Win or lose, the Oregon club hockey team has one thing down pat: solid goaltending.

Even though the night’s 6-2 score makes it two losses straight, Oregon’s goaltending prowess was showcased in the first half of the Utah series. Between the two games, Oregon was outshot 103-42 and only allowed 10 goals, giving Ducks’ goalie Danny Cockriel a .902 save percentage for the series so far.

Utah came on strong in the first, with their first shot fired off only 22 seconds into the period. That shot set the tone for the rest of the period and the rest of the game. The period ended 1-0 Utah after a goal was gained with only 5:50 left in the first.

“They’re a team that throws the puck toward the net basically every time,” Cockriel said. “So I see a lot of shots.”

The second period started with minor penalties on Oregon’s Nick Kuehl for tripping and Utah’s Josh Dangel for interference with a goaltender. Then, after an incomplete pass in the Utah-zone by the Ducks’ offense led to steal and breakaway by Utes’ Chris York, York managed to get the goal on a rebound from Cockriel’s blocker to make it 2-0.

“It hit his skate and went into the back of the net,” Cockriel said. “There’s not much you can do on those. You hope you make the save and after that happens, it’s out of your control usually.”

Six minutes later, Utah capitalized on heavy traffic in front of the net to make it 3-0, with a Utah forward even tripping over Cockriel’s pads. One minute and sixteen seconds later, Oregon responded and Alex Sulitzer scored their first goal of the game with an assist from Captain Tyler Halverson.

The action didn’t stop there. Less than a minute after the Oregon goal, Utah took back their three-goal lead and the period ended 4-1.

The third period was just as eventful as the last, with eight penalties, another two goals from Utah and another goal from Oregon’s Alex Sulitzer.

Even though it was a high-scoring game, Cockriel says there was improvement between the first and second game against Utah.

“We only played our fourth game and they’re seven games deep (before playing Oregon) already,” he said. “So you can tell they were already in really good shape compared to what we were in.

“But I thought tonight was a lot better than last night as far as communicating and getting the puck out of our zone,” Cockriel continued. “We did that a lot better. I think we had more shots tonight than last night big time.”

After a successful weekend against Portland State University where Oregon came home with two wins by scores of 6-1 and 7-2, the Ducks lost 4-1 to defending Pac-8 champions Utah.

Utah, who already had seven games under their belt, looked to extend their winning streak to eight with tonight’s game. The Ducks on the other hand, looked to beat the team who they had lost to last season in the Pac-8 finals.

For the Ducks, it started with a rough first period. Just before the eight minute mark, Utah scored their first goal against goalie Danny Cockriel.

The celebration was cut short for the Utes after committing a tripping penalty five seconds after their goal and then getting a double penalty called on forward Josh Dangel for both tripping and unsportsmanlike conduct.

The Ducks were unable to capitalize on their power plays and Utah finished off the period with another two goals, leaving the score at 3-0.

Tensions rose in the second period as Utah’s offense went on a rampage, outshooting the Ducks 30-3.

Although the period remained scoreless for both teams, the Ducks logged two penalties, one for roughing, one for charging and a huge save.

The first penalty of the third period was given to defenseman Terran Donnelly when he retaliated after Utes player hit goalie Cockriel during a scuffle in front of the Oregon net. The charging call was given to rookie forward Matt Ackman after a check flattened a player on the ice.

Right when Oregon got back to even strength from the charging penalty, it looked as if Utah was going to increase their lead as a puck rocketed across the ice toward the Oregon goal.

It didn’t rocket fast enough.

Cockriel proved his skill when he nabbed the puck out of the air while it was already behind him and nearly in the back of the net.

The third period started off with an Oregon penalty  which was first of what would become many penalties for both teams. The Ducks perservered though, improving their fore-check and with 9.23 seconds remaining the in the game, Alex Sulitzer scored Oregon’s first and only goal of the game.

Even though the first home game of the season went poorly for Oregon, captain Tyler Halverson believed it’s not something that foreshadows the future success of the team.

“We’ve only been together on the ice as a team for three practices,” he said. “We had our season opener against Portland State, who wasn’t the best competition, then stepped out on the ice against Utah, who has already played seven games against great competition. We knew they were going to come out pretty hot and heavy.”

“I think we can [beat their undefeated streak],” Halverson continued. “We’ve just got to come out with confidence. The guys were a little shaky tonight because they knew [Utah was good] and some of the rookies had heard how good this team was and that they were our main competition. If we can calm down, find our feet, and just play a gritty game, I really think we can take it to these guys. There were some moments of brilliance tonight. There really were.”