Latest / College Hockey Mouth / Episode 37: Hunter Schirmer | Embry Riddle Aeronautical University M3

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Episode 37: Hunter Schirmer | Embry Riddle Aeronautical University M3 · College Hockey Mouth

• College Hockey South: And welcome back, everybody. This is episode thirty-seven of College Hockey Mouth. I'm your host, Danny Baum. It's spooky season all of a sudden. but it's not so spooky for the reasons we're on this week. we've got an event coming up, one of our favorite events of the year, Battle at the Beach. ton of fun. And it's a new format with new teams. it was really, really exciting last year, and we have fun guests we have on this week. That we're gonna talk to you about it. But first on the podcast for the first time this season, Gavin Coker, Gavin recently married Coker. Okay, big dog, let's see the ring. Let's see the ring. There he is, big dog. There he is. Talk to us Gavin: All right. I'll have to s I'll show it off. College Hockey South: about it, Gavin. How's it how's it feel being married? Gavin: it's great. It's it's it's been really awesome. me and Lena we do a lot together. the hockey business that we run together kinda we've just been doing a lot together and it's great being married. it's a lot of fun. Had Had a great time. We went to St. Augustine after getting married for the weekend. And it was great having a little bit smaller intimate, not I don't know how people have five hundred people weddings. There's just no way I'd be able I don't even know five hundred people and I wouldn't be able to talk to five hundred people. So but it's been awesome. It's been great. College Hockey South: Yeah, I guess my invite got lost in the mail, but you know what? Well, maybe the one of the anniversary parties, maybe. Who knows? Gavin: Mm. College Hockey South: Guggs, you're up next if you can hear me and you figured out your your recording situation because you were at the buzzer getting kicked out, reconnecting, so Avery Gugliotta: I'm doing doing good today. College Hockey South: Yeah, that's all you got. you're just good all that build up. Avery Gugliotta: No, I mean, yeah, nothing crazy, just typical college life. I don't know, just hanging out, just having fun. Danny, how are you? College Hockey South: Well, thanks for contributing, Avery. it's been great having you on. I'm wearing the the Texas Q zip and you know I'm not gonna go into the whole diatribe on Texas football, but I'm with them through their wins and losses and I'm gonna get to it eventually, but I don't wanna bring that energy into the podcast as of right now, because I've nothing positive to say. but speaking of positive things, we've got Battle of the Beach this weekend, Gavin and Avery, if she wants to speak at all this podcast. but on to more important things, Battle at the Beach. And one of the teams participating made some of the biggest noise in the tournament last year, I would say, with their sweet uniforms. personally probably my favorite, of all the ones that were rolled out and had a huge upset over FAU. Embry Riddle from Embry Riddle, Hunter Shermer, Hunter, thank you for coming on, man. Hunter Schirmer: Of course. Thank you for having me. Yeah, I mean last year at FAU I think we had the FAU game played well and had a big upset for the Eagles. College Hockey South: Yeah, it was and y l let's just get to the uniforms immediately, 'cause those those are fantastic. And it's got a bunch of different like tiny details on them that at first glance I don't think most people notice them. but it's got like the palm tree trees and stuff, at the bottom stripe, but it's got like it's got like different like jets on there too, right? Hunter Schirmer: Yeah, no, definitely. So those are kind of like our special jerseys we had rolling out for the battle at the beach. Really cool. We had some touches that involved the Florida aspect and then we had some touches that involved the Embry Riddle Aeronautical, like university aspects as in the fighters, 'cause we are predominantly a flight school. College Hockey South: Yeah, it's dope. Go ahead, Gav. Gavin: So a lot of growth for this program over the past three years and Battle at the Beach coming up, but what's been your favorite part of playing at ERAU we know you're an aeronautical science major, so obviously going for that, but then also being able to play hockey there as well. Hunter Schirmer: Yeah, no, definitely. So honestly, some of the best things kind of about it is we are such a school first like academics. So having that kind of being able to play hockey, club sports on the side, it definitely kinda like can free you up a little bit because you're gonna be focused on academics, you're gonna be focused on flying and trying to get through like that process. But playing for the Embry Riddle like Eagles has been pretty big for college. Like and a bunch of the guys as well I could say would say the same. They think it's something to do besides, you know, the academics, And just with kinda how it is now at our school, it's becoming a lot more popular and now we're one of the number one sports on campus besides all of our D two athletics. So I think it's a huge part in a lot of the players day to day just being able to have that camaraderie with one another. College Hockey South: Yeah, one thing I want to bring up because we talked to your head coach last year, Bob Joyce, and it won't be the only time we mention him, legend of the sport. But one thing he mentioned is that, compared to the other schools you're competing against at the you know, at the club stage, you guys are bringing in players and students that are going there for a particular reason. It's not like they're going there just for hockey, it's because they have a special interest, just like just like you. So it's not Hunter Schirmer: Yes, sir. College Hockey South: like you're recruiting, just players. You have players with a particular interest. Hunter Schirmer: Yeah, absolutely. I mean it's a very so we're very niche school, if it's engineering, flying, or just getting into meteorology. So and then to get even nicher, it's hockey players that kinda have that aspiration to kinda have a like more successful future in a way, like or have a future where it's something they can apply themselves to and they really enjoy doing. So absolutely, I mean, it is very niche kind of Embry Riddle with the aerodynamic focus and aeronautic focus and just kind of the meteorology to weather. But having kind of like minded guys who have aspirations for their future, I think makes our team even closer. College Hockey South: Go ahead, Guggs, go ahead and contribute to the pod. Avery Gugliotta: so how did you know you were gonna end up at Ember Riddle? Did you always want to go into aeronautical science? and then you just got lucky that there was hockey there? Or you know, what was your journey getting down to school here? Hunter Schirmer: So the one aspect that really pulled me down to this school was kind of my dad was in aviation, my uncle was in aviation, my cousin is in aviation, and my grandfather was in aviation. So I think my dad kinda got me into it when I was young, being from Maryland. we had the Blue Angels for the Naval Academy graduation and seeing them perform every year really kind of solidified the idea for me that I wanna get into aviation. If it's not in the military or flying fighters, It's gonna be flying something heavy in the airliners when I'm seniored. College Hockey South: that's something that's really interesting, guys. I don't know if I've you know, it's it's interesting talking to someone from a school that is this focused towards a particular area. and now and it got the same sense from talking to Coach Joyce last year. like