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Bowling Green State University Athletics
Falcon Hockey Returns Home For Two-Game Set With The Nanooks Of Alaska
February 05, 2008 | Ice Hockey
Feb. 5, 2008
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - The Bowling Green State University hockey team will return home to the BGSU Ice Arena this weekend when they do battle with seventh-place Alaska in yet another critical CCHA series. The Falcons who currently sit in sixth-place in the league standings, stand just one point behind fifth-place Nebraska-Omaha, but are just three points ahead of the Nanooks who are in a two-way tie for seventh with Ferris State as 16 points remain up for grabs. BG comes into the series off a split this past weekend at Ohio State that saw them earn their 13th win of the season as they sit just one win away from having their best record since 2004-05 when they won 16 games. The Falcons and Nanooks will start their big series with a 7:05 p.m. faceoff on Friday, before they conclude their series Saturday with first puck scheduled to drop also at 7:05 p.m.
Complete Release in PDF Format (43 Pages)
Games #27-28
Alaska at Bowling Green
Feb. 8-9, 2008 • BGSU Ice Arena, 7:05 p.m.
Television: BCSN: Greg Franke (play-by-play), Buddy Powers (color commentary)RECORDS: BGSU 13-13-0, 10-10-0 CCHA // UA 7-15-4, 7-12-3 CCHA
RADIO:WBGU (88.1): Danny Nieves (Play-by-Play)
RADIO BROADCAST
Friday and Saturday night's action between the Falcons and Nanooks can be heard by tuning into WBGU 88.1 FM. Danny Nieves will be providing all the play-by-play of the action. 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
Friday and Saturday's action at the BGSU Ice Arena between the Falcons and the Nanooks can be seen by tuning into BCSN. Greg Franke will be providing the play-by-play of the action with former Falcon hockey coach Buddy Powers doing the color commentary. The games will be shown live both nights. Friday's game will be re-aired at 12 p.m. on Saturday, while Saturday's will air again at 6 a.m. on Sunday and at 1 a.m. early Monday morning.
LIVE STATS
Live stats for Friday and Saturday's games will be available at www.bgsufalcons.com via gametracker, which can be found on the team's schedule page.
THE OPENING FACEOFF (STORYLINES)
A Player of the Week Showcase
• This weekend's series between the Falcons and Nanooks will feature three of the four reigning CCHA Players of the Week as they were all announced on Monday by the league office. BG's freshman forward Jacob Cepis earned CCHA Rookie of the Week honors for the second time in his career this week, while UA's junior rearguard T.J. Campbell was named CCHA Defensive Player of the Week and senior goaltender Wylie Rogers was named Goaltender of the Week. Cepis recorded three points this past weekend and finished with a plus-2 rating as all his points came in Friday's 5-2 win at Ohio State. The effort tied a career single-game high for points and goals as he had two goals and an assist. Campbell, who had a goal and two assists this past weekend, helped Alaska to its' first two-game sweep of the season with a pair of 3-2 home wins over Western Michigan. Campbell's effort was backstopped by Rogers, who made 75 saves on 79 shots, including a 43-save effort in last Saturday's series finale.
Eno Becoming One Of The Nation's Top Young Goaltenders
• This past weekend saw a big-time performance from a big-time freshman goaltender. BG freshman goaltender Nick Eno made 79 saves on 85 Ohio State shots as he backstopped the Falcons to a road split with the Buckeyes, making 39 stops on 41 shots on Friday in BG's 5-2 win and 40 stops on 44 chances the following night. Each night saw the Howell, Mich. native set a new career-high for saves in a game as he completed the weekend with a combined save percentage of .929. Eno is currently 9-5-0 in his rookie season and carries a 2.65 goals-against average and a .907 save percentage. The rookie has helped the Falcons to six road victories this season as his .643 winning percentage second-nationally amongst rookies to Colorado College's Richard Bachman (.804). Overall in the CCHA, Eno's goals-against average is second amongst rookies to Ferris State's Pat Nagle (2.61), while he is tops in save percentage. His nine wins are the most by a Falcon freshman netminder since his goaltending coach, Tyler Masters, posted 13 wins in his rookie season during the 1999-2000 campaign.
