The BYU hockey team gears up to play Boise State University on Friday and Saturday, despite a shortened roster.
“(BSU is) a hard working team,” assistant coach Ryan Newton said. “We’re still missing some players, but we have a core.”
The Cougars lack four key players due to academic probation, leaving them two lines of players instead of four.
Some team members are excited to play BSU because they are familiar with the other team.
“I’m looking forward to this weekend,” defenseman Roger Flores said. “We’ve got a couple of guys on the team who have played with some of them (BSU).”
Defenseman Nick Bartholomew is one of them. He said he grew up with many of BSU’s players, although he hasn’t seen many of them since returning from his mission.
“I played with probably about half of them since I was 13,” Bartholomew said.
Bartholomew added that his knowledge of the other team helps the Cougars, but not enough to make a big difference.
“It’s kind of like a two-edged sword,” he said. “I know how they play, but they know how I play.”
The Cougars will play the Broncos Friday at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday at 6:15 p.m. Both games will be held in the Seven Peaks Ice Arena.
