Hockey Hosts Windsor Friday In Exhibition Play

Oct. 9, 2007

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - The Bowling Green State University hockey team will play host to the University of Windor this Friday (Oct. 12) in their lone exhibition contest of the preseason before they begin their 2007-08 campaign next week. Face-off for the game is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. Following their exhibition game with the Lancers, the Falcons will head to New York to open their season with games at Niagara (Oct. 18) and RIT (Oct. 19).

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Exhibition
Windsor at Bowling Green

Oct. 12, 2007  BGSU Ice Arena, 7:05 p.m.

RECORDS: BGSU 0-0, 0-0 CCHA // Windsor 0-0
TELEVISION:BCSN (Tape Delay)
RADIO:WBGU (88.1): Danny Nieves (Play-by-Play) and Bob Mills (Analyst)

Radio Broadcast
Friday's action from the BGSU Ice Arena can be heard on WBGU 88.1 FM. Danny Nieves will be providing the play-by-play of the action and will be joined by Bob Mills doing the color commentary. A pregame show will air 30 minutes prior to the opening face-off. The broadcast can be heard locally on WBGU 88.1 FM and globally on both www.bgsufalcons.com and www.bgrso.org.
Live Stats
Live stats for Friday's game will be available at www.bgsufalcons.com via gametracker, which can be found on the team's schedule page.
Falcon Quick Hits  The Falcons have outscored Windsor 14-2 in their last two meetings, as they've won the exhibition match 7-1 on both occasions.
 Senior forward Derek Whitmore (3g, 1a) and junior forward Brandon Svendson (1g, 3a) lead all Falcon scorers against Windsor, as each of the two have tallied four points.
 BG finished 4-10-2 at home last season and are 33-42-11 at home the past five seasons at home under head coach Scott Paluch. (Doesn't include eshibition games)
 Under Scott Paluch, the Falcons are 9-5-1 in their first two weekends of the season, which includes the exhibition contest and the opening weekend. Last season BG went 2-0-1, as they collected wins over Windsor (7-1) and UConn (2-1 OT) in their season-opener, before tying Alabama-Huntsville (5-5).
 In his last seven games going back to last season, senior forward Derek Whitmore has scored nine points (7-2--9), which included goals in both games of the CCHA playoffs.
 Whitmore finished 38th in the league last year in scoring with 29 points (19g, 10a) and is tied for 20th among those returning this season. He is also tied for sixth in the CCHA among those returning in goals (19).
 Senior forward and tri-captain John Mazzei is coming off a career-game that saw him record three assists in one period in the final game of the CCHA playoffs against Nebraska-Omaha. Those three assists were a new single-game high for the Kelowna, B.C. native and tied a CCHA playoff record for most assists in one period.
 Senior defenseman Mike Nesdill, the leading defensive scorer last season, also had a big game to close out last season as the Phoenix, Ariz. native tallied two helpers on what was a career night for outgoing senior forward James Unger who scored four of the five Falcon goals in the contest.
 In the annual Falcon "Face-off" Team White defeated Team Orange, 5-4. It was a game that saw a total of 17 points tallied with six of the 17 points coming from the freshmen class, as freshmen forwards Jacob Cepis (0-2--2), Dan Sexton (1-1--2) and David Solway (1-1--2) all collected two points in the contest. Also collecting two points were sophomore forward Josh Boyd (0-2--2) and junior defenseman Kevin Schmidt (1-1--2).
 Junior defenseman Russ Sinkewich was crowned the "fastest skater" this past Saturday as he defeated sophomore forward Kai Kantola in the Fastest Skater competition during the intermission of the Falcon "Face-off".
 Falcon freshmen Dan Sexton and David Solway both have some interesting ties to professional sports, aside from their ties to each other on the ice. Not only did the duo help lead Sioux Falls of the USHL to the Clark Cup championship last season, but they have family or friends that have made themselves popular in the world of professional sports. In Sexton's case, his twin brother Joe, has made his name as a professional snowboarder. In Solway's case and his family's, they have found themselves visiting the Favre family in Green Bay on quite a regular basis, as the elder Solway is one of Brett Farve's best friends in the Green Bay area.
What's Returning to the 2007-08 squad? The Falcons return 20 players from last season, including eight of their top-10 scorers. Leading the group is senior forward and tri-captain Derek Whitmore, who finished last season with 29 points (19g, 10a), including a team-best 19 goals. Whitmore has increased his goal production each season he's played for the Falcons, going from 11 in his freshman campaign to 13 in his sophomore season to 19 a season ago, as he has become one of the premier players in the CCHA. Joining Whitmore up front will be returning forwards Tomas Petruska (8-9--17), Todd McIlrath (5-10--15), Brandon Svendson (6-8--14), Kai Kantola (5-6--11) and John Mazzei (2-9--11), who all finished in the top-10 on the team last season in points.