how quickly did you make that determination, like, in life that that was gonna be something you were gonna do? Hunter Schirmer: So I pretty much grew up always being around it. And I think as I was getting older, I was going through high school playing triple A juniors and the whole nine yards with hockey, seeing how far I could go. But then my dad really kinda talked to me about we should start thinking about colleges, like, do you want to go play up in the Northeast or do you want to go kind of enjoy the like Florida life? And I think playing down in Florida Being around those kind of aircraft all the time, especially around from in Sarasota, we have a local airport. So it makes it a lot easier for me to be around aviation and just ever since I was a kid. I mean, seeing aircraft, always f watching my dad up in the air, watching just a bunch I also live kind of close to BWI, like from Maryland. I was always right College Hockey South: Yeah. Hunter Schirmer: around the corner just being able to watch aircraft fly when I was young. So it really solidified it. College Hockey South: Go ahead, Gus. Gavin: So you've played hockey for a long time, eight years, and you played some for Navy youth hockey and you talked about the Blue Angels and things like that. I mean, did that kind of have some effect where you're like aeronautical school, you automatically can look at ERU as one of the top in the country. I mean I go to a SSC school so similar, familiar with ERAU and so just getting to see all the program that the programs they have and the success of their aeronautical programs, was that just a big factor on top of your Navy Utahki? Hunter Schirmer: Yeah, so I mean youth hockey right by College Hockey South: Okay. Hunter Schirmer: the Naval Academy. We played at the Naval Academy's ice rink kinda when I started young, then just kinda grew up through the leagues. But with that, I really think that kind of started my path with being around aviation because I was always talking to someone from it, from the academy. Cause I mean huge school. Bunch of guys go there that I know, also play hockey on the team, and I was also close with their coach, Kevin Rooney. But just being around kind of other people with aspirations kind of showed me that it was also a possibility to go fly after kind of college. That was predominantly the academy. But we were getting on why Embry Riddle. Okay, now I can't. So Embry Riddle kind of they say it's the Harvard of the Skies. And I had kind of a bunch of good outlets that I knew from like my uncle, who said it was kind of one of the best schools to go to for flying. And then as well I could do ROTC. I didn't really get into ROTC, but my uncle definitely solidified the idea that. Embry Riddle was a top notch school for aeronautics and having a good career. Avery Gugliotta: What's it like for you at Embry-Riddle, balancing your life playing hockey and then also being a student and getting your flight hours and learning how to do all those things and doing just balance everything at once? Hunter Schirmer: Yeah, so that's a really good question. we start off like for today, we had a 6:15 skate and that usually runs to 7:15, 7:30. So it's usually pretty much out of the way of our flight block. But then we kind of can set up our schedules as the semester progresses where we know what time our skate is, but also under our academics, we have to pick out a flight block time. So that's like a four-hour window, we have to be totally free. And you can kinda pick your schedule around it and it all depends which rating or certificate you're working on. So I'm working on my commercial license, so I need good weather to fly during the day. So it's usually late afternoon, maybe early afternoon or early morning, just for like perfect weather. College Hockey South: Yeah, and now correct me if I'm wrong, but Coach Joyce is a flight instructor too, right? Hunter Schirmer: So Coach Joyce, he is in the flight department, but he is in the safety side of the flight department. So he College Hockey South: Right. Okay. Hunter Schirmer: looks after kind of making sure everything is going smooth and just kind of protecting us and protecting the program. College Hockey South: Right. So so him being a part of the program and knowing the the responsibilities and time commitment it takes has to really, enable you guys, you know, to keep that balance and make sure that, while the hockey is important and you wanna build and become a better team, you're there for school. Hunter Schirmer: Definitely. he's a very big advocate on our academics, so he's a great person to have, but also going with kind of some of our staff. Joyce is great for our safety, and then we have Dr. Burns, who is our GM, who looks over our whole schedule for hockey, but he's also a very big role in the flight department at our school. So he kind of sets us up perfectly schedule. you'll see that we play predominantly Friday nights home. That's just because the league, I assume, and a bunch of the other teams might not know, but we have mandatory classes. So they kind of have it set up for us where we can be successful and also enjoy the athletic side of school. College Hockey South: I guys I feel like we've hardly talked about hockey, but I mean it it is really, really interesting hearing you know this kind of side of it. Number one, because I'm absolutely scared of flying. So to find someone that wants to make a career out of this is kind of nuts to me. but I understand you've made some solo flights. Recently, haven't you? Hunter Schirmer: Yeah, so lately I fly locally back home so it's pretty I would say it's pretty normal for myself, but at the moment I am waiting to get scheduled for my night solos and that's just being up for five hours at night and doing I think College Hockey South: Damn. Hunter Schirmer: ten landings for us, which is pretty interesting. College Hockey South: Dude, that's that's crazy to me. but hey, more power to you. Like someone's gotta fly the planes. Hunter Schirmer: Absolutely. But I can add on to what you said is you're scared of planes. I don't do heights well and I don't do roller coasters. So it's very polar opposite here. College Hockey South: I mean it's not really polar opposites. I feel like they're kinda one and the same. I don't understand how you're able to get over the fear of flight. you're kinda just attacking it as hard as possible by going up in a plane. Hunter Schirmer: Yeah, it's just being task saturated. you kinda you focus on the task at hand and and then you're flying. Then you're up in the air. Gavin: Well, Danny kinda hit it on the head. We've talked a lot about flying, but kind of switching gears over to hockey. You guys, right now, number one team in the M3 division, couple new faces on the roster this year, saw some key pieces, graduate. What has been the most crucial part to getting to number one and and staying there? Hunter Schirmer: Absolutely. So this year we have been doing a lot better at getting the puck in the net. Last year we could only put up two, three at a time, but now we're being able to we have some young talent, Sabatso Sabatso. I think he was player of the month this year as well. Just being able to find the back of the net consistently, I think he's really helped out the team this year being an incoming freshman. College Hockey South: Goggs, go ahead. Avery Gugliotta: So one thing you mentioned was that your team, your camaraderie is really good. how are you guys continuing to build that team connection? you have those new players, they're working well on the ice. How are you guys making the team work? on and off the ice, you how are you guys getting along with each other and building good team chemistry that'll keep you going throughout the