Bowling Green State University Athletics
#19 Hockey Heads To The Cheese State For The 2007 Badger Hockey Showdown
December 21, 2007 | Ice Hockey
Dec. 21, 2007
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - The Bowling Green State University hockey team will be in search of having 10 wins going into January for the first time since the 1995-96 season when they head to Madison, Wis. for the 2007 Badger Hockey Showdown. The two-day holiday tournament, hosted by the University of Wisconsin, will kick-off on Fri., Dec. 28th when the 19th-ranked Falcons meet the 11th-ranked Northeastern Huskies in game one at 5:07 p.m. That will be immediately followed by the 13th-ranked Badgers taking on the Colgate Raiders with an 8:07 p.m. face-off. The winners will then square off for the title at 8:07 p.m. on the 29th, while the losers will start the second day with a 5:07 p.m. consolation tilt. A tournament win for the Falcons would be their second in three years after they captured the 2005 UConn Classic in Storrs, Conn., posting a semi-final, 3-2, win over UMass, before downing the host Huskies, 9-2, in the championship contest.
Complete Release in PDF Format (37 Pages)
Game #15
#19 Bowling Green vs. #11 Northeastern
Dec. 28, 2007 • Kohl Center, 5:07 p.m. ET
RECORDS: BGSU 8-6-0, 5-5-0 CCHA // NU 7-4-2, 6-3-1 HE
RADIO:WBGU (88.1): Danny Nieves (Play-by-Play); Tim Baughman (color commentary)
Game #16
#19 Bowling Green vs. Colgate/Wisconsin
Dec. 29, 2007 • Kohl Center, 5:07 or 8:07 p.m. ET
RECORDS: BGSU 8-6-0, 5-5-0 CCHA // COL 7-7-2, 1-3-2 ECAC // WIS 7-7-2, 4-5-1 WCHA
Television: Wisconsin Public Television (Wisconsin only)
RADIO:WBGU (88.1): Danny Nieves (Play-by-Play); Tim Baughman (color commentary)
Radio Broadcast
Friday and Saturday night's action at the Badger Showdown can be heard by tuning into WBGU 88.1 FM. Danny Nieves will be providing all the play-by-play of the action with Tim Baughman providing 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.
Television Broadcast
The games at the Badger Showdown involving Wisconsin will be shown live locally on My Madison TV and tape delayed throughout Wisconsin on Wisconsin Public Television (WPT). Satellite coordinates may be available for highlight purposes. If interested please check with Kevin Shields of the BGSU Athletic Communications Office for further information and coordinates.
LIVE STATS
Live stats for Friday and Saturday's games will be available at www.uwbadgers.com.
THE OPENING FACE-OFF (STORYLINES)
The Stretch Continues
• The Falcons are currently wrapped up in the middle of what could be their most difficult stretch of the 2007-08 schedule. In their last five games, three came to teams currently ranked in national top-10, while there is a chance the Falcons could face as many as seven teams in the top-13 after the next four games. BG is at least guaranteed six with their match-up with 11th-ranked Northeastern and two home contests against top-ranked Miami to start the second-half of the season on Jan. 4th and 5th. The seventh game against a top-13 opponent could only come if BG gets a day two match-up with the 13th-ranked and host, Wisconsin Badgers. This season, the Falcons are 0-4 when facing ranked opponents.
The First Half That Was
• It came as a big surprise to many, but for those involved with the BGSU hockey program, it was no surprise that the Falcons were able to shake-off all the preseason doubts and put together an 8-6-0 record heading into Christmas. The return of 20 letterwinners, coupled with a talented group of newcomers, has made the Falcons a much better team than what their 12th-place prediction in CCHA preseason polls made them out to be. Coming into Madison, the Falcons have already surpassed last season's win total of seven, while they've tied last season's CCHA win total of five. Along with winning eight games, the Falcons also collected three sweeps in the first half, sweeping Western Michigan and Wayne State in a home-and-home series, while earning a road sweep at Ferris State. A big reason behind the success has been the overall balance in scoring they've gotten from each class and the big-time play they've gotten out of their goaltending duo of junior Jimmy Spratt and freshman Nick Eno. The two have combined for a 2.48 goals-against average and .899 save percentage with seven starts between them. BG has also gotten big-time results from both special teams units and increased offensive production from its' defensive core, resulting in the team's best overall start since the 2004-05 season when they started 8-3-2 heading into December and were 8-7-3 at the start of January.