Eight Games And Counting
• This weekend's games between BG and Alaska will mark the first two of eight pivotal games remaining in the Falcons' regular-season. Of the eight games remaining for BG, six will be against teams they are currently battling for home ice position with for the first round of the CCHA playoffs. The Nanooks who visit the Ice Arena this weeekend, currently sit just three points back of the Falcons in seventh-place, which at the moment is also eighth-place as Ferris State is also in seventh at the moment with 17 league points. After the Falcons battle fifth-place Nebraska-Omaha next weekend in Omaha, a team that is just a point ahead of BG with 21 league points, the Falcons will welcome to town Ferris State for their final home series of the season. With that said, the next weeks will prove to be critical as looming on the horizon is Michigan State, the defending National Champions, who the Falcons will meet in their final league series of the season. Below is a look at the positioning as of now for seeds 5-8 in the first round.
Seed Team Points League Games Remaining (Opponents Left)
5 Nebraska-Omaha 21 6 (Ohio State, Bowling Green, at NMU)
6 Bowling Green 20 8 (Alaska, at UNO, Ferris State, at MSU, MSU)
7-8 Alaska 17 6 (at Bowling Green, Notre Dame, at LSSU)
7-8 Ferris State 17 8 (at Notre Dame, Miami, at BG, at UM, UM)
9 Northern Michigan 16 8 (MSU, at Ohio State, UNO, at LSSU, LSSU)
10 Ohio State 11 8 (at UNO, NMU, at ND, Miami, at Miami)
A FALCON VICTORY OR LOSS WOULD ...
VICTORY
• Would give BG its' 14th victory of the season, which would be their best win total since the 2004-05 campaign when they won 16 games.
• Would give the Falcons their first win over the Nanooks in three games.
• Would give BG a winning home record at 6-5.
• Would give the Falcons their first chance to sweep Alaska since January of 2005 when they swept them in back-to-back games at the BGSU Ice Arena.
• Would give Scott Paluch his fifth career win against the Nanooks.
• Could possibly clinch an 11th-place or higher finish for the Falcons for the first time in two seasons.
LOSS
• Would be their third-straight game without a win in the series.
• Would be just the second time this season that BG was under .500 in the CCHA since their league-opening loss to Notre Dame.
• Would move Alaska to within one point of BG for sixth-place in the league standings.
• Could possibly put the Falcons just two points away from being on the road in the first round of the playoffs.
WHERE WHITMORE GOES...SO DO THE FALCONS
The 2007-08 campaign has been one to remember for senior forward and tri-captain Derek Whitmore. The Rochester, N.Y. native has tallied a national-leading three hat tricks and is closing in on some of BG's career scoring lists. With just four more goals this season he will enter the top-20 list for career goals in a Falcon uniform and with just eight more points, he'll become the 69th player in school history to eclipse the 100-point barrier. Here are some tidbits related to the Hobey Baker and All-American candidate.
• Leads the team with 26 points (21-5-26), which is just three points shy of his career single-season point total of 29, set last season.
• Been named the CCHA Offensive Player of the Week twice this season (Nov. 12, Jan. 21).
• His three hat tricks put him just two shy of the single-season school record of five set by Bob Dobek in the 1973-74 season.
• Tied for sixth-nationally with four game-winning goals and tied for fifth in the CCHA. Ranks tied for first in game-winning goals in CCHA games only with all four winning lamp lighters coming in league play.
• Leads the nation and CCHA with a 0.84 goals per game average.
• Scored 18 of his 21 goals this season in Falcon wins where he has picked up 20 of his 26 points.
• When he tallies a multiple-point effort in his Falcon career, BG is 15-6-1, while they are 30-25-4 when he tallies a single point.
• Tallied 16 of his 21 goals this season in the first and third periods and had 14 lamp lighters in road contests.
RIDING THE "ROAD" TO SUCCESS
Being able to win on the road is a big key to having success and the road has been a friendly place this season to the BGSU hockey team. The Falcons are 8-7-0 this season away from the BGSU Ice Arena, which currently ranks tied for the fourth-best road win total in the CCHA and is tied for the fifth-best road win total in the nation. Only 17 teams in Division I hockey have a winning or .500 home record and road record and BG is one of those teams as they are also 5-5-0 at home. The eight road wins are tied for most the Falcons have had in a regular-season under sixth-year head coach Scott Paluch as the 2004-05 squad also won eight road tilts. That total is also tied for the second-most the program has had since the 1995-96 season when they had nine. The team mark of 13 regular-season road wins was set in 1986-87 when Paluch was a junior defenseman.