season? Hunter Schirmer: Yeah, so the camaraderie that our team has is pretty big. just from starting from off ice, always usually hanging out with someone on the team. You kinda get close and kinda help each other out, 'cause niche school, you kinda help the younger class if you're an upperclassman. And then as well on the ice, we're a pretty positive group. Like we've been pretty quiet on the ice, some might say, but now we're getting guys to actually talk and kind of like Also the positivity. The positivity on the bench is a lot better than we have had previously. College Hockey South: Yeah, you mentioned you guys are putting the puck in the net. You recently put the puck in the net. you know, your most recent series against FAU, I believe it was. And you ended up being featured on college hockey buzz's page. You had a little backhand shelf beauty. what was that like for you? And how many times have you scored a a backhand goal like that? Hunter Schirmer: Spin a little bit, that was a very good goal, I will say, for myself, but we were pretty much playing really well that game. I think we ended up it was like five and five one final score, kind of close to that. So we were finding the net. I won't say it was all just me. I had one of my linemates keep the puck in and just so happened to be in the right place, right time, and being able to beat him high side. College Hockey South: I can't Gavin, do we identify ourselves as the the the two that are in charge of the goal of the week project and the fact that we missed that? Gavin: what goal of the week project? No, I'm just kidding. I'm just kidding. College Hockey South: Yeah, exactly. Well do do we do we have that? I think that was the with that Columbus weekend. it might have been. Okay, so Gavin: That that might have been might have been Columbus weekend. College Hockey South: well unfortunately we missed that and you know what? We were wrong. I can put my hand up and say I was wrong. you definitely deserve to be in there, but yeah, that that that was a heck of a goal. and you you Hunter Schirmer: Yeah, thank you. I'm very appreciative of that recommendation. I appreciate that. College Hockey South: Well, i it's after the fact, but I Hunter Schirmer: The thought to what counts. I'm there for it. College Hockey South: Absolutely. Absolutely. Gavin: Now you guys talked about putting the puck in the back of the net and I was just looking on the CHS website, but you're also first in goals against a game in three with just two point four two. So you talk about scoring goals. We've seen the the scores ten, nine up there on the board a couple of times, some pretty big high scoring series. But what's been the thing that you guys have been able to do defensively this season in front of your goaltender to keep that two point four two a game? Hunter Schirmer: Yeah, so definitely. we've had some guys step up, block a little bit more shots, and be a little harder in front of the net. I think that was a big aspect we were missing as well in previous years. Just being able to play a little bit harder in front of the net, clear the net, and then also our D being able to take the rush and stopping them early just so we can get that rotation back into the ozone has really been a key factor in the goals against. Gavin: Well it's gotta help when you have a guy like Ian Holland. I mean he's got a nine seventy say percentage and a point six seven goals against average. So a guy like College Hockey South: Is that good? Gavin: that, I I think that's Hunter Schirmer: yeah. Gavin: pretty good. I could be wrong. I might not know anything about hockey stats and that that could be pretty bad. But for to me it sounds pretty good. But having a guy like that behind you has to give you some confidence as well to go out and be able to score nine, ten goals in a game. Hunter Schirmer: Definitely. Having Ian, he's like a brick wall. we can always rely on him. He's gonna make some big saves when we slip up, but having Ian behind us, frees us up a little bit as the forwards because we know he has our back, but that doesn't stop us. We still have to get back and do our part. Avery Gugliotta: So from everything you're saying, your overall game on the ice has improved tremendously with your offense, defense, and your goalies. really helping you guys. And you guys made it to the championship game last year at Battle of the Beach. what's the key for you guys to just continue through Battle of the Beach and get to that championship game again? And yeah. Hunter Schirmer: So it's a good question again. So we're gonna be playing FGCU, which we did just go 0-2 on a weekend against them. So it's gonna be a good battle. I think that'll be a very big game for us. if we can go in that, kind of forget about the past and just play our game. Like our saying is waves on the beach, if we can just keep going line after line with our depth, I think it'll be a very good game and we might get the game there. College Hockey South: Yeah, Avery Gugliotta: good. It's College Hockey South: is that the subtitle for Battle at the Beach? We should add that to the graphic. let's get Brooks on that. Hunter Schirmer: That would be cool. College Hockey South: yeah, I've I've mentioned them a bunch of times already because honestly it was one of my favorite interviews last year. Super interesting, just like your story, because of how major focused this school is. but your head coach, Bob Joyce, once again, not only is he a super talented guy in terms of being a part of the flight program, but this guy was a former NHL or Canadian Olympian, played multiple years at the N Tou A level and played against Wayne Gretzky. I don't know if you guys have heard of of Wayne Gretzky before, but But to have a guy like that at the helm and to be the leader of your program, how does that how does that set you guys up for success? Hunter Schirmer: So having I would deem him almost a Hall of Famer just of how successful he was. having him head our bench, what he says, it worked. It worked for him and we just have to apply that. But I will say, he's a great outlet to have outside of hockey, even with like the aviation aspect. He's no College Hockey South: Mm-hmm. Hunter Schirmer: he almost knows all. He's a great outlet, great asset to have as a player and then also as just academically. He knows a bunch of people, but we'll tie it back to hockey. So he's great, teaches us exactly what we need to know. It's just really comes up to us to be able to perform and do what he says. College Hockey South: Yeah, for sure. Gavin: Now one thing I I like to ask this question, and some and some players aren't superstitious, but I feel like most of are. Do you have a pregame ritual or a daily routine that you have to do on a game day? and does it change based on home or away? Hunter Schirmer: That's a good question. I would say I am a little superstitious from the time I get to the rink to the time the game starts. I mean I could go through the whole routine, it's pretty long, but I'll kind of run through it. It's always right gear, left side. We'll start up there, working bottom to top. Pretty normal. But I think you put your shin pads on after your skates, after your pants. It's a hot take for some people. They just shin pads are the start. I can't I don't know how they do that. But then we get onto the ice. I'm usually I usually tend to be one of the last ones out. Captain goes ahead of me and just same little knuckles before we go, same little like routine there. And then warm-ups. Almost exactly the same every time. Don't know why, just how it happens. I have to be the one to shoot the pucks on the goalie just to warm up myself and them. And then we just go into our kind of flow of our warm-up. And then Jake McCall, one of my