The Arkansas Razorbacks (2-3-0) are set to take on the Auburn Tigers (1-2-0) this weekend to open up conference play.

The Tigers visit Arkansas after splitting the series with Florida State last weekend. The Razorbacks, meanwhile, are looking to bounce back after losing both games against the Lindenwood Lions.

Last year, the Hogs easily handled the Tigers in Auburn’s inaugural season by the scores of 12-0 and 10-1.

“Obviously we’ll have some jitters,” said Razorbacks Coach Brian Gallini. “Starting out the conference season is always a challenge. We expect [Auburn] to come out strong and make a push. So, our goal is to push back in that first 10 minutes and establish ourselves and then try to turn it up from there.”

Arkansas won its second straight SECHC title last season and know that teams are out to get them.

“We expect that teams are coming for us,” Gallini said. “With back-to-back titles, obviously we have a target on our back. Our goal is to stay on top, and I think if we play our style of hockey in all 3 zones for 60 minutes, we’ll be just fine.”

Last year the Tide finished with a record of 16-8-1, placing them second in the West behind Arkansas.

“Alabama will be our biggest challenge this year,” added Gallini. “We have a rivalry with them that dates back to the beginning of this program’s history, but it will just take time to figure out who’s where in the conference this year.”

Gallini is very happy with how his third-year players, such as goaltender Brendan Desjardins, are handling this season by pushing the team on and off the ice in their goal of winning a third straight conference championship.

The Razorbacks will start their defense of the SECHC title Friday night at 7:30 pm against the Auburn Tigers at the Jones Center for Families in Springdale, Arkansas. Tickets are $6 for adults, $2 for students, and free for children under 10!

After a hard fought game by both the Arkansas Razorbacks (2-1-0) and the Missouri State Bears (0-2-0) the Razorbacks came on top to win Saturday’s nail biter 3-2, giving them the weekend series win.

Trailing by a goal, the Ice Bears were quick to tie the game up when Justin Buchheit scored 1:23 in to the third period.

The Razorbacks were able to edge out the victory after Ryan Holloway scored to break the tie with 5:41 left to play in the game.

The Bears did not quit as they pushed to tie the game back up, but with great defensive play and the goaltending of Brendan Desjardins, the Hogs held on for the win.

The first period was a hard fought test that proved much different than last night’s game. The Hogs struck first as forward Justin Gaddy scored on the power play with 1:56 left to play in the frame, giving Arkansas a 1-0 lead heading in to the second.

In the second period, Arkansas took the momentum from a late first period goal to put their second on the board from a shot by Justin McDowell.

However, Missouri State answered with one of its own when forward Alex Chancey scored a little more than halfway through the second. The score remained the same for the final nine minutes, giving the Razorbacks a 2-1 lead at the end of the second period.

Arkansas will be taking to the road next weekend to face off against a pair of D2 opponents. Razorback hockey will play two at Lindenwood University and finish up with a game at Missouri.

Upon returning back home to Arkansas, the Ice Hogs will begin conference play as they host the Auburn Tigers the following week.

After a tough defeat to the University of Oklahoma last week, The Arkansas Razorbacks (1-1-0) came back Friday night to take down the Missouri State Bears (0-1-0) by a score of 9-1.

Justin Gaddy and Garth Derry netted a pair of goals each to lead a high powered offensive attack. Brenden Desjardins was solid between the pipes, giving up a lone goal in the third period to lead the Razorbacks to victory in the first game of two this weekend against the Missouri State Bears.

Missouri State finished 8-4-0 last season in the Mid-America Collegiate Hockey Association, placing third in the silver south division. Last year the Hogs went 1-1 against the Bears, falling to them 4-0 in the first game, but coming back to win the next night 8-2.

It took the only four minutes for Razorback forward Gaddy to score the first goal of the game. Later in the period with 2:21 left to play, Arkansas forward Martin Sundstedt scored, which was followed up with a goal from Derry, giving the Hogs a 3-0 lead at the end of the first period.

