Bowling Green State University Athletics
Falcon Icers Head To Miami For First Second Round Playoff Appearance In Seven Years
March 11, 2008 | Ice Hockey
March 11, 2008
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - The Bowling Green State University hockey team returns to action this weekend when they head to Oxford, Ohio for the second round of the 2008 CCHA playoffs. BG, fresh off their first playoff series victory at home since 1995, will now face second-seeded Miami in another best-of-three series for the right to go to Joe Louis Arena and get a bid to the CCHA Semifinals. The seventh-seeded Falcons have never seen the second round under the new playoff format as they last made it this far in 2001 when they, as a ninth-seed, won the Play-In game at Northern Michigan to advance to the Semifinals following a first round sweep at second-seeded Miami. That 2001 series marked the last time that the Falcons and RedHawks met in the playoffs as the Falcons will once again look to go to the Joe following a series victory in Oxford. Game one of the best-of-three series will drop the puck at 7:35 p.m. with a game two and game three if necessary facing-off at 7:05 p.m. from MU's Steve Cady Arena.
Complete Release in PDF Format (51 Pages)
#7 Bowling Green at #2 Miami
RECORDS: BGSU 18-19-0, 13-15-0 CCHA // MU 29-6-1, 21-6-1 CCHA
RADIO:WBGU (88.1): Danny Nieves (Play-by-Play), Bob Mills, (color commentary)
RADIO BROADCAST All the playoff action between the Falcons and RedHawks can be heard by tuning into WBGU 88.1 FM. Danny Nieves and Bob Mills 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. If you missed any of the action on the weekend then, you can tune into Danny Nieves' show "In The Box" on Sunday nights between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. on WFAL 1610 AM. Nieves and co-host Bob Mills will recap the weekend in Falcon hockey and will welcome in guests from the team each weekend. Guests in the past few weeks have included Ben Geelan, John Mazzei, Kevin Schmidt and Derek Whitmore. To listen globally you can visit www.wfalradio.com. The show will only take place this week however, if there is no game three on Sunday.
LIVE STATS
Live stats for all this weekend's playoff games will be available at www.bgsufalcons.com via gametracker, which can be found on the team's schedule page.
SCOUTING BOWLING GREEN
• The Falcons of sixth-year head coach Scott Paluch own the most wins that any Falcon team has had in the last decade and the most any BG team has had in 13 years with their 18-19-0 record this season.
• The Falcons are 9-9-0 at home this season, 9-9-0 on the road and 0-1-0 in neutral site games.
• BG's nine regular-season road wins were the most they've had since the 1995-96 when they also had nine and were just four shy of the all-time regular-season road win mark of 13 set during the 1986-87 season when head coach Scott Paluch was a junior defenseman.
• BG is 17-8 on the year against non-ranked opponents, but just 1-11 against ranked teams with their lone win coming at home against top-ranked Miami back on Jan. 4th.
• The Falcon offense has seen balanced scoring all season as each class has contributed to the cause. The BG seniors have totalled 75 points on the year, while the freshmen are second with 74 points. The sophomores own 71 points, while the juniors have 55.
• Up front six Falcon upperclassmen (Tommy Dee, Kai Kantola, Todd McIlrath, John Mazzei, James Perkin, Derek Whitmore) have already set new career-bests in points this season.
• Overall, nine total upperclassmen have set or tied career-bests in points as defensemen Kevin Schmidt, Mike Nesdill and Tim Maxwell also had career-seasons.
• BG's defensive core has totalled 63 points this season as they are tied for 29th-nationally in points per game as a defensive core with a 1.70 points per game average. Kevin Schmidt finished the regular-season 16th-nationally amongst defensemen with a 0.68 points per game average.
• In net, freshman goaltender Nick Eno and junior Jimmy Spratt have combined for a 3.01 goals-against average and a .893 save percentage. During the regular-season. the two had a 2.69 GAA in the first 17 games of the year with a .895 save percentage and a 3.17 GAA and .897 save percentage in the 1ast 17 games.