great friends on the team. We have a little thing we do before we do the McDonalds drill. We just try and juggle the puck as much as we can. We're not that successful, but we're getting there. Still somewhat early. We're in the first like quarter, first third of the season, so we'll get a little bit better as we go. College Hockey South: Yeah, you you mentioned skates, sh Shinguard. Sometimes a player like Guggs will leave is this a superstition of her. She likes to leave her skates at home and then have her roommate come come hunter. She she's a she's a sh no. Avery Gugliotta: I thought I could avoid talking about those. College Hockey South: Hunter, she's a four year player now. She's an assistant captain on the team, national champion and home opener. she forgot her skates at home. Hunter Schirmer: Yeah. That's Avery Gugliotta: One skate. I was trying to fix the laces and I left it at home. I had the rentals on for the first period. My roommate clutched up and brought Danny, I thought I'm getting clocked by you this episode. I have to say it. Instagram big time. Gavin: I gotta ask, you said it was one skate. So you had one and you left the other. I think that makes it worse. Like at least if you lose both or you leave both, there's just no way. But to have one in the bag and the other one just sitting on the chair probably next to the bag, 'cause I'm assuming that's definitely what happened there. But Avery Gugliotta: Gavin, imagine my dismay. I'm halfway dressed and I'm like, I have the right skate on. I'm like, where's the left one? Digging through my bag and like my heart sank to my stomach. I was like, I don't have it. I'm just like spam texting my roommate and like coaches are mad. Good good start to the season. Be prepared. Be better prepared than me, everyone. That's your lesson for the day. College Hockey South: yeah, you're you're an assistant captain in in the room and all the freshmen are are looking at you and you got one skate on. God, that's a tough tough look. What that's a decent segue, Hunter. What's like the most club hockey moment you've had at Embry Riddle? Hunter Schirmer: Alright, so this was my freshman year. This is you might you might have heard about it, might not, but we usually take a trip every year to a different state, go play some team in another state. I believe we're going up to play Lake Placid, or play in Lake Placid. I forget who exactly we were playing though. But everything's going smooth, right? We get to the airport, we bust to the airport. We get to the airport, stick bags packed perfectly. TSA takes our stick bag. And we have I think we took two teams and two teams didn't have their sticks. They didn't ship our sticks, and we were playing that evening. So that's gonna be the college story. Sticks for two games didn't make it. Luckily I had my parents bring up some extra ones. They're driving from Maryland. But we had a use College Hockey South: Shout out. Hunter Schirmer: we had to use the other team's sticks and we had to buy sticks. But luckily the SGA helped recoup a little bit of TSA Air. College Hockey South: Damn, you you think the t the T S A people would would hook up the aeronautical folks, but no, man, they were negative. Hunter Schirmer: Yeah. Yeah, so but luckily since that we haven't had anything else really bad happen. I think that was just unfortunate because we had a pretty full roster that year. I think we were almost doing an outdoor game too. No, that was our sophomore year, but just totally forgot sticks in Lake Placid. But great views the hot the hotel we got. It was absolutely amazing besides that, just very unfortunate we didn't have our sticks. Gavin: Well, last question we kinda wanna wrap up with is Battle at the Beach is coming up and last year you debuted jerseys. Everyone is always on their toes. Is there gonna be a new jersey? I don't know what you can spill about that, but is there anything to watch for from you guys going into the tournament that maybe some people might not expect? Hunter Schirmer: s I would from a player aspect, I haven't heard anything about New Jerseys. I would love some new concepts to come out, but I think that'll be almost a game time decision for us. College Hockey South: Game time decision. Alright. Gavin: Right, that's a p that's that's a PR trained answer. That they definitely said you're not allowed to say anything College Hockey South: Yeah. Gavin: or you're benched. You're benched for the weekend, you're not playing. Don't actually just leave your gear at home, you're not going if you say anything. So Hunter Schirmer: Just going to play some Sioux for warm ups. College Hockey South: Yeah, yeah, y you could leave the stick Gavin: All right. College Hockey South: bag at home for this one. Hunter Schirmer: Yep, you might have to. Gavin: Ha ha ha. College Hockey South: All right, Hunter. Well, it's it's been super interesting talking to you. It's been a great time. yeah, we've really enjoyed watching your team and we're excited to see you guys play this weekend. battle at the beach, like you mentioned, you guys are gonna be playing Florida Gulf Coast on Saturday. you know, trying to get your lick back. a couple of close, close losses earlier this year. It's gonna be a really, really fun matchup to to watch out for. But once again, thank you for coming on. It's been a blast talking to you. Hunter Schirmer: Absolutely yeah. Thank you for having me on and I look forward to that Florida golf game. Gavin: I will see you this weekend. College Hockey South: Absolutely. Hunter Schirmer: Perfect. Thank you guys. College Hockey South: Alright, we want to thank Hunter Schirmer for coming on the podcast this week. he's got a huge matchup this weekend against Florida Gulf Coast in the first round of the Battle of the Beach tournament on the battle division side. obviously last year we expanded it to eight teams, two different brackets. but before we get to week eight, gotta recap week seven, guys. And starting with our game of the week, a little bit of revenge in store for middle Tennessee State. And it's I would have to say Week seven, the story of it was emergences and re emergences. Okay, so walk with me here for a second. Middle Tennessee State, it seemed like their season was teetering. five, and one to begin the year. and then have having Tampa come to town. Not an easy series. and if they were, you know, if they're gonna make a return to nationals, they were gonna need a strong effort here. And who they got a return from? Brendan Ogle. big big return from Brendan Ogle. Middle Tennessee State gets gets the sweep over Tampa. four to one in game one and six to five in game two. now you gotta think about Tampa and where their season is at. They were also a nationals team upset South Florida in pool play. now they're at three and five on the year. staying in Tampa, a little bit of a bounce back for the Spartans and the two side of things. They had a tough, tough go at Liberty, got smoked a couple of times, and it isn't gonna get any easier in their schedule going forward, and that started last Thursday against Montana State. Probably could have gotten a better result here, considering that they took the lead four separate times, but ultimately lost to Montana State, who was a nationals team last year, lost five to four in overtime, never trailed in regulation, and held the lead with just over 90 seconds ago, still ended up losing. Tough one for the Spartans, but considering that Montana State went on and And played Florida Golf Coast, the defending national champions, the next two days and had close results there. Not the end of the world, but obviously you want the win. Speaking of Florida Golf Coast, switch over to the M3 side. boy. They did not get the revenge that middle Tennessee