The Ice Hogs (13-7-1, #6 South) head south this weekend for a trio of games that will determine the SECHC-West regular season conference champion.  Beginning on Friday night, November 30, the Hogs renew their rivalry with the Ole Miss Rebels (7-8-0, #12 South).  In their last meeting, the Razorbacks defeated the Rebels 4-1 in Olive Branch by breaking open a 1-1 tie entering in the third period with three unanswered goals.  Since their last meeting, Ole Miss has gone 2-1 with victories over Georgia Tech and Florida State and a lopsided 9-4 loss to Florida Gulf Coast.  The puck drops at 6:00 pm CST in Tupelo, MS, at the BancorpSouth Arena.

Then, on Saturday afternoon, the Hogs take on the Auburn Tigers (3-10-0) at 4:15 pm at the Mid-South Ice House in Olive Branch, MS.  In the two teams’ last meeting, the Razorbacks defeated the Tigers by a score of 10-2.  In five total meetings between the two teams, the Ice Hogs have outscored the Tigers by a cumulative score of 53-3.  The Tigers have not played any additional games since their last meeting with Arkansas on November 11.

The weekend saves the best for last when Arkansas takes on the University of Alabama (6-6-1, #9 South) at 10 am in Olive Branch.  Arkansas took the first game between the two teams on November 10 by a score of 6-1.  That game, played before a large hostile pro-Alabama crowd, stayed tight through two periods.  With the score tied 1-1 entering the third, the Hogs exploded for five unanswered goals.  Since that game, Alabama has gone 2-1-0 and earned an impressive victory over the #4 team in the South Region — the University of Miami — in the process.

This weekend marks the close of the regular season for SECHC conference games.  The Ice Hogs enter the weekend 5-0-0 in the SECHC and, should they sweep the weekend, the Razorbacks would earn their fourth consecutive regular season SECHC-West conference title.  “We’re just excited for the opportunity,” said Assistant Coach Collin Hesse.  “We’ve been working hard all season and it’s weekends like this one where we hope to see it pay off,” he added.