• Spratt started the most games in the first 17 games, starting nine with a 2.68 GAA and a .900 save percentage going 4-5-0, while Eno started the most in the second half going 6-5 in 12 starts with a 2.56 GAA and a .924 save percentage. Eno's overall 2.73 GAA and .908 save percentage would both rank sixth on BG's all-time single-season lists in each category.
• BG finished the season with 32 goals on the power-play going 32-of-194 for a final conversion percentage of 16.5. However, 24 of those extra-man goals came in the first 17 games as the Falcons were 24-of-101 (23.8%) in the first half and just 8-of-93 in the second (8.6%).
• This past weekend, the Falcons were 3-of-15 (20.0 %) on the power play in their three games against the Lakers, while their penalty-kill was 16-for-20 (80.0%).
SCOUTING MIAMI
• The RedHawks finished their regular-season 29-6-1 and 21-6-1 in the CCHA as they took second-place in the final regular-season standings.
• MU's 29 wins are the most by any Division I program this season.
• MU is 14-3-1 at home, 13-3-0 on the road and 2-0-0 at a neutral venue.
• The RedHawks are 6-3-1 in their last 10 games and 4-1 in their last five as they come into the second round riding a current four-game winning streak after a home sweep of Western Michigan and a home-and-home sweep of Ohio State.
• MU is 11-for-57 (19.3 %) on the power play in the last 10 contests and 45-of-52 (86.5 %) at killing-off the opposition's power play.
• Leading the way for MU the last 10 games has been freshman forward Andy Miele who has five goals and seven assists, while sophomore Jared Palmer has a line of 4-8-12 in the last 10.
• The RedHawks own the nation's best scoring offense as they average 4.22 goals per game, while their team defense is second-nationally behind North Dakota as they are only giving up an average of 1.83 goals per contest.
• MU's power play ranks fourth in the CCHA and 14th-nationally with a 20.2 percent conversion rate, while their penalty-kill ranks second in the CCHA and third-nationally at 89.1 percent (180-of-202).
• Senior forward Ryan Jones leads all RedHawk scorers with 44 points this season as he has a line of 29-15-44. His 29 goals lead the nation, while his point total ranks sixth. He has scored eight of his 29 goals in the RedHawks' last 10 games.
• After being hampered all season by injury, MU senior forward Nathan Davis has played in eight of MU's last 10 games and had three goals and eight assists in those contests.
• MU has nine total players with 25 or more points on the season, including five with 33 or more.
• Junior defenseman Alec Martinez leads the MU rearguards with a line of 7-19-26 on the season, while senior Mitch Ganzak is one point back with a 1-24-25 line.
• MU as a team is plus-299 in the plus/minus category this season as they feature six players with a plus-21 rating or better. Junior defenseman Kevin Roeder leads the squad with a plus-31 rating.
• Between the pipes, junior Jeff Zatkoff has played in 30 games this season and is 23-6-1 on the year.His 1.69 goals-against average is second-nationally only to North Dakota's Jean-Philippe Lamoureux (1.65), while his .932 save percentage is third in the country. He has three shutouts on the season.
• In the last 10 contests, Zatkoff has a GAA of 2.03 and a save percentage of .926.
THE MIAMI SERIES
This weekend's meetings between the Falcons and RedHawks will be the 98th, 99th and possibly 100th in the all-time series ... overall, the Falcons own a 58-32-7 advantage, but they are 2-8-0 against the RedHawks in the last 10 meetings ... last season the two teams met early in the season at MU's brand new Steve Cady Arena where the RedHawks earned a pair of wins, winning game one, 4-3, before finishing the sweep with a, 3-0, win in game two ... the two also met last season in the semifinals of the Ohio Hockey Classic at Nationwide Arena in Columbus where the RedHawks earned a, 3-2, win ... in 11 games against BG, the RedHawks senior duo of Nathan Davis and Ryan Jones have combined for 27 points (13-14-27), however, neither has tallied a point against the Falcons this season ...BG played MU in the final regular-season game at MU's old Goggin Ice Arena in the 2005-06 season where they fell, 5-4, as the RedHawks finished first in the league ... former Falcon head coach Jerry York, earned his 400th career win against the RedHawks on Feb. 3, 1990 in a, 4-3, BG win ... in the same game, Falcon-great Nelson Emerson became the school's all-time leading scorer, tallying his 271st career point.