A LOOK AT THE FALCONS
The Falcons of sixth-year head coach Scott Paluch currently sit at 13-13-0 overall with a 10-10-0 mark in the CCHA, which currently has them in sixth-place, one point behind Nebraska-Omaha in fifth ... they are 8-7-0 on the road this season, 5-5-0 at home and 0-1-0 in neutral site contests ... BG comes into the weekend 5-5 in their last 10 games ... overall on the season, nine of the Falcons' 13 losses came to ranked opponents as they are 1-9 against ranked opponents and 12-4 against non-ranked foes ... the Falcons however, have only lost four games all season decided by three goals or more ... leading the way for the Falcons in the scoring column is senior forward Derek Whitmore (21-5-26), while freshman forward Jacob Cepis sits just three points back with a line of 12-11-21 ... Whitmore leads the team with 21 goals scored, while Cepis is second on the team with 12 ... on the blue line, the Falcons are led by junior defenseman Kevin Schmidt who has 20 points this season on four goals and 16 assists ... senior defenseman Mike Nesdill has 14 points, while junior Tim Maxwell has 13 ... in net, BG has gotten 12 starts from junior goaltender Jimmy Spratt and 13 from freshman Nick Eno as the two have combined for a 2.87 goals-against average and a .894 save percentage ... against non-ranked opponents though, the duo has combined for a 2.42 GAA and a .909 save percentage ... 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 LOOK AT THE NANOOKS
The Nanooks of first-year head coach Doc DelCastillo currently have a record of 7-15-4 and a 7-12-3 mark in the CCHA ... UA is just three points behind the Falcons in seventh-place in the league as they are tied with Ferris State who also has 17 CCHA points ... they are 3-7-2 on the road this season, 4-8-2 at home and 0-0-0 in neutral site contests ... the Nanooks come into the weekend series fresh off their first two-game sweep of the season at home against Western Michigan where they recorded back-to-back 3-2 victories ... they were led on the weekend by senior defenseman T.J. Campbell (1-2-3) and freshman forward Dustin Sather (0-3-3) who each had three points ... freshman forward Landon Novtotney had a series-best two goals for the Nanooks then, while senior goaltender Wylie Rogers stopped 75-of-79 shots on the weekend, including a 43-of-45 effort in the series finale ... Campbell was named CCHA Defensive Player of the Week for his efforts, while Rogers was named CCHA Goaltender of the Week ... the Nanooks were 0-for-9 on the power play for the weekend and were 8-for-10 on the penalty-kill ... over the last four games the UA power play has gone 2-for-25 (8%), while over the course of the last 10, they are 5-for-50 (10%) ... UA is led up front by sophomore centerman Dion Knelsen who has 24 points on nine goals and 15 assists ... Novtotney leads the Nanooks with 12 goals scored with Knelsen behind him with his nine ... on the blue line, UA is led by junior defenseman Tyler Eckford, a second team All-CCHA pick in the preseason, who has 25 points this season on six goals and 19 assists ... Eckford leads the nation in points per game by a defenseman with a 0.96 average as he is the CCHA's top-scoring defenseman ... in net, the Nanooks have been led by Rogers who carries a 7-10-4 record this season with a 2.69 goals-against average and a .916 save percentage ... his one shutout on the year came in a 3-0 win at top-ranked Miami where he stopped 32 RedHawk shots ... UA has a combined goals-against average of 3.02 and a save percentage of .906 ... the Nanooks have scored a CCHA-low 15 goals this season in the second period, but have only allowed 16 first period markers, which ranks second in the CCHA behind Michigan ... they are 4-5-1 in their last 10 contests.