The Madison Ties
• This weekend's trip to Madison may call for some reunion dinners if there were no games being played. Former BGSU assistant coach Kevin Patrick, who helped Falcon head coach Scott Paluch in his first three years at the helm, is now a part of the Wisconsin coaching staff where he is in his third-year as an assistant for UW head coach Mike Eaves. Patrick helped in the recruiting of many of the Falcons' upperclassmen and helped the Falcons improve from 11th in the CCHA in Paluch's first season to fifth in his third season. BG hosted the University of Alaska in the first-round of the 2004-05 CCHA playoffs, marking the first time the Falcons hosted a first round playoff series in over a decade. In his first season in Madison, Patrick helped Eaves and the Badgers to a 30-10-3 record and the 2006 National Championship. Patrick isn't the only tie that coach Paluch has to Madison though, he also coached Eaves' son Ben and helped in the recruiting of Patrick Eaves when he was an associate head coach at Boston College under Jerry York. Ben was a sophomore for the Eagles when BC won the 2002 National Championship, Paluch's last game behind the BC bench before coming back to BG.
A LOOK AT THE FALCONS
• The Falcons of head coach Scott Paluch currently sit at 8-6-0 on the season with a 5-5-0 mark in the CCHA ... The 8-6-0 mark gives them their best start since the 2004-05 season when they started the year 8-3-2 and went into Jan. at 8-7-3 ... The Falcons come into the Badger Showdown having lost two-straight games and three of their last five after losing a tough two-game home-and-home series on Dec. 7th and 8th to the #2 Michigan Wolverines ... a series where the Falcons made two furious comebacks in the second period, but saw the Wolverines find a way to slip past each night for a 4-2 win at BG in game one and a 3-2 win in game two in Ann Arbor, Mich. ... BG held a 2-1 lead in game one late in the third after scoring twice in the second to take the lead, but three Wolverine goals' in the last five minutes of the game would allow UM to steal the victory ... BG then trailed 2-0 the following night going into the second, but got two goals from freshman forward Jacob Cepis to even the game at 2-2 ... however, a late second period power-play goal by Wolverine forward Brandon Naurato would end up being the eventual game-winner as freshman goaltender Nick Eno was saddled with just the second loss of his young career after making 25 saves on 28 shots ... four of the Falcons' six losses on the season have come to teams currently ranked in the national polls ... BG is yet to lose a game decided by more than two goals ... senior forward Derek Whitmore leads the Falcons with a line of 13-5-18, while junior defenseman Kevin Schmidt is second on the team with an accumulated line of 3-11-14 ... Cepis then leads all BG freshmen with 13 points on six goals and seven assists ... In net, BG has gotten seven starts from both junior Jimmy Spratt and Eno as the two have combined for a 2.48 goals-against average and save percentage of .899 ... as a team, BG is averaging 3.1 goals a game and have owned an overall 29.9 to 24.9 advantage in shots on goal, out-shooting their opponent in 9-of-14 games ... they are 5-3-0 on the road this season, 3-3-0 at home and 0-0-0 in neutral site contests as this weekend's games will be their first on neutral ice ... the Falcons came into the season returning 20 letterwinners, including 11 forwards, seven defensemen and two goalies ... they also welcomed in seven newcomers, including five forwards, one defenseman and one goalie ... overall BG returned 73% of their goals from last season and 78% of their points.
A QUICK LOOK AT THE HUSKIES
The Huskies of third-year head coach Greg Cronin currently sit at 7-4-2 overall and 6-3-1 in Hockey East, which has them currently in a first-place tie with New Hampshire ... after going 1-3 in the month of October, the Huskies have gone 6-1-2 in their last nine games, earning them a ranking of 11th in the latest USCHO/CSTV Poll and USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll ... in their last contest back on Dec. 8th, they earned a 1-1 tie at Union after rattling off four-straight wins, which included wins at New Hampshire and an overtime win at Boston College ... their current eight-game unbeaten streak ranks as the second-longest nationally behind Notre Dame's current streak of nine ... NU ranks 31st-nationally in scoring offense with a 2.69 average and is 23rd in scoring defense, allowing just 2.54 goals a game ... The Huskies' power play then ranks 51st-nationally with a conversion percentage of 11.8, while their penalty-kill ranks 22nd, succeeding at a rate of 85.3 ... junior forward Joe Vitale leads NU with 14 points (5-9-14), while his five goals are tied with sophomore forward Randy Guzior and freshman forward Tyler McNeely for the team lead ... leading the defense is junior Denis Chisholm who has a line of 1-5-6 ... in net, sophomore Brad Thiessen has started all 13 games for the Huskies and ranks 28th-nationally in goals-against average at 2.40, while his .914 save percentage ranks 28th.