MORE ON THE MIAMI SERIES
• This season's game one win over the RedHawks in January was the Falcons first win over a top-ranked opponent since BG won at top-ranked Michigan State 1-0 on Dec. 7, 1997.
• This year's playoff meeting marks only the second time that these two teams have met in the conference playoffs. The last meeting came in the first round of the CCHA playoffs during the 2000-2001 season when the ninth-seeded Falcons swept second-seeded Miami (4-3, 4-3 OT) at MU's old Goggin Ice Arena.
LAST TIME OUT ...
This past weekend the Falcons hosted their second first round playoff series in the last four seasons, but just their third since 1995 when they took on 10th-seeded Lake Superior State. The Falcons won game one 4-3, thanks to a three-goal first period that saw them jump on top 3-0 going into the first period locker room. They then held off a second period rally by the Lakers that saw LSSU close to within one at 3-2, before withstanding a late flurry of chances in the game's final minutes.Todd McIlrath picked up the game-winning goal at the 9:10 mark of the third period, which gave BG a 4-2 lead that they held on to, despite a late LSSU goal with six minutes to play.
In game two, the Lakers owned most of the play from the opening face-off, as after a scoreless first , they struck with four second period goals to take a 4-1 lead into the game's final 20 minutes. They added two more goals in the final period as Pat Inglis stopped 34-of-35 BG shots to earn the Lakers a 6-1 victory.
That win setup a third and decisive game on Sunday night that once again saw LSSU jump out to a sizeable lead in the second period. This time though, the Lakers couldn't get that extra goal or point to put the game away as the Falcons battled back from a 3-1 deficit to tie the game with just three minutes to play on a goal by McIlrath. That setup maybe one of the most memorable goals in Falcon history as Jacob Cepis put the first shot of the game's overtime period just under the bar off a missle from the left-wing circle on the short side at 1:34 to earn the Falcons their first home playoff series win since a first round sweep of Notre Dame in 1995.
WHAT HAS BEEN ACCOMPLISHED
The 2007-08 season has been one to remember for the Falcons as the season has featured many accomplishments for the both the team and individual players. Below is look at some of the more major accomplishments from the season.
TEAM
• Most wins in the last decade with 18 and the most since the 1995-96 season when they went 26-14-1.
• First Falcon team to reach the second round of the playoffs since the Falcon squad of 2000-01 that made it to the CCHA semifinals.
• First Falcon team to beat the nation's top-ranked team since 1997.
• First Falcon team to win nine road games since the 1995-96 team.
• First BG team to feature two All-Rookie Team selections (Jacob Cepis and Nick Eno) since the 1993-94 team and just the second squad to do so in the 20 years they've selected the team.
• First Falcon team to feature two 20-point rookie scorers since 1996.
• First Falcon team to have a winning or .500 home and away record since the 1995-96 team that went 14-5-0 at home and 11-7-1 on the road.
INDIVIDUALLY
• Senior tri-captain Derek Whitmore scored his 100th career point this season as he has 102 career points on 70 career goals and 32 career helpers.
• Derek Whitmore's 70 career goals place him 19th on BGSU's all-time career goal-scoring list.
• Derek Whitmore's 27 goals this year are the most by a Falcon in a single-season since Mike Johnson scored 30 in 1996-97.
• Derek Whitmore was named CCHA Offensive Player of the week twice and James Perkin was named it once.
• Freshman forward Jacob Cepis was named CCHA Rookie of the Week twice and Dan Sexton was once.
