CALGARY – The first half of the schedule will end the way it started for the University of Calgary Dinos as they play a home-and-home set against the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns before starting the holiday break.

The set begins on Nov. 29 as the two clubs meet at 7 p.m. at Father David Bauer Arena. The series shifts to Lethbridge two nights later as the Pronghorns host the Dinos at 7 p.m. at Nicholas Sheran Arena.

It has been an unpredictable first half of the 2012-13 campaign for Calgary. Relatively healthy through to this point of the season, the Dinos have seen their offence, defence and goaltending go through a series of successes and faults. The squad will now have two games to improve on their 7-7-0 record before going into the New Year. Despite some inconsistent play, Calgary is far from out of contention. Last season, the Dinos were 8-8-0 going into Christmas and ended the season one goal shy of a Canada West title.

“The season hasn't got as nearly well as we had hoped,” said head coach Mark Howell. “Having the amount of home games we have had, the amount of veterans on our team, I fully expected us to have a much better first half. We have underachieved as a group.”

On the offensive side of the puck, the biggest surprise has to be the emergence of Tyler Fiddler who has gone from missing most of last season to being Calgary's top scorer. Along with the expected goal totals from players like Brock Nixon, Walker Wintoneak and Kevin King, Fiddler has been a key player all year long. In recent weeks, secondary scoring has finally broken through for the Dinos' attack with Max Ross and Blake Clement each posting three points in Calgary's last win against the Mount Royal Cougars.

“There are a few guys that have been quite consistent throughout the season,” mentioned Howell. “King, Wintoneak and for the most part Nixon have all been pretty good, so there are definitely still some bright spots.

“I think we all want to identify with our team game and I think we are all left wanting more from that, including the players,” added the fourth-year Dinos' bench boss.

On the blue line, Cory Pritz had been an offensive machine placed third in conference scoring by defenders. Brett Bartman leads the team with a plus/minus rating of plus-8, while Giffen Nyren continues to be a reliable player in all situations.

Between the pipes, Dustin Butler has been given some relief this year as Jacob DeSerres has proven a capable back-up with Kris Lazaruk injured through the first half. DeSerres has three wins in five games, with each triumph coming at home. Both Butler and DeSerres have posted shutouts this year, with Butler's coming against Lethbridge on Sept. 28.

Lethbridge enters this weekend series looking to get out of a season-long funk which puts them at 1-11-2 through 14 contests. It is easy to forget that on opening night, the Pronghorns were 10 minutes away from victory before the Dinos eventually came back to win the game on an overtime goal by King. Since that game the team has struggled, picking up their lone win to date on Nov. 16 over Mount Royal.

Like at the junior ranks, university hockey is a game of cycles, and the five-year run of some of the top Pronghorns ended last year, leaving Lethbridge looking for new talent.  Missing their three top scorers, Dustin Moore, Winston Day Chief, and Taylor Gal, as well as starting goaltender Scott Bowles, the Pronghorns have been searching for players to fill in the roles left by those departed. Chase Schaber and Daniel Iwanski have provided the most offence for Lethbridge to date, followed by rookie defenceman Hayden Rintoul who sits third in team scoring. The goaltending tandem of Dylan Tait and Damien Ketlo have struggled to find their stride, with the 2011-12 Lethbridge Hurricanes MVP Ketlo still without his first colligate win in eight appearances.

“Anytime we have played them over the past few years it has been a really hard game, they play with intensity, and they come after you physically and don't give you anything for free,” discussed Howell. “We have lots to prove regardless of who were playing, they play a hard game and I would expect to see that again this weekend.”

After the conclusion of this series, Calgary will go on the Christmas break. The Dinos return to action in 2013 as they visit the UBC Thunderbirds on the west coast Jan. 4-5. The team will be back on the ice at Father David Bauer Arena Jan. 11-12 as they host the Regina Cougars. After the turn of the calendar, the Pronghorns will be in Regina to face the Cougars from Jan. 4-5.

-UC-