State got. Instead, they got the belt twice. Yeah, USF seems to be the real deal, guys. six to one in game one for for the Ice Bulls, and then six to three. Grant Dietz, I mean What else can you say? almost goes without saying. Grant Deeds is automatic. and Daniel Bak Bogdanov, a guy who is an unsung hero. He had four points, a transfer from Florida State a couple weeks or a couple seasons ago, excuse me. then a little bit of an exhibition series. Gavin, I think you wanted to mention something about this. UCF taking on Florida Atlantic, really strong start to the season for UCF. But two Florida Atlantic. taking both games. Very competitive though, considering they were both two goal spreads. Gavin, your thoughts on this series? Gavin: Yeah, I think this was a good look at UCF. We talked about their strong start. I mean, they're six and one in division play, so that bodes well for them. these two losses to Florida Atlantic aren't gonna affect them too much. obviously it affects their record and you'd like to go win those games, but to compete against the two team that is a storied program over the past couple of years and and come out with those five to three game the scores are isn't really that bad when you think about it for them. Obviously you want the win, but you've tested yourself and you're gonna go in and now you're gonna go back to some M3 opponents and you feel good about yourself headed into the rest of division play for the rest of the season if you're a UCF. College Hockey South: Absolutely. you know, at the at the end of the day it is an exhibition since these games against M2 opponents don't count towards the ACHA rankings and all the computerization that factors in there. But as you mentioned, it's iron sharpening iron, right? you want to play against the stronger opponents. So when you face, the USFs of of the division, who they have four games left on their schedule, they're They'll be better prepared. moving along now, M3 FAU dropped a pair of games to Miami. So a little bit of a South Florida tangle there. Can't really seem to get a grasp on either of these teams so far, guys. don't really know what to expect. have seen some better defense thus far from FAU compared to what the we're what they were last year. they were a little bit of a dumpster fire, you know, really young team struggling to find that identity. Gavin, do you see anything in this one? Gavin: Yeah, it's tough for FAU because you saw so many graduates from that M2 program, and then you lose your top scorer and Sam Watson and he moves up to the two team. And then the year before that, you lost Christian Kucia. So every year it feels like they've got a guy who's gonna bring them to that next level, and the next season they're gone because they're up to the two program, which is a huge nod to those players. I mean, you don't want to keep guys who are gonna score at a high level. at that rank and and we've seen it kind of Christian Cucci has struggled in his first season in two and has now started to find his legs later and it's kind of the same thing for Sam Watson, but you want those guys up there because you know they're game changers. They did it for M3 last year and unfortunately they weren't able to make the playoffs with some late season woes. And Miami earlier this season kind of was back and forth between their two teams and now have a lot of talent potentially on this one roster and the stool and continues to be the driving force, but Miami a little bit inconsistent like we've seen where they can go score a bunch of goals, but defense really hasn't been what they want to what they're defined by and they've got to clean that up if they're gonna have any chance of making playoffs this year. College Hockey South: Yeah, all all of last season it was a term we used a bunch for Miami was Dr. Jekyll, ms Mr. Hyde. Never really, any given weekend never really knew what you were gonna get out of them. and think it thinking back, you know, it's three seasons ago now, I think, when They've had their unbelievably dominant run to a national championship. it's unfathomable, you know, where they are now because, they still have a few of those players on this roster, but you know, it's a far cry. we shift to Miami in a different division and get Avery's insight on this because a couple of other reemergences that I think could shift the landscape a little bit. Florida traveled to Miami to take on The Hurricanes for a couple of games. Dominant and both affairs there outscoring the Canes twenty-one to four. the two reemergences that I'd like to talk about that I didn't even know were still possible to play. I mean, ACHA eligibility, you know, w what's going on there? Anyways, we'll we'll move be beyond that. Beth MacArthur and Christina Ball, both all star selections, both multiple years of N C double A hockey experience and very, very productive this past weekend, the driving force for the Gators. Avery, I would I don't want to speak for you, but I would have to say that was your guys' most difficult challenge of the season last year. at least on of a CHS team. that semi final game was bananas and their talent was pretty overwhelming at times. What is how does that change your perspective on Florida seeing those two players back? Avery Gugliotta: I think last year, the semifinal game was one of our toughest games of the season. I think we had played Florida like earlier in the season, I think only two or three weeks before playoffs. so we weren't quite expecting the battle that came from that game. But it was a challenging game, but it was a really fun game to play in. And you know, I'm just looking forward to seeing them again this season. Personally I don't think that a team's success in a previous season necessarily is gonna continue to translate for other seasons kind of depends on, you know, how the mentality is and how you're they're gonna continue like their culture in the team. So I'm excited to see them and play their play against that team. but yeah, I think, you know, those those are two great players for the Gators and having them back is definitely gonna Really helped that team a lot and just I'm excited to see how they do. College Hockey South: Yeah, and you definitely hit on something there. so they obviously two key contributors that that returned for this series against Miami, but they lost a couple other offensive cogs and then, a stalwart goalie, Olivia Park, who who was a freshman last year, she transferred to Cornell. I think that was an academic decision. and we wish her the best. She was fantastic. but yeah, a team to watch for sure. 'cause that could change the the course of their season. and I think this was probably the the shock of of the weekend for me. Florida Southern, and you know what, we're gonna go to Gavin and the Southern Hockey Network hat on his head because they were on scene covering the damn Gavin: What? College Hockey South: thing from ding to dong. Florida Southern traveling up to the glue. The the what is it called? The community first igloo. Yeah Gavin: Community first egg glue. College Hockey South: Community first igloo, take on the Jacksonville University Dolphins, who had been flying out of the gate, only played four games, but were particularly dominant. And they flipped that that narrative on its head. Florida Southern winning both games, five to two and then six to three. But I can't talk about this series any further without mentioning our man Cole Wyden, Gavin. I mean, you would have talked about an MVP. Florida Southern scored eleven goals this weekend. Listen to this, Avery. 