A QUICK LOOK AT THE BADGERS
The 13th-ranked Badgers of sixth-year head coach Mike Eaves currently sit at 7-7-2 overall and 4-5-1 in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) standings, which has them in a seventh-place tie with St. Cloud State and Minnesota State ... UW enters their tournament having lost five of their last 10 games, including two in a two-game series at Minnesota State back on Dec. 7th and 8th ... of those five losses though, four came to teams currently ranked in national top-10 ... the Badgers rank 10th-nationally in scoring offense at 3.25, while their scoring defense ranks 33rd at 2.81 ... the UW power play then ranks 14th with a 19.0 succession rate, while their penalty-kill ranks 36th, succeeding at a rate of 83.1 ... freshman forward Kyle Turris, one of the top picks in this past summer's NHL Entry Draft, leads the Badgers with 19 points (7-12-19), while his seven goals are tied with junior forward Ben Street for the team lead ... leading the nation's top scoring defensive core then is sophomore Jamie McBain who has totals of 2-8-10 ... in net, UW has been led by junior Shane Connelly, who has started 14 of the Badgers 16 games and ranks 45th-nationally in goals-against average at 2.70, while his save percentage ranks 44th at .906.
A QUICK LOOK AT THE RAIDERS
The Raiders of 15-year head coach Don Vaughan currently sit at 7-7-2 overall with a 1-3-2 record in ECAC play, which has them currently tied for last in the league's 11th-spot with Union College ... the Raiders however, haven't played like a last place team as they come into Madison winners of four of their last five games with a 4-1-1 record in their last six contests ... in their two previous games leading up to the Showdown on Dec. 1st and 2nd, the Raiders earned a two-game home sweep over Robert Morris, collecting a 4-3 win in game one and a 5-0 win in game two ... they're scoring offense currently ranks 19th-nationally with a 2.94 goals a game average, while their scoring defense ranks tied for 29th at 2.62 ... the Raider power play then ranks 56th with a 10.1 conversion rate, while their penalty-kill is 40th, succeeding at a rate of 82.6 ... senior centermen Tyler Burton and Jesse Winchester lead the team with totals of 7-10-17 and 4-13-17 respectively ... on defense, junior Mark Anderson leads the defensive core with an accumulated line of 1-4-5 ... in net, senior Mark Dekanich has a 7-4-2 record in 14 games with one shutout, a goals-against average of 2.33 and a save percentage of .921, which ranks 23rd-nationally.
OPPONENT SERIES HISTORIES
Colgate: The Falcons and Raiders have met on six occasions since their first meeting on Jan. 18, 1974 ... BG is an unbeaten 5-0-1 all-time versus the Raiders ... two seasons ago, the Falcons earned a 4-0 win over the Raiders at the BGSU Ice Arena, as senior goaltender Jon Horrell earned his first of two shutouts on the season making 22 saves ... former BGSU assistant coach Ron Fogarty (current head coach at Adrian College) played for the Raiders (1991-95) and captained the squad his senior season as he ended his Raider career with 141 points (51-90-141) in a school-record 135 games dressed.
Northeastern: Friday's meeting between the Falcons and Huskies will be just the ninth between the two programs ... NU holds a 4-2-2 advantage in the first eight tilts between them ... the Falcons however, are 1-0-1 against the Huskies on neutral ice with both those contests coming in in-season tournaments with the last coming in 1994 where the Falcons won the Bank One Consolation game over the Huskies by a 7-4 score ... the teams last met on Oct. 16, 1999 when the Huskies beat the Falcons, 4-1, in the Falcons second-consecutive night in Boston, Mass. after falling to Boston College, 5-2, the night before.
Wisconsin: The Falcons and Badgers, two of college hockey's more historic programs, have met just six times in their illustrious history ... UW owns a 4-1-1 record in the all-time series ... the two last met in the semi-finals of the Bank One Tournament back in 1994-95 where the Badgers came away with a 4-3 win in double overtime ... BG's lone win in the series history came in 1978 when the Falcons beat the Badgers 4-3 in the 1978 NCAA consolation game, earning them third-place in the national tournament.