• Junior defenseman Kevin Schmidt is a single point short of tying Grady Moore for the most points by a Falcon rearguard in the last 10 seasons with his 25 points.
• Freshman forward Jacob Cepis became the first Falcon forward since Adam Edinger to earn All-Rookie honors in the CCHA.
• Freshman goaltender Nick Eno became the first Falcon goaltender since Bob Petrie to be named to the CCHA All-Rookie Team.
• Sophmore defenseman Kyle Page was named to the league's Scholar-Athlete team for the first time in his career.
• Nine different upperclassmen set new career-bests in points this season.
THE FALCONS AND THE PLAYOFFS
• This year's second round advancement marks the 20th time that the Falcons have advanced past the opening round of the conference tournament.
• Overall, this year is the Falcons' 35th appearance in the CCHA Tournament, which stands as a league record.
• The Falcons are 27-5 all-time in CCHA Tournament action played at the BGSU Ice Arena. The only playoff series the Falcons have lost at home came in 2004-05 when they lost in two games to Alaska (6-3, 6-3).
• This season's home playoff series victory was the Falcons' first at home since 1995 when they swept Notre Dame (7-2, 5-4) in the opening round.
• BG's last CCHA semifinal appearance came in 2001 when they lost to Michigan State, 2-1, who featured Hobey Baker winner Ryan Miller in net.
• The Falcons last played at Joe Louis Arena during the 2002-03 season when they played Wayne State there and won 4-3 in a regular-season contest. In tournament action though, BG has only been there seven times since 1990, but haven't advanced past the Semifinals since head coach Scott Paluch's senior season when they won the CCHA Tournament Championship with a 5-3 win over Lake Superior State.
• BG has only been to the semifinal round four times since 1990 with the last coming in 2001.
• Overall, the Falcons are 56-45-2 in CCHA Tournament action.
• BG is 0-5 in their last five road series in the playoffs going 0-10 in those contests as their last road series win came at Miami in 2001.
FALCONS HAVE TWO ON ALL-ROOKIE TEAM
For the first time since 2004-05, the Falcons had a player honored as an All-Rookie selection by the CCHA as freshman forward Jacob Cepis and freshman goaltender Nick Eno became the seventh and eighth Falcons to be honored in the 20-year history of the league's All-Rookie Team. Cepis, a 20-year-old Parma, Ohio native is the first Falcon forward since Adam Edinger in 1996-97 to be named to the team, while Eno, an 18-year-old netminder from Howell, Mich. was the first BG goaltender since Bob Petrie in 1993-94 to be honored. Current senior defenseman Michael Hodgson was the last to be named to the All-Rookie team back in 2004-05. Cepis is second on the team this season with 31 points and second in goals with 15. Eno leads the Falcon netminders with a 12-9-0 record, a 2.73 goals-against average and a .908 save percentage. His 12 wins are the most by a Falcon goaltender since Jordan Sigalet won 16 games in 2004-05.
PAGE NAMED FALCONS' SCHOLAR-ATHLETE
Sophomore defenseman Kyle Page was named Bowling Green's Scholar-Athlete on Tuesday by the CCHA office and will be 1-of-11 CCHA student-athletes up for the league's Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award, which will be presented next Thursday, Mar. 20th at the 2008 CCHA Awards in Detroit. To be eligible for the honor, a student must have a cumulative GPA of 3.25 through the fall term. Page, one of the best defensive defensemen in the CCHA the past two seasons, is a sport management major. The award is choosen by 12 faculty representatives from around the league.
THE 20/20 FRESHMEN CLUB
This season has seen two of the Falcons' seven freshmen accomplish something that has only been done twice since 1996 and just five previous times since 1984. With freshman forward Jacob Cepis recording 31 points and freshman forward Dan Sexton tallying 21 points, the two are just the third first-year pair to score 20 or more points in their first seasons since 1996. The last two freshmen to accomplish the feat in the same season were forwards Alex Foster and Jonathan Matsumoto during the 2004-05 season, before them the last pair to do so was freshman forward Adam Edinger and freshman defenseman Peter Ratchuk during the 1996-97 campaign. If freshman forward David Solway were able to pick up just five points, this season would mark the first since Scott Paluch's rookie season in 1984-85 that BG has had three freshmen with 20-plus points.