THE ALASKA SERIES
This weekend's meetings between the Falcons and Nanooks will be the 39th and 40th meetings all-time between the two squads ... UA leads the all-time series 18-16-4, but BG is ahead 9-7-2 in all-time meetings at the BGSU Ice Arena ... last season the Nanooks won the season series 2-1-1 as they the teams split in Alaska in December with the Falcons losing game one 4-3, before stealing a 6-4 win in game two ... the two clustermates later met then in BG with the Nanooks taking a 5-2 win in game one, before the teams skated to a 2-2 tie the following night ... Falcon senior forward Derek Whitmore, leads all BG scorers against UA with seven points (3-4-7), while senior defensemen Michael Hodgson and Mike Nesdill each have five ... the Nanooks are 16-12-4 against BG since joining the CCHA back in 1992.
TIDBITS RELATED TO THE ALASKA SERIES
• BG has beaten Alaska just once when scoring less than four goals, which back in November of 1992 when they beat the Nanooks 3-2 at the Great Alaskan Faceoff.
• Overall in the series, the Falcons are 1-15-3 when scoring three goals or less, 2-1-1 when scoring four goals and 13-2 when scoring five or more goals.
• The Falcons hosted the Nanooks in the first round of the playoffs three seasons ago in their first home playoff series in over a decade. UA won 6-3 on two-straight nights however, to steal the series as they were then backstopped by freshman goaltender Wylie Rogers. Nanook forward Ryan McLeod's goals five seconds and 13 seconds into game one are still the fastest two goals in CCHA Tournament history by a single player.
• BG is 3-6-1 against Alaska in the last 10 meetings and 1-6-1 in the last eight.
• Current Alaska forward Ryan Hohl, transferred to Alaska this season from Bowling Green where he redshirted last season. Hohl has two assists in nine games played for the Nanooks this season.
LAST TIME OUT ...
This past weekend, the Falcons earned a split at Ohio State, winning 5-2 on Friday and losing 4-2 on Saturday. Freshman goaltender Nick Eno made 79 total saves on 85 OSU shots for the weekend, setting a new career-best each evening. On Friday his 39 saves on 41 shots were helped out by a three-point performance from freshman forward Jacob Cepis as he and senior forward Derek Whitmore both had a game-high two goals. Saturday, Eno made 40 saves on 44 shots, but two late goals by OSU freshman forward Peter Boyd were the difference. BG was held scoreless on the power play on the weekend going 0-for-11, but were 6-for-7 on the penalty-kill.
IN THIRTEEN FALCON WINS THIS SEASON ...
• BGSU has averaged 4.2 goals a game, while giving up an average of 1.9.
• BGSU out-shot their opponents by a 32.6 to 26.2 average.
• BGSU was a combined 20-for-81 on the power play (24.7%), while they held opponents to just 11-for-70 (15.7%).
• BGSU had an average of 22.9 penalty minutes per game, while their opponent averaged 26.9.
• BGSU out-scored their opponents, 18-4, in the first period, 18-11 in the second and 15-10 in the third.
• BGSU won 56.9% of their faceoffs.
• Derek Whitmore scored 20 points (18-2-20) and had eight power-play goals.
• Jacob Cepis had 17 points (9-8-17) and two power-play tallies.
• James Perkin scored 14 points (6-8-14).
• Kevin Schmidt had three goals and 11 assists.
• Jimmy Spratt had a 1.96 goals-against average and a .922 save percentage.
• Nick Eno had a 1.88 goals-against average and .929 save percentage.
• Jacob Cepis, Todd McIlrath, Tim Maxwell, James Perkin, Kevin Schmidt and Derek Whitmore were a combined +55.
• The Falcon freshmen were a combined +25.
• BG had 121 recorded blocked shots.
• The Falcon goaltenders allowed just 13 even strength goals of the 25 they allowed in the 13 games.
IN THIRTEEN FALCON LOSSES THIS SEASON ...
• BGSU averaged 1.7 goals a game, while giving up an average of 3.8.
• BGSU was out-shot by their opponents by a 28.5 to 26.5 average.
• BGSU was a combined 6-for-72 on the power play (8.3%), while their opponents were 13-for-62 (21.0%).
• BGSU averaged 18.7 penalty minutes a game, while their opponent averaged 18.2.
• BGSU won 50.2% of their faceoffs.
