It’s nearly impossible to empathize with Miami goaltender Cody Reichard’s experience at last April’s Frozen Four. Few people ever have the opportunity to play on such a grand stage and fewer run such a dramatic gamut of emotions in a startlingly short period.
That weekend provided the highest of highs for the then-freshman when he stopped 24 of 25 Bemidji State shots in the national semifinal to lead his team into the school’s first-ever national championship game in any sport. But then after 59 minutes of continued success in the title game against Boston University, Reichard’s spirits came crashing down as the Terriers scored twice in the final minute of regulation and on a fortuitous bounce in overtime to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.
Miami sophomore goaltender Cody Reichard enters the weekend ranked fifth nationally with a 1.61 goals against average.
Having seen the disappointment unfold so rapidly in April and given the well-documented quirkiness of the goaltending breed, any sane hockey fan would question how Reichard might respond to a potentially traumatic situation.
Twelve games into the new season, college hockey nation has its answer—Reichard has bounced back stronger than ever. In nine starts, the sophomore has compiled a 7-0-2 record on the strength of a 1.61 goals against average and .931 save percentage, and has mustered the strength to see how he can benefit that championship game disappointment.
“It was a great experience, not many guys can say they have played in a national championship game,” Reichard said. “We got pretty close, but it just wasn’t meant to be. It was a great experience, not only for hockey, but also in life.”
While he has successfully recovered from the disappointment and has used it for motivation to become a better all-around goaltender, Reichard admits that it wasn’t easy to move past.
“You think about it for quite a while,” Reichard said. “It’s not something you just shake off in a couple of days. It took a little bit of time, but then I worked hard and trained hard all summer long.”
Reichard’s play has helped the RedHawks to the top spot in the INCH Power Rankings, and Miami sits in prime position to contend for the CCHA regular-season title, despite a pair of ties with shootout losses against Ferris State last weekend.
Skating into Kalamazoo this weekend, Reichard will have to stay on top of his game against a struggling Western Michigan team that was swept at Ohio State last weekend. The RedHawks will be heavy favorites at Lawson Ice Arena, but they need to stay sharp for an extremely difficult Thanksgiving weekend.
Miami heads to Grand Forks for North Dakota’s Subway Holiday Classic Nov. 27 and 28, where they will face two of the nation’s hottest teams in Bemidji State and North Dakota. But even with those tantalizing opponents appearing over the horizon, Reichard knows that his team must stay grounded and take as many points as possible against the Broncos.
“We’re just trying to take everything one game at a time,” Reichard said. “We have our sights set on a league championship, a playoff championship, and a national championship, but we just take them one game at a time. First we play Friday, then Saturday and then the next weekend.”