Arkansas went on to score their fourth goal of the contest when Justin McDowell scored five minutes in, this time short handed. The Razorbacks continued to roll as Gaddy scored his second of the night, giving Arkansas a commanding 5-0 lead heading in to the third frame.

The Razorbacks weren’t slowing down as they went on to score four more goals in the final frame, first by defenseman Easton Oliver, followed up by a power-play goal from Johnny Stromp.

Missouri State was able to find the back of the net as Michael Glenn scored the Bears only goal midway through the third period.

Razorback forward Marcel Toure netted the eighth Arkansas goal with 9:14 left to play in the game, and Derry scored his second, a power-play goal, with 42 seconds left in game, giving the Ice Hogs their final goal as they went on to beat the Bears 9-1.

Game two will be Saturday night September 25th at the Jones Center in Springdale, Ark. The puck drops at 7:30.

It was a tough game tonight for the Razorbacks as the defending SECHC Tournament champions fell 7-3 to the Oklahoma Sooners (D1) in their season opener. The Razorbacks played their hearts out and didn’t give up till the last whistle blew, getting a true test by scheduling a top-tier program to start the season.

The Sooners finished seventh in the region last season with a record of 29-16-1 and made a trip to the second round of the Division I Tournament.

In the first period the Sooners got off to a quick start with two power-play goals. Defenseman Troy Puente scored a power play goal 2:11 into the game. Following a slashing penalty, the Sooners claimed their second goal of the game.

With only 1:46 left to play in the first period Arkansas forward Johnny Stromp put Razorback Hockey on the board with the Hogs first, to bring them within one.

At the start of the second period the Razorbacks came out with the momentum of a late-period goal. However, Oklahoma had an answer and added two goals to take a 4-1 lead into the final frame.

Early in the third period Johnny Stromp scored his second goal of the game for the Razorbacks, but it didn’t take long for Oklahoma to answer. Kevin Zehnder netted his second goal of the game, putting the Sooners ahead 5 goals to 2.

Forest Mudgett scored a power-play goal nine minutes into the third period. However, it was Zehnder’s night as he netted a hat trick, giving the Sooners an eventual 7-3 win.

A 7-3 loss is nothing easy for any team to handle, but Arkansas got the chance to play against a top-tier Division I school to prepare for the upcoming season ahead as they look to claim their third straight conference championship.

The 2011-12 season is just around the corner as Ole Miss takes on Memphis this weekend. As the season approaches quickly, the South Eastern Collegiate Hockey Conference is releasing the inaugural pre-season coaches’ poll and players-to-watch list for the upcoming season.

In the first ever conference coaches’ poll, Arkansas and Florida are picked to lead win the divisions this season. Arkansas is two-time defending conference Champions and Florida has reached the title game the last two seasons.

Despite their dominance the last few seasons, neither team received unanimous first-place votes. Both Arkansas and Florida received three first-place votes each.

Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own teams and only voted for their respective divisions.

Alabama and Ole Miss both received a first-place vote in the west rankings. Georgia and Tennessee also received first-place votes in the East.

Alabama and Ole Miss shared a tie for the second spot in the West, both receiving 12 points each. Mississippi State was picked to finish fourth, receiving seven points. Auburn was picked to finish fifth in the west.

In the East, Georgia was picked to finish second, receiving 12 points while Tennessee was third with 10 points. Vanderbilt edged out South Carolina by a point for fourth in the rankings with a total of seven points.

The SECHC also releases the 2011-12 returning players watch list. This list was also picked on by the coaching staffs of the schools.

Arkansas beat Florida 5-2 Sunday night to win back-to-back SECHC Tournamnent Championships. Razorbacks’ Garrett Meier was named Tournament MVP. Georgia beat Alabama 7-4 for 3rd Place and Ole Miss defeated Auburn to claim 5th place at this year’s SECHC Tournament.