• BGSU was out-scored by their opponent, 17-8 in the first period, 15-11 in the second and 18-3 in the third period.
• Derek Whitmore, Jacob Cepis, Kevin Schmid and James Perkin combined for just 24 points (8-16-24).
• BG surrendered three short-handed goals and tallied two short-handed goals.
• Freshmen Dan Sexton had five goals and David Solway had four.
• The five Falcon seniors were a combined -26 in the plus/minus category, while the eight sophomores and four juniors were a combined -32.
• Kevin Schmidt was -12, while Tim Maxwell and Derek Whitmore were -11.
For the complete release, including a breakdown of the team by category, player bios, stats and much more, please see the link at the top of the page.
RADIO:WBGU (88.1): Danny Nieves (Play-by-Play)
RADIO BROADCAST
Friday and Saturday night's action between the Falcons and Nanooks can be heard by tuning into WBGU 88.1 FM. Danny Nieves will be providing all the play-by-play of the action. 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
Friday and Saturday's action at the BGSU Ice Arena between the Falcons and the Nanooks can be seen by tuning into BCSN. Greg Franke will be providing the play-by-play of the action with former Falcon hockey coach Buddy Powers doing the color commentary. The games will be shown live both nights. Friday's game will be re-aired at 12 p.m. on Saturday, while Saturday's will air again at 6 a.m. on Sunday and at 1 a.m. early Monday morning.
LIVE STATS
Live stats for Friday and Saturday's games will be available at www.bgsufalcons.com via gametracker, which can be found on the team's schedule page.
THE OPENING FACEOFF (STORYLINES)
A Player of the Week Showcase
• This weekend's series between the Falcons and Nanooks will feature three of the four reigning CCHA Players of the Week as they were all announced on Monday by the league office. BG's freshman forward Jacob Cepis earned CCHA Rookie of the Week honors for the second time in his career this week, while UA's junior rearguard T.J. Campbell was named CCHA Defensive Player of the Week and senior goaltender Wylie Rogers was named Goaltender of the Week. Cepis recorded three points this past weekend and finished with a plus-2 rating as all his points came in Friday's 5-2 win at Ohio State. The effort tied a career single-game high for points and goals as he had two goals and an assist. Campbell, who had a goal and two assists this past weekend, helped Alaska to its' first two-game sweep of the season with a pair of 3-2 home wins over Western Michigan. Campbell's effort was backstopped by Rogers, who made 75 saves on 79 shots, including a 43-save effort in last Saturday's series finale.
Eno Becoming One Of The Nation's Top Young Goaltenders
• This past weekend saw a big-time performance from a big-time freshman goaltender. BG freshman goaltender Nick Eno made 79 saves on 85 Ohio State shots as he backstopped the Falcons to a road split with the Buckeyes, making 39 stops on 41 shots on Friday in BG's 5-2 win and 40 stops on 44 chances the following night. Each night saw the Howell, Mich. native set a new career-high for saves in a game as he completed the weekend with a combined save percentage of .929. Eno is currently 9-5-0 in his rookie season and carries a 2.65 goals-against average and a .907 save percentage. The rookie has helped the Falcons to six road victories this season as his .643 winning percentage second-nationally amongst rookies to Colorado College's Richard Bachman (.804). Overall in the CCHA, Eno's goals-against average is second amongst rookies to Ferris State's Pat Nagle (2.61), while he is tops in save percentage. His nine wins are the most by a Falcon freshman netminder since his goaltending coach, Tyler Masters, posted 13 wins in his rookie season during the 1999-2000 campaign.
Eight Games And Counting
• This weekend's games between BG and Alaska will mark the first two of eight pivotal games remaining in the Falcons' regular-season. Of the eight games remaining for BG, six will be against teams they are currently battling for home ice position with for the first round of the CCHA playoffs. The Nanooks who visit the Ice Arena this weeekend, currently sit just three points back of the Falcons in seventh-place, which at the moment is also eighth-place as Ferris State is also in seventh at the moment with 17 league points. After the Falcons battle fifth-place Nebraska-Omaha next weekend in Omaha, a team that is just a point ahead of BG with 21 league points, the Falcons will welcome to town Ferris State for their final home series of the season. With that said, the next weeks will prove to be critical as looming on the horizon is Michigan State, the defending National Champions, who the Falcons will meet in their final league series of the season. Below is a look at the positioning as of now for seeds 5-8 in the first round.