TOURNAMENT RELATINGS
As mentioned before in the opening face-off storylines, there are quite a few ties between the Falcons and their hosts, the Wisconsin Badgers ... first off, former BGSU assistant coach, Kevin Patrick, is now a member of the UW coaching staff under head coach Mike Eaves ... Patrick came to BG in 2002 and spent three seasons with the Falcons, the first of Scott Paluch's tenure, where he along with current Adrian College [Mich.] head coach Ron Fogarty, helped them go from 11th to ninth to fifth in the CCHA standings ... they hosted their first home league playoff series in over a decade during the 2004-05 campaign ... another tie between the two programs is the one that exists between the two bench bosses ... Falcon head coach Scott Paluch was part of the Boston College coaching staff prior to being the first former Falcon player to come back and coach his alma mater in 2002 ... during his time as associate head coach for Jerry York and the Eagles (1995-2002), Paluch helped recruit and coach UW coach Mike Eaves' son Ben and played a key part in the recruiting of younger brother Patrick, who now plays for the NHL's Ottawa Senators ... aside from the hockey ties between the two schools, the Falcons and Badgers have also met twice in the last three seasons on the college football gridiron ... the first meeting came at Camp Randall Stadium in 2005 (56-42 UW win) with the second coming in 2006 at Cleveland Browns Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio (35-14 UW win).
COMMON OPPONENTS
BGSU and two of their opponents in the 2007 Badger Hockey Showdown will play a number of common opponents this season ... though the Falcons and Northeastern will be the only common opponent the two play this season, the Falcons and Colgate, along with Wisconsin share similar opponents ... the Raiders played RIT and Michigan State in back-to-back weekends to begin their seaosn, while the Badgers are already 1-2-1 this season against CCHA opponents ... UW collected a season-opening win over Notre Dame (4-1), but fell to Ohio State (5-3) and Michigan (3-2), before finally tying Michigan State (4-4).
THE FALCONS IN-SEASON TOURNAMENT HISTORY
• In overall in-season tournament action, BG owns an overall record of 36-39-3 over the now 39-year history of the program.
• The Falcons have appeared in 15 in-season tournament championship games and have won eight tournament championships with the most coming in the old Syracuse Invitational, which they won on two occasions (86-87, 88-89).
• BG's last in-season tournament championship came during the 2005-06 season when they captured the UConn Classic, beating UMass, 3-2, in the semi-finals before destroying the host Huskies, 9-2, in the championship tilt.
• BG has also won a tournament consolation contest on five occasions with their last coming during the 1999-2000 season when they beat Union, 5-4, in overtime to take third at the RPI/HSBC Tournament.
IN EIGHT FALCON WINS THIS SEASON ...
• BGSU has averaged 4.4 goals a game, while giving up an average of 2.1.
• BGSU out-shot their opponents by a 31.9 to 23.8 average.
• BGSU was a combined 19-for-51 on the power play (.373), while they held opponents to just 8-for-48 (.167).
• BGSU had an average of 18.5 penalty minutes per game, while their opponent averaged 21.0.
• BGSU out-scored their opponents, 12-2, in the first period, 13-8, in the second and 8-7 in the third.
• BGSU won 56.8% of their faceoffs.
• Derek Whitmore scored 13 points (11-2-13) and had eight power-play goals.
• Jimmy Spratt had a 1.95 goals-against average and a .920 save percentage.
• Nick Eno had a 2.19 goals-against average and .904 save percentage.
• James Perkin and Jacob Cepis both had 10 points respectively.
• Tim Maxwell tallied a point, as the Falcons are a perfect 8-0-0 when he does.
IN SIX FALCON LOSSES THIS SEASON ...
• BGSU averaged 1.5 goals a game, while giving up an average of 3.0.
• BGSU out-shot their opponents by a 27.2 to 26.3 margin.
• BGSU was a combined 3-for-36 on the power play (.083), while their opponents were 5-for-30 (.167).
• BGSU averaged 13.8 penalty minutes a game, while their opponent averaged 14.0.
• BGSU won 50.4% of their faceoffs.
• BGSU was out-scored by their opponent, 6-3 in the first period and 7-1 in the third period.
• Derek Whitmore and Kevin Schmidt combined for just 10 points (3-7-10).
