Arizona State and Harvard arrive at the SoCal Clash as the No. 16 and 17 ranked teams in Division I college hockey, respectively. Harvard enters the two-game series ranked second in the nation in goals per game (4.10) and 10th in power play percentage (24.3%). Arizona State has posted an 8-2-2 record in its last 12 games, including three wins over nationally-ranked opponents. The SoCal Clash represents the first NCAA Division I hockey game to be played in Orange County since the 1999 Frozen Four at Honda Center featuring Maine (National Champions), New Hampshire, Michigan State and Boston College.
Badini, 21 (1/19/98) was selected by Anaheim in the third round (91st overall) of the 2017 NHL Draft. The 6-0, 203-pound forward has appeared in 76 career NCAA games with Harvard, collecting 21-24=45 points with a +6 rating and 40 penalty minutes (PIM). Currently in his junior season, Badini has 3-5=8 points with a +6 rating in 10 games with Harvard.
Thrun, 18 (3/12/01), has collected 2-5=7 points along with a +9 rating in 10 games during his freshman season with Harvard. Selected by Anaheim in the fourth round (101st overall) of the 2019 NHL Draft, Thurn helped Team USA to gold at the 2018 Under-17 World Hockey Challenge and bronze at the 2019 Under-18 World Championship. The 6-1, 185-pound defenseman also earned 15-61=76 points with a +68 rating in 124 career games with the U.S. National Team Development Program Under-17 and Under-18 teams.
Great Park Ice & FivePoint Arena is one of the nation's largest public ice facilities, located at the Orange County Great Park. The facility is a part of a public-private partnership with the Irvine Ice Foundation. The $100 million, 280,000-square-foot facility has four sheets of ice and serves sports-related activities that include youth and adult hockey programs, regional and national tournaments, figure skating, and public skating hours. FivePoint Arena has space to seat 2,500 spectators. The complex includes administrative offices, dressing rooms, training facilities, retail space, and concession space.