Seed Team Points League Games Remaining (Opponents Left)
5 Nebraska-Omaha 21 6 (Ohio State, Bowling Green, at NMU)
6 Bowling Green 20 8 (Alaska, at UNO, Ferris State, at MSU, MSU)
7-8 Alaska 17 6 (at Bowling Green, Notre Dame, at LSSU)
7-8 Ferris State 17 8 (at Notre Dame, Miami, at BG, at UM, UM)
9 Northern Michigan 16 8 (MSU, at Ohio State, UNO, at LSSU, LSSU)
10 Ohio State 11 8 (at UNO, NMU, at ND, Miami, at Miami)
A FALCON VICTORY OR LOSS WOULD ...
VICTORY
• Would give BG its' 14th victory of the season, which would be their best win total since the 2004-05 campaign when they won 16 games.
• Would give the Falcons their first win over the Nanooks in three games.
• Would give BG a winning home record at 6-5.
• Would give the Falcons their first chance to sweep Alaska since January of 2005 when they swept them in back-to-back games at the BGSU Ice Arena.
• Would give Scott Paluch his fifth career win against the Nanooks.
• Could possibly clinch an 11th-place or higher finish for the Falcons for the first time in two seasons. LOSS
• Would be their third-straight game without a win in the series.
• Would be just the second time this season that BG was under .500 in the CCHA since their league-opening loss to Notre Dame.
• Would move Alaska to within one point of BG for sixth-place in the league standings.
• Could possibly put the Falcons just two points away from being on the road in the first round of the playoffs.
WHERE WHITMORE GOES...SO DO THE FALCONS
The 2007-08 campaign has been one to remember for senior forward and tri-captain Derek Whitmore. The Rochester, N.Y. native has tallied a national-leading three hat tricks and is closing in on some of BG's career scoring lists. With just four more goals this season he will enter the top-20 list for career goals in a Falcon uniform and with just eight more points, he'll become the 69th player in school history to eclipse the 100-point barrier. Here are some tidbits related to the Hobey Baker and All-American candidate.
• Leads the team with 26 points (21-5-26), which is just three points shy of his career single-season point total of 29, set last season.
• Been named the CCHA Offensive Player of the Week twice this season (Nov. 12, Jan. 21).
• His three hat tricks put him just two shy of the single-season school record of five set by Bob Dobek in the 1973-74 season.
• Tied for sixth-nationally with four game-winning goals and tied for fifth in the CCHA. Ranks tied for first in game-winning goals in CCHA games only with all four winning lamp lighters coming in league play.
• Leads the nation and CCHA with a 0.84 goals per game average.
• Scored 18 of his 21 goals this season in Falcon wins where he has picked up 20 of his 26 points.
• When he tallies a multiple-point effort in his Falcon career, BG is 15-6-1, while they are 30-25-4 when he tallies a single point.
• Tallied 16 of his 21 goals this season in the first and third periods and had 14 lamp lighters in road contests.
RIDING THE "ROAD" TO SUCCESS
Being able to win on the road is a big key to having success and the road has been a friendly place this season to the BGSU hockey team. The Falcons are 8-7-0 this season away from the BGSU Ice Arena, which currently ranks tied for the fourth-best road win total in the CCHA and is tied for the fifth-best road win total in the nation. Only 17 teams in Division I hockey have a winning or .500 home record and road record and BG is one of those teams as they are also 5-5-0 at home. The eight road wins are tied for most the Falcons have had in a regular-season under sixth-year head coach Scott Paluch as the 2004-05 squad also won eight road tilts. That total is also tied for the second-most the program has had since the 1995-96 season when they had nine. The team mark of 13 regular-season road wins was set in 1986-87 when Paluch was a junior defenseman.
