the previous night against Suny Cortland as a little lackluster. The Red Dragons wanted it more and were louder than the Lakers on the road. As a coach analysis from the weekend, Digby said he wants the team to learn that the conference they play in is exceptional and they need to come out firing.

“There are two different lessons I hope we learned from last weekend,” Digby said. “Friday night [Nov. 12.]  was simply every team in our league is very good and there are no off nights, Cortland came out like it was game seven of the Stanley Cup. When you get into those match-ups against good teams you have to be more prepared to be more gritty in the start of the game. Against Cortland, I thought to play a team with that ability was pretty good, we just have to finish plays.”

The message of intensity and finishing plays was mentioned in the locker room and at practice this week for the Lakers. Captain for Oswego State and senior defensemen Philomena Teggart also understood the challenge her team faced and said she is focused on bouncing back this weekend.

“We knew they were the number one team coming in and they were a tough opponent which brought some extra fire to our game,” Teggart said. “We always try to focus on playing the best hockey we can play, which is Laker Hockey. At the end of the day I think we played the best we could, the best D zone I’ve seen all year we outshot them we just didn’t get one through. Despite the scoreboard, I think we outplayed them”

Sometimes putting the net can be hard to come by in the game of hockey. Even though the Lakers won the shot battle, tied faceoffs and had fewer penalties, Plattsburgh State still scored the puck five times. Alternate captain Aislinn McAleer said playing a good team like the Cardinals can be tough but there is always room to improve.

“When things aren’t bouncing your way it can get hard,” McAleer said. “But one of these games it will bounce our way so we just gotta keep doing what we’re doing. Just gotta play our game, we’re not really worried about who we’re playing, we’re just going to try to keep on building.” 

Building this team into a playoff contender will be one of the main focuses for this team heading into 2022. Now that this Friday’s Nov. 19 SUNY Canton game has been postponed, the Lakers can focus on SUNY Potsdam and gaining another set of points in the NEWHL. Digby said this is a talented conference and every team is hungry, he recognized that a team like the Bears will be no easy contest.

“For this weekend with Potsdam, I think they are a team trying to take the next steps and get themselves back in the playoff picture,” Digby said. “For us, it’s trying to solidify our playoff spot and find how we’re going to consistently try to get better. It’s hard to say that after coming out of a weekend with no points but you have to be long-term greedy and points now are just as important as the ones in January and February.” 

One of the key factors that Digby mentioned about his team was the depth this Laker squad possesses this year. In his first year as the head coach, he can now switch up his substitution style with players with a combination of new lines. Young players have been able to produce and the coaching staff is still working on finding the right fits.

“The best change in our roster is depth,” Digby said. “Before every line had a clearly defined role, in the past we had a first second third fourth line, this year we don’t, right now we have 15 forwards that are capable of playing defensively and producing offensively. We have forwards that are capable and I think it’s a great spot for us to be in. It comes down to evaluating who plays best with who, it’s gotta be a struggle as a player if you’re playing with a different line every week, but the issue with having so many players who didn’t play last year is that we really have to attempt to develop chemistry from the forwards’ group. I’d say we are really starting from scratch with a lot of it.”

From returners to newcomers on this roster, playing as a strong and noisy cohesive unit will help them play to Digby’s gritty vision of team identity. Teggart and the rest of the team will be on a mission to bounce back starting with SUNY Potsdam on Nov. 20. 

“We talk a lot about the grit with this team and playing Laker hockey,” Teggart said. “But at the same time we’re positive and when we’re loud we win. We can focus on the little things, the little battles, keep communication high and it will bounce our way.”

Image via Oswego State Athletics