Just over a week ago, Arizona State came to the conclusion of its unbelievably historic season.

It was a surreal moment for the program when the Sun Devils took the ice in an NCAA Tournament game for the first time ever. The youngest start-up division I team in the country had shattered expectations in its third full season to get its ticket punched to Allentown, Pa.

“To make a national tournament in our third full season is a special accomplishment that no one else but our locker room thought that we could do,” ASU head coach Greg Powers said. “We knew pretty early in the season that we had a pretty good team that could do some very special things.”

But as the old saying goes, “all good things must come to an end”.

ASU came up just short of extending its Cinderella story and further inscribing fresh ink into the history books as the Quinnipiac Bobcats held on to win the first-round game of the Midwest Regional, 2-1. What’s clear, however, is that it’s really only the beginning of bigger and better things to come despite a heartbreaking loss.

“Anyone that says that we didn't belong here or think that we didn't deserve the right to be here is wrong and they couldn't be more wrong,” Powers explained after the Saturday night loss at PPL Center. “Our guys deserve to be here because they are as good as anybody and we have proven that all year.”

The 2018-19 season began with some uncertainty. After back-to-back losing seasons, would Greg Powers and his team be done with the growing pains and make the leap to be a legit NCAA D-I contender?

ASU opened up with a strong home sweep over Alaska Fairbanks and junior goaltender Joey Daccord registered his first two shutouts of the season. But the first true test of the season loomed the following weekend against the then-No. 1 Ohio State Buckeyes.

The Sun Devils lost both games, but sometimes losing teaches a better lesson in sports. ASU’s locker room was fed up with simply competing and knew there was more to this year’s group than letting the past continue to repeat itself.

“The program is at a point now where we talk about being the tradition. There are no more moral wins,” sophomore forward Johnny Walker said afterward. “We expect to beat the number one team in the country. I think that’s a tribute to where this program is and how far it’s come.”

“We knew this process wasn’t going to be overnight,” sophomore forward Dominic Garcia added. “I think anyone would be pretty ignorant not to see the strides we’ve made this quickly and where we’re headed.”

After quick work at Alabama-Huntsville, the Sun Devils returned home with their second series sweep of the season under the belt in just six games. ASU then dominated Nebraska Omaha by scoring a total of 13 goals over the final weekend of October, and it was the moment Johnny Walker officially transcended to college hockey stardom after already having a successful freshman season.

The Phoenix-native netted four power play goals in one game, and just like that, a Sun Devil was the nation’s leading goal-scorer. And his knack for putting the puck in the back of the net didn’t stop there.

ASU then went to the northeast for the first of six times in the regular season for a series against then-No. 6 Penn State to start off November. It was yet another battle between the two newest programs in NCAA D-I hockey.

But after two straight series of getting shown up by the Nittany Lions, the Sun Devils went punch for punch with them the third time around. In the second game of the series, Walker became the hero with a breakaway goal to win it in overtime and history was made as ASU achieved its first victory over a top-10 team.

It was also the team’s first road victory over a ranked team.

Another Big Ten opponent, Michigan State, marched into Oceanside Ice Arena the following weekend after the emotional victory in Happy Valley. The Sun Devils protected home ice once again and earned another sweep, their first against a team in that conference.

Co-captain and junior defenseman Brinson Pasichnuk said afterward, “People would always ask me when I first committed here my first two years, ‘Why did you go there? You were committed to Vermont, you had other options.’ Well, it’s funny how no one is asking me that now.”

Sun Devil Hockey was ranked for the first time ever in the USCHO polls at No. 18 the following Monday, putting the program on the national radar. At 9-3, ASU already surpassed its win total from the 2017-18 season.

It became evident the team was closer than ever before. A brotherhood formed, and the bond was only growing stronger with each win.

Brinson Pasichnuk added more special words after the MSU series that verified his invaluable leadership role for such a young hockey team and foreshadowed what was awaiting after the regular season.

“We came in because we truly believed in something special, and now it’s just starting to bloom. There’s going to absolutely be some incredible moments in this program’s history. Being a captain and leading this team is just so special. I couldn’t ask for better teammates. We are a family, and I know that’s what we have had to do these last two years to be successful.”

Pasichnuk envisioned success, and so did every single one of his teammates in setting out to “be the tradition” in ASU’s quest for its first-ever winning season.