A LOOK AT THE FALCONS
The Falcons of sixth-year head coach Scott Paluch currently sit at 13-13-0 overall with a 10-10-0 mark in the CCHA, which currently has them in sixth-place, one point behind Nebraska-Omaha in fifth ... they are 8-7-0 on the road this season, 5-5-0 at home and 0-1-0 in neutral site contests ... BG comes into the weekend 5-5 in their last 10 games ... overall on the season, nine of the Falcons' 13 losses came to ranked opponents as they are 1-9 against ranked opponents and 12-4 against non-ranked foes ... the Falcons however, have only lost four games all season decided by three goals or more ... leading the way for the Falcons in the scoring column is senior forward Derek Whitmore (21-5-26), while freshman forward Jacob Cepis sits just three points back with a line of 12-11-21 ... Whitmore leads the team with 21 goals scored, while Cepis is second on the team with 12 ... on the blue line, the Falcons are led by junior defenseman Kevin Schmidt who has 20 points this season on four goals and 16 assists ... senior defenseman Mike Nesdill has 14 points, while junior Tim Maxwell has 13 ... in net, BG has gotten 12 starts from junior goaltender Jimmy Spratt and 13 from freshman Nick Eno as the two have combined for a 2.87 goals-against average and a .894 save percentage ... against non-ranked opponents though, the duo has combined for a 2.42 GAA and a .909 save percentage ... 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 LOOK AT THE NANOOKS
The Nanooks of first-year head coach Doc DelCastillo currently have a record of 7-15-4 and a 7-12-3 mark in the CCHA ... UA is just three points behind the Falcons in seventh-place in the league as they are tied with Ferris State who also has 17 CCHA points ... they are 3-7-2 on the road this season, 4-8-2 at home and 0-0-0 in neutral site contests ... the Nanooks come into the weekend series fresh off their first two-game sweep of the season at home against Western Michigan where they recorded back-to-back 3-2 victories ... they were led on the weekend by senior defenseman T.J. Campbell (1-2-3) and freshman forward Dustin Sather (0-3-3) who each had three points ... freshman forward Landon Novtotney had a series-best two goals for the Nanooks then, while senior goaltender Wylie Rogers stopped 75-of-79 shots on the weekend, including a 43-of-45 effort in the series finale ... Campbell was named CCHA Defensive Player of the Week for his efforts, while Rogers was named CCHA Goaltender of the Week ... the Nanooks were 0-for-9 on the power play for the weekend and were 8-for-10 on the penalty-kill ... over the last four games the UA power play has gone 2-for-25 (8%), while over the course of the last 10, they are 5-for-50 (10%) ... UA is led up front by sophomore centerman Dion Knelsen who has 24 points on nine goals and 15 assists ... Novtotney leads the Nanooks with 12 goals scored with Knelsen behind him with his nine ... on the blue line, UA is led by junior defenseman Tyler Eckford, a second team All-CCHA pick in the preseason, who has 25 points this season on six goals and 19 assists ... Eckford leads the nation in points per game by a defenseman with a 0.96 average as he is the CCHA's top-scoring defenseman ... in net, the Nanooks have been led by Rogers who carries a 7-10-4 record this season with a 2.69 goals-against average and a .916 save percentage ... his one shutout on the year came in a 3-0 win at top-ranked Miami where he stopped 32 RedHawk shots ... UA has a combined goals-against average of 3.02 and a save percentage of .906 ... the Nanooks have scored a CCHA-low 15 goals this season in the second period, but have only allowed 16 first period markers, which ranks second in the CCHA behind Michigan ... they are 4-5-1 in their last 10 contests.
THE ALASKA SERIES
This weekend's meetings between the Falcons and Nanooks will be the 39th and 40th meetings all-time between the two squads ... UA leads the all-time series 18-16-4, but BG is ahead 9-7-2 in all-time meetings at the BGSU Ice Arena ... last season the Nanooks won the season series 2-1-1 as they the teams split in Alaska in December with the Falcons losing game one 4-3, before stealing a 6-4 win in game two ... the two clustermates later met then in BG with the Nanooks taking a 5-2 win in game one, before the teams skated to a 2-2 tie the following night ... Falcon senior forward Derek Whitmore, leads all BG scorers against UA with seven points (3-4-7), while senior defensemen Michael Hodgson and Mike Nesdill each have five ... the Nanooks are 16-12-4 against BG since joining the CCHA back in 1992.