11 goals this weekend. Cole Wyden factored in on every single one of them. All right, you want to talk about being valuable? He scored on every frickin' goal, or he factored in on every single goal. shout out Cole Wyden. I think we're gonna mention him a little bit later when we talk about our stars of the week. Gavin, what did you see here? Because you've seen this program the last few years, and a little bit shaky to start the year after being reclassified. tough weekend against Florida State. was that last weekend or two weekends ago? Regardless, what'd you see here? Gavin: Yeah, I think this weekend was a big turnaround for the team. being around the guys that I'm at most of the practices and things like that and just seeing what the dynamics were this week, knowing that going into this game it's fall break this week at Florida Southern, no classes. Some guys are abroad out in Spain and and things like that and traveling, so you miss a couple of key players who were out because originally this series wasn't scheduled. It was a Miami versus J U series and we picked up that ice time, so lot of guys had scheduled a vacation prior and we're gonna be gone and this is a big week for Florida Southern just to kinda go off and do whatever for College Hockey South: Mm-hmm. Gavin: a week and not have classes. But turning it around, last year or last week against FSU, that six five shootout loss, I feel like that was a tough loss to take and to have to turn around and play a game the next day. it was kind of An adversity check for this team is what we've been saying and that's what I've been saying on the broadcast is you've got ten new guys on this roster who have never played collegiate hockey or came from another school and they were gonna play and didn't play last year. And so it was how's the locker room gonna respond? And I think it was a big week for the team where they decided, Okay, we know what hockey we can play. They played smart, disciplined hockey against a J U team that if you watch that US F series was a battle Literally and figuratively, they had Antonio Pedri suspended for that first game because of a fight from that USF series. So I think it was just Florida Southern doing a good job defensively shutting down the top guys. And and you mentioned it, Cole White was like he had a magnet for rubber. Anytime the puck was anywhere on the ice, he was there. You gotta talk about Hunter Rice. He shut up with two goals, but plays a full two hundred foot game was four checking. I think a big moment in the weekend. in the first game, Florida Southern had three penalties back to back to back where they were killing off six minutes in a row of penalty time and they killed it off and they came back and scored a power play goal. And that kind of showed the team that hey, we know what we can play and they just have to stick to that. I mean J U's a good team, so there's a lot of promise. I've gotten to watch J U for their home opener and I'm really excited about that team. I'm really excited to watch them this weekend at Battle at the beach. But I think it was a big weekend for Florida Southern for the young guys. To see, hey, we just have to respond and get to our systems during practice. College Hockey South: Yeah, and and and a great job on you on keeping that succinct and relatively brief. I know Gavin could definitely do the the full podcast breaking down that series. and could probably go as deep as going into their players' favorite color and maybe even their home address. But we appreciate that, Gavin, and and obviously check out the Southern Hockey Network. Gavin and and Co do a great job. Really, really top of the line broadcast for club hockey and All the stuff he's doing with the scorebug and the different little technological advances that he he has Gavin: Ha ha. College Hockey South: showing. yeah, great stuff. And he's got the logo on the hat. How cool is that? still waiting for my hat. anyways, don't want to brush over this because you put this in the recap and also, maybe our goal of the year so far. Rollins against UCF. Gavin: Zach Dizeralamo. College Hockey South: Jack Jack D. You know what, Jack D, you know, we apologize, but you scored a absolute beauty. It was like six seconds into the first game. he went through the guy's triangle and then went barred down on the on the glove side as a right hand shot. on a strong side. I mean it was just a beautiful goal. so shout out to him. And also shout out to UCF. I believe the these were their first wins. as a ACDC program. and they got a pair of them nine to five and then five to four. so UCF getting it done at multiple divisions. now to the stars of the week first star as we mentioned Cole Wyden, unbelievable back to back hat tricks, six goals, five assists, eleven points, eleven points on all eleven Florida Southern goals in the two games. second star of the week's Charlotte John, I mentioned Beth MacArthur and Christina Ball, but Charlotte John was fantastic. Eight goals, one assist, nine points in two games against Miami. And then Sam Singolin from the Austin P State Govs. the Govs really gave it to to Miss State. and had a great crowd. we go to that rank relatively often now, with CHS. that that one in Clarksville. I think that was the one that Guggs ate shit behind the net. That I'd never say anything nice about Avery on this podcast. I'm sorry. Avery Gugliotta: Catching so many strays this episode. It's insane. College Hockey South: I feel like I never say anything nice about Avery about on this fire. Avery Gugliotta: This a week and this is what I get. That's crazy here. That's crazy. Gavin: I've missed I've missed like six, so it's okay. College Hockey South: And I've only said nice things about Gavin. Avery Gugliotta: Yeah, fair. Yeah, yeah, exactly. Gavin: there's a track record for that, so College Hockey South: Yeah. but yeah, Sam Singlen, seven points in two games and their their series sweep over Mississippi State. Alrighty. coming up this weekend, Battle at the Beach. Our game of the week this weekend, our friend Hunter Schirmer and the Embry Riddle Ice Eagles taking on another type of Eagles from Florida Gulf Coast. It's the Eagle Bowl, the Bird Bowl. at four forty five Eastern in the battle division. It'll be the third meeting. Florida Golf Coast took the first two and it was BJ Vicardi who stole both those games. I don't know if you remember that, Gavin, but he was the first star of the week. that week and it was phenomenal as he usually is. this past weekend against USF was really the exception. but anyways moving along in the beach division this is a really exciting one. the these guys had a a couple of really exciting matchups last year. Florida and J U in the beach division at five PM l like I said, a very intriguing matchup and then Going back over to the battle division at seven PM. Tampa, the reigning champions against Florida Atlantic, the three squads facing off there. And then at seven forty five, the CAP and the Beach Division, Florida State, the reigning champions. and both the AC D C division and the Beach Division for Battle of the Beach. They got a good track record there, Gavin. Florida State Seminals. I'm sure they're glad when they see trips to the Panthers Ice Den coming up. They take on Florida Tech. And you know, hey, we might see a rematch of Florida and J U, which I think would be just absolute box office. make sure to get your tickets. They're available online and at the door, making it easy to catch the action throughout the weekend. The day pass is $10, the weekend pass is $20. Alrighty, and then on Sunday, third place games for the beach division on the mezzanine rink at nine thirty, and then for the battle division at twelve fifteen on the mezzanine rink, and then our championship games, beach division at ten AM on the stadium rink, battle division twelve forty five on the stadium rink. Elsewhere around the conference, big, big, big one, our Tampa