Oceanside Ice Arena and its quirks proved to be a major advantage for the Sun Devils by rattling off 12 straight wins on home ice after the losses to Ohio State.

“We all know this isn’t a division I-caliber facility, but it’s our home,” Powers said after ASU’s final home series. “And what teams in the past viewed as an obstacle, we’ve now viewed the obstacle as the way. It’s the way of success and we’ve protected home ice this year in a major way.”

Going on the road was no longer a liability when the challenge of three straight road series in November was presented. The program went on to pick up massive, season-defining overtime wins at Harvard, thanks to Walker, and at Princeton, courtesy of senior Jake Clifford, to finish the difficult stretch with a 3-3 record.

“With our difficulty of schedule, the amount that we travel, the back-to-back trips in some instances to the east coast, to go .500 on the road is a tremendous accomplishment, it really is,” Powers said.

The Sun Devils returned home and outperformed Colorado College for their sixth sweep of the season. Daccord, who stood on his head all season, posted his NCAA-leading fifth shutout of the season at that point.

ASU showed resiliency time and time again when placed in high-pressure situations. A total of four overtime games turned into four victories alongside a moral shootout victory over then-No. 3 Minnesota State in the Desert Hockey Classic to finish out 2018.

The hump of not being able to finish in close contests was finally conquered by the Sun Devils, with a good amount of tight victories coming over schools, such as Boston College and Boston University, that have competed for a national championship in the past.

“This year, I think winning pushed us so close together,” freshman PJ Marrocco said. “Winning solves a lot of problems. And when we kept winning, it was awesome.”

With a highly regarded leadership group already in place, ASU’s top 20-ranked recruiting class thrived. The freshmen were able to contribute 89 of the team’s points in the regular season with the highest producer of the first-year group being Calgary Flames draft pick Demetrios Koumontzis with 20 points.

“We don’t go into games thinking we’re some top-shot team, and I think that’s what helps us a lot,” Koumontzis said about his team’s success. “We come from beneath other teams and we end up winning.”

A huge moment for Sun Devil Hockey came in January. Walker and Daccord were nominated for the coveted Hobey Baker Memorial Award that’s annually given to college hockey’s most valuable player.

It’s the first time any ASU players have ever been nominated. Walker finished top-10 in the fan vote that closed on March 10th but did not make the finalist cut, and neither did Daccord

However, Daccord was announced as one of the five finalists for the Mike Richter Award at the end of March and the winner will be decided later this week.

The 22-year-old has been the backbone of the working parts that have made the Sun Devils so successful this past season. His stellar play tremendously helped ASU pull off such a historic year, and also lay the foundation of the program for two years prior.

But now the Ottawa Senators draft pick has officially moved on to the NHL. Daccord became the first Sun Devil to not only sign a contract but play in an NHL game already, adding to the list of history made for the program in such a short amount of time.

His last season at ASU concluded with 21 wins after starting every game, seven shutouts, and a .926 save percentage.

ASU’s “founding fathers” made a special impact down the stretch of the historic run. All of the five seniors committed to coach Powers and the program with aspirations of making the NCAA Tournament in their college careers despite being “laughed at” for the thought of it.

“21 wins, third full season of NCAA hockey, fourth overall. It’s a credit to these five guys and what they’ve built here and certainly that locker room for following,” Powers said after his team won on ASU’s senior night.

With dynamic production from Anthony Croston and Dylan Hollman especially, the senior group took the charge in making sure they had a chance to play more hockey for the Sun Devils with a postseason bid.

“We have been through everything together, us seniors, and it has been one hell of a ride,” Croston said, holding back tears after the tournament game. “I am just lucky to even be here. It is definitely special that I am able to play Division I hockey at Arizona State because it is something that I never thought of growing up.”

It was easy to see the kind of special impact the seniors made and how important their legacy is that’s being left behind as Brinson Pasichnuk was choked up about it, distraught at the thought of them being gone next season.

“When you have five seniors like them, if you can be half the contributor that they were, you can look back at yourself and know that you had a very impactful and successful college career just like these guys did. I am going to miss them so much.”

But this is only the beginning for Coach Powers and his hockey team. The foundation is established and Sun Devil Hockey is now on the map with no more questions about the legitimacy after what has culminated to this point.