On the blue-line, the Falcons will return all, but one (Jeremy Bronson) defenseman from last season. Senior rearguard Mike Nesdill returns after leading all BG defensemen last season with 11 points (1g, 10a). Joining Nesdill in the defensive core will be Tim Maxwell (0-11--11), Kevin Schmidt (3-6--9), Michael Hodgson (1-6--7), Kyle Page (0-5--5), Russ Sinkewich (0-2--2) and Brian Moore.
A look at the Goaltending One of the Falcons' biggest returnees in 2007 is junior goaltender Jimmy Spratt, who was named the team's Most Improved Player last season after being the squad's main workhorse in net. The Chesterfield, Mich. native dropped his goals-against average (3.64) and raised his save percentage (.886) last season, as he played in 31 games and got the starting nod in 30. His 817 saves ranked fifth in the CCHA, as he averaged just a little over 26 saves a game.
Joining Spratt in net this season will be returning sophomore Phil Greer and freshman Nick Eno. Greer who saw limited action in his freshman season, had a 4.07 GAA and .875 SV% for the Sante Fe Roadrunners of the NAHL prior to his first season with the Falcons. Eno, a 2007 draft pick of the Buffalo Sabres (#187 overall) is a 6-foot-3-inch, 190-pound goaltender who comes to BG after competing with Green Mountain of the EJHL last season where he finished in the top-10 in the leauge in both goals-against average (3.60) and save percentage (.902).
What was lost? Despite having eight of their top-10 scorers returning this season, the Falcons lost one of the CCHA's top players in forward Jonathan Matsumoto, who signed a contract with the Philadelphia Flyers during the off-season. Matsumoto, who would have been a senior for the Falcons in 2007, recorded a team-high 33 points (11a, 22a) last season, ending his Falcon career tied for 62nd on the all-time scoring list with 103 career points. BG also had to say goodbye to forwards James Unger (7g, 3a) and Rich Meloche (2g, 0a), along with defensman Jeremy Bronson, who despite scoring limited points in his Falcon career became a key part of the BG defense, as he played in 32 games a season ago.
Reirden returns Home To Form First All-Alumni Coaching Staff With the hiring of Todd Reirden as the new assistant coach this summer, the 2007-08 season will mark the first time in the now 38-year history of the Falcon hockey program that BG will be lead by three former players. Reirden, who played for the orange and brown from 1990-94 as a forward and defenseman, joins head coach Scott Paluch (1984-88) and assistant coach Doug Schueller (1997-2001) to form the first all-alumni coaching staff made up of former Falcons.
In his four-year BG career, Reirden recorded 76 points (24g, 52a) in 140 career games as a defenseman. He would go on to enjoy a professional hockey career that spanned 13 years and included stops with the Edmonton Oilers, St. Louis Blues, Anaheim Ducks, Atlanta Thrashers and Phoenix Coyotes. In 183 career NHL games, the Deerfield, Ill. native tallied 11 goals and 35 assists.
Other Tidbits Related to Reirden's return  Reirden is just 1-of-21 Division I college hockey coaches (212 total, which includes head coaches, assistants, volunteers, etc.) to have played in an NHL contest.  Reirden is 1-of-4 coaches in the CCHA to have played in the NHL.  Of 41CCHA coaches only Reirden and Michigan head coach Red Berenson have played in 100 or more NHL contests.  Only 12 coaches in Division I hockey in total have played in 100 or more NHL games (other notables: Ted Donato, head coach at Harvard; Mike Richter, assistant coach at Yale; Shawn McEachern, assistant coach at Northeastern; Tom Fitzgerald, assistant coach at UMass-Lowell; Randy McKay, volunteer coach at Michigan Tech)
Former Falcon Net-minder Will Serve as Goaltending coach On Sept. 20th, Bowling Green State University head coach Scott Paluch announced that former Falcon-star Tyler Masters would be joining the Falcon hockey staff. Masters, who played for the orange and brown from 1999-2003, will serve as a volunteer coach and goalie coach, as he adds a fourth BG alum to the all-alumni staff.
Prior to BGSU, Masters played four seasons of professional hockey, which included stops in both the ECHL and UHL.
In his final professional season, Masters played in 36 games for the Fort Wayne Komets of the UHL where he posted a 20-12-2 record. He recorded four shutouts and posted a 2.68 goals-against average with a save percentage of .903. He ended the season with the Richmond Riverdogs where he played two games in net.
The Calgary, Alberta native earned a professional career after playing four seasons for the Falcons, ending his collegiate career ranking second in school history for games played by a goaltender (114). Masters also ranks second on the BG list for career saves (3,286) and career goals-against average (3.11), while his .906 save percentage ranks third.
Masters recorded seven shutouts in his Falcon career, which is still ranks tops on the all-time school list.
