GREAT FALLS, Mont.  – After 335 days off the ice, the University of Providence men's hockey team will kick off their 2021 spring campaign this weekend when they take on the University of Mary Friday night at 7 p.m. The Argos will play again against the Marauders on Saturday at 7 p.m. 

The Argos have high expectations for the year after the success they achieved last season. In only their second year as a program, the Argos finished with a 22-8-2 record. They won the West Division Championship, defeating the University of Mary on a game-winning goal in overtime, and earned a #2 seed in the ACHA National Tournament before the event was canceled due to COVID-19. 

Last season, the Argos had a month between their final regular season game and the start date of the ACHA Tournament. The Argos spent that time rigorously preparing, spending their spring break practicing to compete at the national level. Unfortunately the tournament was canceled just days before they were supposed to depart, devastating news to a team poised to make a deep postseason run.

Heimel said those feelings of disappointment haven't been forgotten and has taught the team the ever-changing nature of the pandemic. Since the team's return to campus, he has been proud of his players' commitment to following all COVID-19 guidelines and policies.

"We all tested negative this week and the message was, 'hey, we get to play hockey for another week,'" Heimel said. "What's true today isn't necessarily true tomorrow. But that can be a powerful perspective for how we conduct our business and how we work and what kind of effort we give. You take it day by day. You don't take things for granted. You leave it all out there. Lord willing, there's a next day and you get it after it that day. Our kids have already been dealing with the downsides of covid. They've had to be adaptable."

Part of the adjustment will be having to play games in front of no fans.

"It's just something that we're going to have to just deal with," Heimel said. "We've come so far and adapted so much, I don't think playing in an empty arena will affect what we're trying to accomplish. We will get through it."

Though the preseason has been short, Heimel is pleased with how practices have been going. He credits that to the leadership and continuity of his team; nearly everyone returned from last year's historic team.

"From a skill and competition perspective, it looks like these guys never left, which is really exciting," Heimel said. "We've looked really good skill wise. We've gotten better at conditioning in the last week. You just can't replace hockey shape. You can train all you want, but until you're actually playing a game, you're just not going to be in that kind of shape. That's probably been the biggest challenge."

Their first game will be against the University of Mary, a team that the Argos have quickly developed a rivalry with. The teams were the top two teams in the West Division last season, and whom the Argos defeated in the Division Championship the last time the two teams faced off.

"They're a good hockey club," Heimel said. "They're going to compete hard and have a want to win the games.  It's been an exciting rivalry and we really just started that. To finish against them last year and win in that way, they're going to be ready. It's going to be fun and exciting. We appreciate the professionalism and class form their program. It just makes for a good competitive game on both sides."