Lisa Mullan took a penalty with just 32 seconds remaining against No. 1 Mercyhurst. The Syracuse ice hockey team was already down 7-1 on Jan. 22 in what was touted as the biggest game in the program’s young history.

But despite the huge lead and short amount of time left on the clock, the Lakers did not let up. Jesse Scanzano, the nation’s second-leading scorer, skated out onto the ice for the Lakers’ powerplay. And with 11 seconds left in the rout, she tallied Mercyhurst’s eighth and final goal.

For SU forward Megan Skelly, that score epitomizes the kind of team Mercyhurst is.

‘I even remember that when I line up against them that they were just totally disrespectful,’ she said. ‘And it just doesn’t show any class in my opinion. I think that’s going to help us have a bit of an edge against them.’

The Orange will have two more chances to avenge the embarrassing 8-1 loss when it travels to Erie, Pa., for a weekend series with the No. 1 Lakers (25-2-3, 12-1-1 College Hockey America). The first game is Friday at 7 p.m., followed by Saturday’s matchup at 2 p.m.

After Niagara took a one-point lead over SU for second place in the CHA standings, Syracuse (17-14-1, 8-6-0) will need at least a tie this weekend to reclaim the second-seed for the conference tournament.

But the fact that the games this weekend are against the No. 1 team in the nation may mean more to the Orange than a second-place conference finish.

‘We’ve got nothing to lose,’ senior goaltender Lucy Schoedel said. ‘We’re practicing pretty hard this week. I think we’re just going to focus on one period at a time and just try to put the puck on the net. We know what we’re capable of.’

Getting a win or tie against Mercyhurst may be a bigger focus for the Orange than trying to earn a second-place finish in the conference. The standings, at this point, are for little more than bragging rights. Regardless of whether Syracuse finishes second or third, it will play Niagara in the semifinals of the conference tournament.

It’s the allure of knocking off the No. 1 team on its home ice that makes this weekend that much more important for SU. The team came close the day after the 8-1 humiliation, losing just 4-3 to the Lakers Jan. 23.

That result has given the Orange some confidence heading into the weekend. And even with an extra week off before this series, Syracuse has not let up in practices.

‘People are working really hard because everyone just knows what’s on the line,’ Skelly said. ‘Everyone wants to beat the No. 1 team in the country. It’s like the best feeling in the world.’

Of course, winning would be that much better after Mercyhurst’s display earlier this year. It wasn’t even the first time the Lakers have rubbed defeat in the Orange’s face. Head coach Paul Flanagan said the same thing happened last year in SU’s 7-1 loss.

SU defenseman Nikki Leone took a hooking penalty with 2:22 left in the game. With the Lakers already up 7-1, their coaches sent out its top line, Flanagan said. That line included Meghan Agosta, who led Team Canada in goals in the 2010 Olympics.

‘It’s like the little shove in the face at the end,’ senior defenseman Brittaney Maschmeyer said. ‘It just gives us an extra something to go after them for.’

And Flanagan acknowledged that the Orange might need a little something extra if it is to knock off the No. 1 Lakers. After all, they have three of the nation’s top seven scorers, including No. 1 Vicki Bendus and No. 2 Scanzano. It will also be Mercyhurst’s senior night on Saturday. Flanagan said it would be a tall order to steal a win in the Lakers’ home rink.

But the Orange skaters want to send a message to the nation’s No. 1 team.

‘We’ve got something to prove,’ Schoedel said. ‘They tend to put their best players in at the end of the game. They try to bury us. They’re kind of a classless team. I think the coaches know that. We know that. We want to shove it right back in their face.’

zjbrown@syr.edu

Published on February 25, 2010 at 12:00 pm