two fellas. Man, their schedule just doesn't seem to let up at all. Take on the defending national champion, Florida Golf Coast, Ice Eagles. man, this this this is gonna be this is gonna be the big one. I mean, they've got other ones, they've got Lindenwood, the week after, which is gonna be just as difficult, maybe even more so, since, they're gonna be going out to St. Louis. And then they also have that scary ass Oklahoma State team, which I have no clue what the going on with their program, but they're going crazy. They're on PJs and they've got photo shoots yeah, but this this one's gonna be very, very exciting to see how Tampa hangs in there. Home and home, ACDC Rolland College, the TARS taking on the ACDC Ice Eagles of Embry Riddle. Kennesaw State and Alabama M3. Kennesaw State traveling out to the Peloponne Civic Center. Those two teams love to scrap it up. these guys are a bunch of knuckleheads. So I would take the over on the penalty minutes. Whatever it is, take the over. Then out of out at the glue, Gugs and Co. and when I refer to Gugs and Co., I'm saying Tampa women's are taking on the Florida State Seminals. it's your first road game of the year, Avery. What what are the vibes going in? Avery Gugliotta: we're all really excited. since we weren't at Columbus Classic. We're all just like itching to get back on the ice and we're just excited, for a good game. And it's kind of fun going back to the igloo since that's where we just won the Natty last year. So just really exciting. Excited for the weekend. College Hockey South: That's right, yeah. The site of the AAU nationals last year. but this is gonna be a this is gonna be a road game for you guys, all right? That this isn't no neutral site against Syracuse. one of our first episodes of the podcast this year we talked to Jake Green from Saint Leo and he talked about how his buddies turn the nest into a big time they create a home ice advantage. so what I think Florida State could do a similar thing. So my advice to you, Avery, is maybe, you know, listen to Jake Green. moving along, Georgia traveling out to to the Knoxville Civic Coliseum they're gonna take on Tennessee. This is the second matchup of the season. Georgia won the first one, four to one, but I do have to say after watching Tennessee and their last two games, the Columbus Classic, much more competitive. and you know what? I think they're starting to put something together there. they have some scrappy players, some really talented ones. and so while some of the results haven't been the prettiest, I would keep an eye out for Tennessee. I think they're gonna continue to grow. what, with a big campus and a big brand like Tennessee, I think it's only a matter of time before they start to make the strides like Georgia has. where Georgia, they were up four to one in that championship game. They're really close to going three and and taking home that Columbus Classic Championship. And then our last matchup that we're gonna be highlighting here, Georgia Southern making their second trip to the Macon Coliseum to take on Wesleyan. we're talking about teams at Columbus that really made some noise. I don't think anyone outside of the, you know, the champions themselves, South Carolina made more noise than Wesleyan. they don't have the biggest, roster, but they're all really, really talented and you know they battle. good coaching staff, really experienced in in hockey. so that'll be an interesting one to watch. All right guys. All right, now now that we wrapped up our previews here, we've got our last few minutes, we have a free space. Who wants to go first? Gavin: Well, I'll kinda take it over since you kinda ran through the previews there. There there's a lot of games. There's a lot of hockey. and I'm so pumped for Battle of the Beach. I think it's one of my favorite tournaments to look forward to besides playoffs. I mean, where where else would you want to be than the Panthers iced in for five days freezing cold? But and then it at least in like February or March it's a little bit warmer, but I feel like last year it was still sixty, so you couldn't even get a reprieve. You walk out the rink and it's still cold outside. and by cold I mean Florida cold, 'cause sixty is not is not the same as thirty up north, but That's Florida cold. But you talked about some big series, AC D C Rollins and ACDC R A U, two teams that I think that's gonna be a good series. Rollins has a lot of talent on that roster, not a big roster. There's a reason they go and they can score a bunch of goals really early, but that comes into play later and UCF has a bigger roster. And they've started to figure things out. They struggled early this season, but that's gonna be a good series to watch. College Hockey South: Yeah, I'm with you. Gavin, since you're gonna be there on scene, you know, I guess you don't have to give predictions per se, but well, go ahead. if you're feeling froggy, go ahead and leave. Do you have any predictions for this weekend? Gavin: I don't know. I think Jacksonville comes out of that Florida game. And I think Florida Tech, they're a team that's underrated. You got a guy like Derek Mortia, who's been a big part of that program the past four or five years. that guy's a threat to go and score a bunch of goals and they've got some new players. a couple of new freshmen that I was doing some research on today have some really good experience. So maybe s we see some breakouts. at Battle at the Beach. last year we talked about a guy they had who was tearing it up and got hurt prior, Brayden Curry, who's no longer on the roster, but that doesn't mean that this team is not going to go out and score goals. They had a tough battle against UCF and they're three and one on the year, but they went and played a Lin team that has turned it around in a season and that's just a a credit to good recruiting or whatever they've got in the water down there and Boca. But College Hockey South: Ha Gavin: if you ask me, I think that Florida State Florida Tech A C D C game is going to be Insane. and I think you see Emery Riddle get their lick back. That game was close and that Emory Riddle team likes to score goals and that was not what happened in that game. And that's BJ Ricardi. But if you get on to FGCU early, which you saw with USF, you get the scoring started and you get them uncomfortable early, it's been tough for them to bounce back. and that's my prediction. I mean, just from watching I said And Tampa and Florida Atlantic, both of those teams are struggling compared to the standard that they have for themselves. And the cultures in those locker rooms. Tampa last year you talked about nationals team and that hasn't really looked like what the case is this year, but there's still a threat to go out there and win that division and go ahead and become a back to back champion, which we've seen a lot of battle at the beach. College Hockey South: All right, Avery, I just noticed that you're wearing your CHS staff member shirt. So yeah, mad respect. it's so is Gavin. Wow. I missed the memo, obviously. Is do you guys have a secret group chat without me? That wouldn't surprise me. That would not surprise me. that the entire that all of CHS just excludes me from a C from a Gavin: Well there's there's CHS podcast group chat two and it says without Danny in parentheses re in bold. College Hockey South: Yeah. W We get some serious work done. All right, your time to shine, Avery. What's your free space? Go ahead, bring up whatever you want. Avery Gugliotta: what do I want bring up? I'd say I'm really excited for Battle at the Beach. I always like watching the games and seeing that tournament go down. I think that the Battle of the Beach tournament is like the epitome of what club hockey in Florida is. It's