The Lutheran energy flowed strongly this past weekend at the Appleton Family Ice Center. Although Vikings and heathens are not completely dissimilar, LU hockey players seemed to undergo more than enough torture within the fiery hell of the penalty box. Even tame-as-a-shrew Brad Barton was at one point seen looking forlorn in the pen.
As if serving time weren’t enough for LU, the Holy Oles were blessed with an astronomical 39 percent power-play percentage en route to their wins of 5-3 and 6-1. Although some calls were questionable, others *********– such as too many men on the ice and goaltender tripping **********– were simply inexcusable.
Penalties and bad religious references aside, Lawrence was simply outlasted by St. Olaf. After brief hotness early on in both games, many Vikings seemed underconditioned compared to the Oles.
On a lighter note, an enigmatic non-conference bout with Northland led to a 5-4 overtime win on Tuesday in Wausau. Ryan Blick scored his 87th career point and Mike Burkhart his 85th, as both closed in on the Lawrence record of 89 set by Tom Conti in 2002.
The team returns to conference action in a big way this weekend. Rivals from across the lake, Marian College, will visit on Friday at 7:30 and Saturday at 2. The games are crucial because odd scheduling procedures in the MCHA have resulted in these two games being worth double points. Mmmm … 8 points in the standings … that sounds good … I’ll have that.
Plagued by the penalty box, hockey loses to Olaf -dlh
