IceCats ready for 3 tough games

PROVO — After a slow start to the season, playing two games in a three-week span, the Provo IceCats dive into the season with a vengeance this weekend, with tough home games on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights.

"We're probably going to be pretty bruised by the end of the weekend, but fortunately we had conference weekend off, so we're ready to go," head coach Edwin Gantt said.

Despite losses in their first two outings, both against perennial power Utah State, this year promises to be a good one for the IceCats. The team returns its leading scorer from last year, Jeremy Weiss, and has strong veteran leadership on defense from Mark Ostebo, who is also the team captain.

"Mark is one of the best defensemen at this level in the entire Western Region," Gantt said. "I've had coaches from other teams come up and tell me how much they would love to have him on their team."

In addition to his defensive skills, Ostebo also poses a mean offensive threat with a wicked slapshot that is getting stronger every year.

"I wouldn't be surprised if I saw him break some glass at some point this year," Gantt said.

Three goalies will all see time in the net this year: Dustin Van Dyke, Scott Johnson and Jesse Welsh. Van Dyke has been tabbed to start, but Gantt said the three are so close in skill that he would be comfortable having any one of them in the net on any given night.

On offense, Weiss will be joined on the blue line by Derek Battisti, who is fresh off his mission. Three years ago, Battisti electrified the offense with his dynamic skating skills and numerous multigoal games.

The one-two punch of Weiss and Battisti has Gantt calling the blue line his "finishing line."

The Provo IceCats are not officially affiliated with BYU, but all players are BYU students. The team has been working for years to gain official recognition from BYU, but has been told that there is simply no room in the school's extramural program.

"It's in the forefront of (the players') minds all the time," Gantt said. "These guys want to represent the university well, and they do a good job of it. This is a classy organization."

Now in his seventh year with the team, Gantt said he is amazed by how much crowds have grown in that time, from small groups of friends and families to raucous mobs of up to 1,500 people.