He knows how it sounds. But sometimes, you can only describe the result of the game with one of those weird sports cliches. Like having a "good loss."

"I know those things sound funny, but sometimes you play well and come across a perennial powerhouse that capitalizes on the mistakes you make," said Lake Superior State head coach Matt Parker. His Lakers (2-1) were beaten 4-0 by UM Dearborn (1-0) on Saturday night at Taffy Abel Arena. He continued, "I think we played really well today. It was a 0-0 game after the first. I think we had a lot of opportunities to score.

"They're just one of those teams where, we gave away a couple of bad pucks and they put them in the back of our net. If we have better puck management, I think the score is a little different. Credit to U-of-M Dearborn, they capitalized on the couple of small mistakes that we made. Thankfully, we're able to understand those mistakes, decipher them after the game, talk about it, understand the corrections we need to make and get back after it tomorrow."

That's Parker's modus operandi. Win or lose, learn something. Study it. Use those lessons in the next game, start applying them in training. Learn from every game and consistently drive to improve.

Case in point, he was very pleased with how his team handled pressure in their own zone. "I thought the team played really well when we were hemmed up," Parker said. "One thing that I think we struggled with last weekend that we did really well tonight was managing pressure in our own zone. I think we did that really well."

Senior forward Chloe Boyko agreed with her coach's assessment about how the team played in defeat. She said, "I think we played well, we just had some small breakdowns and couldn't capitalize on our opportunities. But overall, we played well and we're ready to come back tomorrow."

Wolverines captain Cadence Pero scored at 2:36 of the second period to open the scoring - a goal that stood as the game-winner. She added an assist on their fourth goal, early in the third period. Zoe Zaifman and Maddison McIndoo struck in the second for UM Dearborn. The game was rough-and-tumble, with both teams refusing to back down from each other, like a pair of prize fighters squaring off.

"I was super happy with the grit," Parker said postgame. "Last weekend, we didn't have a lot of grit .We were able to move the puck around a little easier last weekend. But U-of-M Dearborn's a gritty team. Even in a loss, you look for the wins. One of the big wins was that we did not allow them to push us around in our rink."

There's that growth again. Learn and apply.

Asia Kachuk made 18 saves in net for Lake Superior State, while Kenna Borso stopped 14 shots in a shutout win for the Wolverines. Boyko glowed with praise for her Laker teammate, who's been a longtime friend going back years before they both came to LSSU. "I trust Asia with my life when she's in net," she said, adding that they've played together for around seven years.

The two teams mix it up again on Sunday at 1:00 PM at Taffy Abel Arena in Sault Ste. Marie, MI. Admission to all Laker ACHA men's and women's hockey home games is free. Regardless of individual outcomes, Parker is fired up about how his team looks early in the season and how much they've grown in a week. "I'm super excited, no matter the outcome tonight or tomorrow. I'm confident in our team that we'll be playing the way we need to be playing in March."

Boyko echoed her coach's thoughts. "We had to go out there and work our hardest. All we can do is come back tomorrow and use what we learned today."