After losing two games to Iowa State, Illinois hockey (10-14) looks forward to another weekend at home, where it will host Alabama (3-17).
Illinois finds itself in another rough patch as the season is coming to an end, currently sitting in a five-game losing streak. There are just four more games left in the season, and the team is looking for a way to end on a good note.
The last time these two schools faced off was on Oct. 20-21, and both teams came out of that weekend with a win. Alabama has only won two other games all season — its turn for the worse started with its win over Illinois, as it has not won a single game since.
Alabama comes to Champaign-Urbana on a nine-game losing streak. The Crimson Tide has had additional preparation for this matchup, as last weekend’s trip to Concordia University Ann Arbor was canceled. Their offense starts with senior forward Chandelier Bilodeau, who has a team-high 19 points cataloged for the season. With eight goals and 11 assists, Bilodeau has been a reliable option on the ice.
Right up there with Bilodeau is sophomore forward Rolando Lopez with 11 points on the season. Lopez’s five goals and 10 assists have opened up the offensive side of the ice for Alabama. Freshman defenseman Parks Wallace has had an impressive rookie season for the Crimson Tide as well, racking up 14 points. Wallace leads the team in assists at 11.
Get The Daily Illini in your inbox!
The Illini are looking to keep their season moving forward even after the past five games have not gone their way. This stretch marks the Illini’s longest losing streak. In light of the recent losses, head coach John Opilka stressed that the start of games must be much cleaner and Illinois needs to fire with intensity right out of the gate.
“We must have the mentality that we can go into in any game and win but also know we can lose a game to any team,” Opilka said. “We have to be ready from the start and play our game.”
The Illini will be going into this weekend without junior goalie Nolan Woodring once again as he was sidelined with a lower-body injury and is not expected to return this season.
The Illini’s second-to-last home series of the season begins at 7 p.m. on Friday before picking back up at 7 p.m. on Saturday.
@Jon_Mathew23