Senior-Trio To serve as Falcon Captains in 2007-08 For the first time since the 2004-05 season, the Falcon hockey team will be led in 2007 by a group of tri-captains. Falcon seniors Michael Hodgson, John Mazzei and Derek Whitmore will all don the captain's "C", as they become the first group of tri-captains since seniors Ryan Minnabarriet, Alex Rogosheske and Jordan Sigalet shared the honors during the 2004-05 campaign.
Hodgson, who last season became the first junior captain since D'Arcy McConvey (2002-03), will captain the Falcons for the second-straight season. This past season, the Surfside, Calif. native played in 35 games for BG, tallying a goal and six assists, as he helped anchor the Falcon blue-line. The senior defenseman tied a career game-high with three assists in a 4-2 BG win at Providence College on Oct. 20. His 20 blocked shots were tied for the third-best on the squad.
Mazzei, an assistant captain last season, played in 36 games for BG finishing his year with 11 points (2g, 9a). The Kelowna, B.C. native was sixth on the team with 16 blocked shots and tied a Central Collegiate Hockey Association playoff record with three assists in one period in the second game against Nebraska-Omaha. The three assists were also a new career game-high for the senior forward.
Whitmore, who last season became one of the premier offensive forces in the CCHA, played in all 38 games for the Falcons where he notched a career-high 29 points (19g, 10a). The native of Rochester, N.Y. set career-highs in both goals and assists, as he tallied six power-play goals and recorded the game-winning goal on two occasions. The senior forward notched BG's lone short-handed tally of the season against Ohio State (Nov. 17) and earned CCHA Offensive Player of the Week honors for the first time in his career after a four-point weekend against Michigan State (Feb. 23/24).
Whitmore also tied a career game-high with three points on three separate occasions and had three multiple-goal games.
Falcons picked 12th in the CCHA
Both the coaches and media members of the CCHA picked the Falcons to finish 12th in their annual preseason polls.
Preseason Coaches Poll 1. Miami (5) 114 2. Michigan State (6) 113 3. Notre Dame (1) 105 4. Michigan 92 5. Ohio State 77 6. Nebraska-Omaha 68 7. Lake Superior State 52 8. Northern Michigan 48 9. Ferris State 44 10. Western Michigan 41 11. Alaska 25 12. Bowling Green 13
Preseason Media Poll 1. Michigan State (25) 701 2. Miami (21) 667 3. Notre Dame (13) 656 4. Michigan (4) 596 5. Ohio State 414 6. Nebraska-Omaha 412 7. Western Michigan 352 8. Ferris State 279 9. Lake Superior State 270 10. Northern Michigan 248 11. Alaska 212 12. Bowling Green 108
Cepis ranked in the Top 20 incoming freshmen forwards
Incoming freshman forward Jacob Cepis was ranked among the top 20 incoming freshmen forwards in the nation, according to InsideCollegeHockey.com. The website which ranked the nation's top freshmen classes, as well as the top incoming individuals for each unit, compiled its 2007-08 rankings with extensive input from college and junior coaches, as well as professional scouts.
Cepis, a Parma, Ohio native, was ranked 16th as the list featured seven total Central Collegiate Hockey Association forwards. Michigan's Max Pacioretty was the top-ranking incoming CCHA forward as he was ranked sixth with two other incoming Wolverine forwards making the list. Wisconsin's Kyle Turris, the third overall pick of the 2007 National Hockey League Entry Draft by Phoenix, was the top-ranking incoming forward.
Cepis comes to BGSU after spending the past two seasons competing with Cedar Rapids of the United States Hockey League (USHL). This past season, the 5-foot-8-inch, 165-pound forward served as an assistant captain for the RoughRiders where he received First Team All-USHL honors and was selected to the 2006 USHL All-Star game.
Cepis led the USHL with 34 goals scored this past season, finishing third in the league in points with 72 (34g, 38a). He finished the season with 10 power-play, two short-handed and four game-winning goals with a plus-18 rating for the season. In the 2007 USHL playoffs, he tallied eight points (5g, 3a) in six playoff games.
Cepis becomes yet another highly-touted Falcon player from the greater Cleveland area, which includes three Falcons that have gone on to play in the NHL. Former Falcons and NHL players Aris Brimanis (Shaker Heights, Ohio), Brett Harkins (Cleveland, Ohio) and Hobey Baker Award honoree Brian Holzinger (Parma, Ohio) are all Cleveland players that donned the orange and brown in their college days.
Kantola ranked by Hockey Future's
Kai Kantola, who completed his first year with the Falcon hockey team this past season, was ranked the 19th best NCAA prospect by hockeysfuture.com prior to the National Hockey League Entry Draft this summer.
Kantola played in 36 games as a freshman, finishing with 11 points (5g, 6a). He finished in a tie for third on the team with three power-play goals, and had a career night with three assists in a 5-1 win over Western Michigan.