Finlandia’s Jayde Pederson takes a faceoff during a game against St. Norbert last season at the Houghton County Arena in Hancock. (Photo courtesy of Finlandia Athletics)

HANCOCK — With almost a fifth of their season already in the books, the Finlandia Lions are still searching for their first win under new head coach Mike Kuruc. The Lions are 0-4 to start the season after dropping a pair of games at home to Concordia-Moorhead, 8-0 and 6-0.

Kuruc feels that the team did not execute the way he hoped they would, and that has led to some soul searching for both the coach and the players after the weekend struggles.

“Friday night, we didn’t play with any heart,” he said. “Not only did we not do the things we needed to do systematically, we played with no heart, which was disappointing.”

While Concordia is not one of the top teams in the MIAC this season, Kuruc felt the Lions treated them like they were.

“I kind of made that clear that I thought we had a really good chance if we were able to do the right things,” he said. “I think that we underestimated our opponent, which is something that I don’t really like us doing, especially because who are we to underestimate people?”

The team’s performance Friday felt more like a setback than a learning experience.

“When you come out, you don’t play with any heart, you’re not going to win any hockey games,” said Kuruc. “It was kind of a soulless effort.”

Kuruc felt that the message he was trying to send was getting lost in translation, so he has spent the week meeting with the team in groups, and individually, in an attempt to sort through where he feels the team is, and where it can go.

“Realistically, that’s all I want,” he said. “I want people to come out of this program, under my tenure, whether I had them for one year or I had them for five years, I want these kids to come out better hockey players, and better people. I want them to come out to be accountable for themselves.”

The Lions have been through a lot over the past few seasons with three coaches in four years..

“I want them to feel like they had a coach in college that truly cared, truly wanted to be a part of this Finlandia program, and wanted to be a part of their lives to the point that they made sure that they felt welcomed,” Kuruc said.

For the past week, Kuruc has met with the leadership coalition he built within the team, and feels that they are ready to take the next step as a team.

Scouting the Spartans

This weekend, the Lions host the No. 15 Aurora Spartans as the first weekend in a stretch of games that will see them face the Spartans, St. Norbert, and Lake Forest. The Spartans have opened the season 3-1 overall, having defeated Chatham twice and split with Bethel.

The Spartans feature sophomore forward Darci Matson, from Wasilla, Alaska, who leads the team with three goals and seven points. Kuruc feels that she is the catalyst for everything Aurora does on offense.

“She is a program-changing-type of player for them,” he said. “She’s probably one of the fastest players in the country, and she’s got hands like you wouldn’t believe. The play runs through (Matson), and our goal is to shut her down.”

The Spartans skate well, and that could be a problem for the Lions, who are still learning how to compete at this level.

“The two things that they bring with them wherever they go is speed and tenacity,” said Kuruc. “They’re going to beat you to the net. They want you to turn over the puck. They are fueled by playing a hard, fast hockey game, and they do it very well. There’s a reason that they’re so successful.”