The Kent State hockey team might be the university’s best-kept secret.

Playing in the ice arena tucked away at the edge of campus, the Flashes have been a mainstay in the American Collegiate Hockey Association’s national ranking, qualifying for the National Tournament for the last three seasons.

This weekend, No. 13 Kent State will face off with No. 8 Iowa State for a shot to move up in the ACHA rankings. Before the puck drops though, here’s what fans should know about the Kent State hockey team, as told by them.

1. Don’t call them a club

Kye Budziszewski, senior captain: Club hockey is not club hockey. It’s a lot better than what most people might think. We run ourselves kind of like a varsity team. We practice four days a week, Monday through Thursday. Games (are) Friday and Saturday. We do this from the time – we get to school till the end of March. We don’t have any days off. So it’s kind of like a varsity team.

2. They fight strategically.

KB: Say you’re losing by two goals and you need your team picked up, we’ll try to get a fight going. We normally don’t try and have too many fights, because if you fight, you sit the next game. We tend to pick and chose, so to say.

3. . most of the time.

Ryan Gregory, senior goalie: Also, there’s times when you’ve got to stand up for your teammate. If they go and cheapshot a guy, you’ve got to stand up for your team. And they’ll do likewise in the same situation. There’s a place for it in the game, but I mean, sometimes it gets out of hand.

4. They skate against the top dogs

KB: Traditionally, a lot of the top teams in the nation are from our league, which is good for us because we’re playing a nationally ranked team every week. I’d say six or seven teams out of eight or nine go to nationals every year, and only the top 16 make it.

5. They’ve got big expectations

RG: We lost a lot of guys last year, but in no regards is this a rebuilding year. I see us being able to keep a top-16 rank (and) go to nationals. Once you get to nationals and playoffs, anything can happen. We’re here to battle every night, put on a good performance. We’re getting better every game.

Contact assistant sports editor Josh Johnston at [email protected].