TIDBITS RELATED TO THE ALASKA SERIES
• BG has beaten Alaska just once when scoring less than four goals, which back in November of 1992 when they beat the Nanooks 3-2 at the Great Alaskan Faceoff.
• Overall in the series, the Falcons are 1-15-3 when scoring three goals or less, 2-1-1 when scoring four goals and 13-2 when scoring five or more goals.
• The Falcons hosted the Nanooks in the first round of the playoffs three seasons ago in their first home playoff series in over a decade. UA won 6-3 on two-straight nights however, to steal the series as they were then backstopped by freshman goaltender Wylie Rogers. Nanook forward Ryan McLeod's goals five seconds and 13 seconds into game one are still the fastest two goals in CCHA Tournament history by a single player.
• BG is 3-6-1 against Alaska in the last 10 meetings and 1-6-1 in the last eight.
• Current Alaska forward Ryan Hohl, transferred to Alaska this season from Bowling Green where he redshirted last season. Hohl has two assists in nine games played for the Nanooks this season.
LAST TIME OUT ...
This past weekend, the Falcons earned a split at Ohio State, winning 5-2 on Friday and losing 4-2 on Saturday. Freshman goaltender Nick Eno made 79 total saves on 85 OSU shots for the weekend, setting a new career-best each evening. On Friday his 39 saves on 41 shots were helped out by a three-point performance from freshman forward Jacob Cepis as he and senior forward Derek Whitmore both had a game-high two goals. Saturday, Eno made 40 saves on 44 shots, but two late goals by OSU freshman forward Peter Boyd were the difference. BG was held scoreless on the power play on the weekend going 0-for-11, but were 6-for-7 on the penalty-kill.
IN THIRTEEN FALCON WINS THIS SEASON ...
• BGSU has averaged 4.2 goals a game, while giving up an average of 1.9.
• BGSU out-shot their opponents by a 32.6 to 26.2 average.
• BGSU was a combined 20-for-81 on the power play (24.7%), while they held opponents to just 11-for-70 (15.7%).
• BGSU had an average of 22.9 penalty minutes per game, while their opponent averaged 26.9.
• BGSU out-scored their opponents, 18-4, in the first period, 18-11 in the second and 15-10 in the third.
• BGSU won 56.9% of their faceoffs.
• Derek Whitmore scored 20 points (18-2-20) and had eight power-play goals.
• Jacob Cepis had 17 points (9-8-17) and two power-play tallies.
• James Perkin scored 14 points (6-8-14).
• Kevin Schmidt had three goals and 11 assists.
• Jimmy Spratt had a 1.96 goals-against average and a .922 save percentage.
• Nick Eno had a 1.88 goals-against average and .929 save percentage.
• Jacob Cepis, Todd McIlrath, Tim Maxwell, James Perkin, Kevin Schmidt and Derek Whitmore were a combined +55.
• The Falcon freshmen were a combined +25.
• BG had 121 recorded blocked shots.
• The Falcon goaltenders allowed just 13 even strength goals of the 25 they allowed in the 13 games.
IN THIRTEEN FALCON LOSSES THIS SEASON ...
• BGSU averaged 1.7 goals a game, while giving up an average of 3.8.
• BGSU was out-shot by their opponents by a 28.5 to 26.5 average.
• BGSU was a combined 6-for-72 on the power play (8.3%), while their opponents were 13-for-62 (21.0%).
• BGSU averaged 18.7 penalty minutes a game, while their opponent averaged 18.2.
• BGSU won 50.2% of their faceoffs.
• BGSU was out-scored by their opponent, 17-8 in the first period, 15-11 in the second and 18-3 in the third period.
• Derek Whitmore, Jacob Cepis, Kevin Schmid and James Perkin combined for just 24 points (8-16-24).
• BG surrendered three short-handed goals and tallied two short-handed goals.
• Freshmen Dan Sexton had five goals and David Solway had four.
• The five Falcon seniors were a combined -26 in the plus/minus category, while the eight sophomores and four juniors were a combined -32.
• Kevin Schmidt was -12, while Tim Maxwell and Derek Whitmore were -11.
For the complete release, including a breakdown of the team by category, player bios, stats and much more, please see the link at the top of the page.