like everybody has their cool jerseys that are designed specially like beach theme, for the schools. you're at the Panthers Ice Den. You go outside, there's palm trees everywhere. you have all those Florida teams being represented. I just think it's a really cool tournament. and I look forward to it every year watching it. even though it's like the men's tournament, I think it's super cool seeing all those teams. like the especially the Florida rivalries just going back and forth with each other at that tournament. So I'm super excited for that. And I'm also excited for the women's games this weekend. I'm excited for Georgia and Tennessee. I think Georgia's been the team to watch this season. At least I think they've improved so much. just from last season, even. And last season they'd improved so much as well. But this season they have been such a force, I think everyone in the women's division. So I'm excited to see how they play against Tennessee and see how Tennessee continues on for the rest of the season. It's still early, and I think they can definitely be a really good contender for playoffs this season. College Hockey South: Yeah, it doesn't hurt for Georgia with Maddie Greenwood putting up Gretzky numbers. she's been ridiculous. she's the only player in the conference that's keeping up with you know the Grant Deeds type of scoring. well unfortunately I've gotten the please do. Gavin: I gotta bring up I gotta bring up one more thing. 'Cause I we I feel like we skipped over it. It it's the Danny versus Kelly Bowl this weekend, and by that a South Carolina women versus Clemson's women's team and so they're gonna go head to head. College Hockey South: How is that not in here? Yeah. Gavin: And you know, and I swear I put it in there but I might have scrolled over it, but we're gonna call it I College Hockey South: Yeah. Gavin: know it's the Palmetto Cup or whatever they call it in the hockey College Hockey South: Yes. Gavin: version, but we're gonna we're gonna call it the C Kelly Danny Bowl from now on. I think that's what we're gonna call it and I might get crucified College Hockey South: Yeah what Gavin: over that, but who cares? I'm gonna die on that hill. College Hockey South: I I can I can take her. Don't worry about it. Gavin: Ha ha ha. College Hockey South: yeah, one of these days we're gonna we're gonna get her on here and and we're gonna me and her are gonna go at it for thirty minutes. Yeah, it's gonna be Gavin: Yeah, w once I lift this so called ban that I that I place down at some point. College Hockey South: yeah, well you just you just dislike Kelly for some reason and I don't know why. maybe we can Gavin: I I guess College Hockey South: maybe maybe when we're we stop recording you can tell us about it. But yes, Gavin: Ha ha. College Hockey South: that's it's the return to action for the Columbus Classic Champions, the South Carolina Game Cox against Clemson and they've they've only played classic so far. in the brief history that they've had against one another. They played some really, really good games. so yes, definitely wanna pay attention to that and I apologize for not mentioning that. but anyways I've got to go to a sad place here. because over the weekend it saddens me to say that I've officially given up on Texas football. This is the lowest point I've had watching them since probably pre COVID era. and that's saying something. That really is saying something. they they ended up losing to Florida. and it's not just the fact that they lost to Florida, it's how they lost to Florida. friend of the podcast, Marissa Bonia. yeah, thank you, Avery. Friend of the podcast, Marissa Bonilla. She's a Florida grad. congratulations Marissa. good luck trying to get into med school. and she likes to smack talk just like I do. And there's a lot of smack talk going up to the leading up to the game. Texas started out with 10-0 lead, and you wanna know what I what I sent her immediately. They went up 10 to nothing. This exactly what I said. Okay, good opening drive, figure it out offensively. Or figure it out offensively, build rhythm, build a two-possession lead, defense forces stops, then bog down offensively, take foot off gas. Lose ability to run ball and protect the passer, defense starts taking penalties, allows opponent back in game. You wanna know exactly what happened? What I just what I sent her immediately when we went up ten to nothing. Okay, why do I have to experience this as a fan? what did we deserve or what did we do as Texas fans to deserve this kind of pain? Alright. This is a national championship caliber roster. What are you gonna say, Avery? Please. Please Avery Gugliotta: I I just I have to say, I think it's so deserved and that's so funny. Because you're texting her as if she's the coach, like telling the players what to do, and then they do exactly what you said. you shot yourself in the foot on that one. So that's really funny. So that made that just made my day. That's all. College Hockey South: I know, I know, it's hilarious. because if it was a recent development, that would be one thing and I would be hitting the panic button a lot more and I think I would just be more angry than depressed. But this has been something that's been going on for the last five years. And so for the last three years or so, it hasn't really manifested itself into losses. Now it is. Two straight weeks they've blown two possession leads as a top ten ranked team, which has never happened in the history of college football, okay? They are breaking College football records that no one wants to break. so yeah. And you know what? I think Avery sent me a picture of her dog in like some costume it was what what even was that costume? I don't know, but I immediately Avery Gugliotta: Just served as a lobster. College Hockey South: dressed up as a lobster. So and I Avery Gugliotta: It like didn't really fit her. She's kinda fat, but she was a lobster. College Hockey South: yeah, I Gavin: Now we've just fully gotten off topic. we were talking about longhorns. I thought it was gonna Avery Gugliotta: I know. Gavin: be a gator and i it was a lobster and y I'm confused. College Hockey South: Well I well she she sent me that probably like ten minutes after the game went final and I like thank you. I really needed that actually because dogs are the best. and you know, especially silly dog pictures like that. I was like thank you for sending that because right now I hate everyone and everything. And if honestly like yeah. So I needed to get that out. and next week It'll be our second ever Halloween episode, we're gonna have to do our Halloween costumes again. Avery Gugliotta: I have a good costume. I'm excited for this. Gavin: I don't have a costume yet, so I don't know. Spirit of Halloween might be on the might be on the the docket for the schedule post battle at the beach. Maybe I'll go College Hockey South: Yeah. Gavin: while I'm in Fort Lauderdale. College Hockey South: Yeah, there you go. It's not a packed schedule and that's what another thing that's great about Battle at the Beach. is not a super super heavy schedule. like usually when we're in at Panthers Ice Den, it's it's fun, right? Like we have a blast doing it, but it is a lot. Battle at the Beach isn't too bad. It's not too packed and you can get out and do stuff during the day and really enjoy South Florida, we want to thank Hunter Schirmer for coming on. everyone keep an eye out for Battle of the Beach live on the College Hockey South YouTube page. we'll have updates, you know, all weekend on our socials, so if you can't watch, keep an eye out for that. But that's it for us. my name's Danny Baum. We have Gavin and and Avery. Thank you guys for watching. This has been College Hockey Mouth episode. Thirty seven.