(Tempe, AZ) The No. 19 Arizona State ice hockey team (10-7-1, 5-3-3 NCHC) steamrolled the No. 16 Cornell Big Red (6-4-3, 3-3-2 ECAC) to defend its title as Desert Hockey Classic champions at Mullett Arena on Saturday night. The Sun Devils earned a 4-0 shutout victory at the hands of redshirt junior goaltender Gibson Homer.
Ryan Kirwan won the Desert Hockey Classic’s Most Valuable Player after collecting a five-point weekend capped off by four goals and an assist.
Gibson Homer made a season high 34 saves in his first shutout against a ranked opponent. The shutout is the third of his NCAA career (Alaska Fairbanks, Northern Michigan, and #16 Cornell). The shutout also marked the first time that Cornell has been shutout this season, snapping a 49-game streak of recording at least one goal. The last time Cornell was shutout was against Harvard, 1-0, in overtime during the 2022-23 season on March 17, 2023.
Rookie Sam Court, senior Ryan Kirwan, and graduate Lukas Sillinger each enjoyed a two-point night with one goal and one assist each.
Alternate captain Lukas Sillinger captured his first goal of the season in the second period, which gave the Sun Devils a 3-0 lead. He also gathered his 90th career assist on a goal by Ty Jackson which gave ASU the lead in the opening frame.
PERIOD BREAKDOWN
First Period
After the opening 10-minutes of hockey presented a stalemate, Ty Jackson broke the scoreless tie at the 9:34 mark on a rebounded shot fired by his twin Dylan Jackson. He was assisted by Dylan and Lukas Sillinger to give ASU a 1-0 lead.
In the final minute of the period, left-wing forward Ryan Kirwan stole the puck and snuck a five-hole shot past the Cornell netminder for ASU’s second goal of the night. Kirwan’s hat trick on Friday night and his goal on Saturday extended his point-scoring streak to four consecutive games.
Second Period
Halfway through the frame, Lukas Sillinger slotted his first goal of the year to give the Sun Devils a 3-0 lead, he was assisted by defenseman Sam Court and Noah Beck.
In the dwindling moments of the period and on the power play, Sam Court pocketed his second goal of the year to supply the maroon & gold a 4-0 lead, Ryan Kirwan and Bennett Scimek picked up the assists.
Third Period
The Sun Devils fended off multiple scoring attempts by Cornell in the final five minutes of the game after the Big Red pulled their goalie, but Homer stood strong between the pipes to earn the shutout victory.
With the win over 16-ranked Cornell, ASU moved to 2-5-1 against ranked teams this season
UP NEXT
ASU hosts North Dakota on Jan. 10-11 at Mullett Arena. The sole time the two teams met was in the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Game in Oct. 2022. The Sun Devils upset the Fighting Hawks in a 3-2 victory.
Press Release courtesy of Sun Devil Athletics – Paige Shacklett
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