Sophomore goaltender Mike DeGeorge was unbeatable this weekend in two wins against Fredonia State – 5-0 and 9-0.

In Friday’s game, the Illini peppered Fredonia State senior goaltender Ryan Brennan with 15 shots in the first period, but ended it with just a 1-0 lead on a short-handed goal by senior forward Scott Kohler.

At the other end of the rink, the Illini allowed Fredonia State several good scoring chances, and some spectacular saves by DeGeorge allowed the Illini to hold the lead at the break.

In the second period, Illinois extended its lead when sophomore forward Phil Gerber’s slap shot trickled past Brennan. Freshman forward Drew Heredia then gave the Illini some distance with his first career goal later in the period.

After two more goals in the third, the horn sounded and DeGeorge recorded his first shutout in his career, which he credits to defense.

“We’ve got a good rookie squad of defensemen this year. They’re defending well and listening real well out there,” DeGeorge said.

Saturday’s game saw the same slow start for the Illini offense, which only scored once on a whopping 23 shots.

However, the Illini lit up the Blue Devils in the second, scoring six goals on ten shots, while DeGeorge once again kept Fredonia State scoreless.

Head coach Chad Cassel took DeGeorge out at the start of the third in order to get a look at freshman goaltender Marcos Montoya, who completed the shutout weekend for the Illini.

Despite two lopsided victories, Cassel still believes the Illini have problems to fix.

“We had a lot of defensive breakdowns,” he said. “They didn’t sustain a lot of offensive pressure, but when they did, we had problems. So that’s definitely an area to improve on.”

Saturday’s game also allowed Cassel to get a better look at the Illini’s rookie class.

“I thought (the rookies) played very well. It was a nice way to get started, but we still have a lot of work to do,” Cassel said. “Yeah, we were able to put nine goals up on the board, and five (Friday), but we had a ton of shots in the first period, and one goal.”

Kohler said the Illini need to score when they get those quality chances as well, but there were still a lot of positives. For example, he said the rookies looked really good and should make a bright future for the Illini.

“It was a good start to the year. We have a lot of room for improvement, but we’re happy with the result,” Kohler said.

Loose Pucks

Kohler leads the team in goals with three, and total points with six … DeGeorge stopped all 26 shots faced and has a 100-minute shutout streak … Freshman forwards Drew Heredia and Nick Fabrini lead all rookies in points with four each … The Illini will wear decals on their helmets this season in remembrance of two former players who passed away over the summer – Art Olson, 26, who died suddenly of a heart aneurysm, and former women’s hockey club captain Garnet Litherland, also 26, who died of acute lymphoblastic leukemia … Five Illini will play in the Winter World University Games in Innsbruck, Austria, Jan. 12 – 22. Goaltender Mike DeGeorge, junior defenseman Andy Lubesnick and senior forwards Brian Coleman, Brett Duncan and Jim Rogers made the team. Chad Cassel will be the head coach.