Trojans topple Bruin determination

By Vytas Mazeika
Daily Bruin Senior Staff

In what has become an alarming trend for the UCLA ice hockey
team, 30 minutes of determined play gave way to another
collapse.

Last Friday at the Disney Ice Arena in Anaheim, UCLA traded
blows with USC from the very start and tied the game at two halfway
through the second period.

“I think we were really dominating them in their own rink,
which is a lot of fun,” UCLA defenseman and captain Eric
Grahling said. “It was the best hockey we’d played all
year.”

That’s when the Bruins (2-7, 1-3 Pac-8) suffered another
string of mental breakdowns and tough breaks which made the score
5-2 heading into the third period.

A string of seven unanswered goals to end the game saw the
Trojans (4-8, 2-2) claim a 9-2 victory.

“We basically beat ourselves,” UCLA assistant coach
Mike Siegel said. “‘SC is a very talented team and they
have some absolutely great players, but if we stick to our game
plan for a full 60 minutes there’s no reason that we should
be beaten 9-2.”

According to Siegel the Bruins went out and executed their game
plan early on, but after a few mental mistakes led to a couple of
USC goals, the floodgates just opened up.

Grahling, who still “couldn’t really process”
what went wrong, and left winger David Cokely agreed.

“It went from very organized, clean, team hockey to
individualistic play that just led to sloppy play ““ it was
kind of like a domino effect,” said Cokely, who didn’t
suit up against the Trojans and will have an MRI today on his
ailing shoulder to determine whether he needs season-ending
surgery.

The team is far from down on itself, though, as it took away
satisfaction from the team’s play in the first half of the
game. The Bruins can’t wait to take the ice again against the
Trojans in less than two weeks.

“I think we came away upset, but we also came away with
the realization that these guys are beatable,” Cokely
said.

“They have the reputation of being a good team, but they
don’t work as hard as we do on the ice; that was very
apparent,” Grahling added. “That’s something that
we are really excited about taking advantage of.”