BIG STRETCH FOR A GUY THEY CALL "MAZ"
In order to have success late in the season, you need veteran players to make veteran plays. That is exactly what the Falcons have gotten the last 15 games from senior tri-captain John Mazzei. Mazzei picked up his first career multiple-goal effort this three weekends ago, knotting both goals in the Falcons' 2-1 victory on Saturday over visiting Ferris State. The Kelowna, B.C. native has seven goals in BG's last 15 contests, including two game-winners. The forward has a plus-3 rating during this stretch as only fellow tri-captain Derek Whitmore has more goals during the past five weeks with seven.
CAREER SEASON FOR WHITMORE
This season has been a career-season for Falcon senior forward and tri-captain Derek Whitmore who scored the same number of goals in each half of the Falcons' regular-season. The Rochester, N.Y. native tallied 13 goals in the Falcons' first 17 games and 13 goals in the Falcons' last 17 games. Overall on the season, Whitmore has 27 goals and nine assists, totalling a career-best 36 points in 36 games.
LUCKY 13 CONTINUES TO CLIMB THE CHARTS
Bowling Green's impact freshmen have been a big reason for their success this season and none of these freshmen may have been bigger this season than freshman forward Jacob Cepis. The Parma, Ohio native has tallied 15 goals and 16 assists in his rookie campaign as he currently ranks tied for 33rd on the all-time Falcon scoring list for freshmen. He is just a point shy of Jonathan Matsumoto's freshman mark of 32 points in 2004-05, which is the most by a Falcon in the last 10 years and is tied for 28th on the all-time BGSU freshmen list. He is just two points away from being the Falcons' top rookie scorer in the past 13 years and three points away from being the top rookie scorer since Brett Harkins scored 54 points as a freshman during the 1989-90 season.
PETRUSKA BREAKING OUT OF A SOPHOMORE SLUMP
After picking up just two goals and an assist in his first 25 games this season, sophomore forward Tomas Petruska has scored eight of his 11 points in the last 12 games. Last season, Petruska lit the lamp eight times and dished out nine assists on way to finishing as the third-leading scorer on the squad and as tops among the freshmen. His biggest highlight came when he scored a goal with just 35 seconds left on the clock to beat Michigan 3-2 at the BGSU Ice Arena.
EITHER WE DO OR WE DON'T
Getting the game's first goal has meant everything this season for the Falcons as they are 13-2-0 on the year when they put the first point on the scoreboard. On the flip side, the Falcons are 5-17-0 when they let their opponent get the game's first tally. If the Falcons can get to the first intermission dressing room with a lead they've won 13 of 14 games when they've done so, while they are 5-10-0 when trailing after 20 minutes and 1-8-0 when the game is even heading to the first break.
THE MAGIC NUMBER FOUR
The number four on the scoreboard has been a magic number this season in the Falcon win column. In games where BG scores four goals they are 7-0-0 on the season. In games where they score four or more goals, they are a perfect 12-0-0. The Falcons are just 6-19-0 this season when tallying less than four goals.
POWER PLAY BLUES
The Falcon power play was once one of the hottest things on the ice in the CCHA in the first part of the season as BG converted 20 of their first 72 power play opportunities to start the year. The effort got the power play unit ranked as high as second in the country with a conversion percentage of 27.8. However, a scoreless drought of 43 recently and a current scoreless streak of 21 has dropped the BGSU power play to 15.8 percent for the year. The Falcons scored just eight power-play goals in their final 17 games after they totalled 24 goals with the man-advantage in their first 17.
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 9-9-0 this season away from the BGSU Ice Arena, which currently ranks tied for the fifth-best road win total in the CCHA and is tied for the eighth-best road win total in the nation. The nine road wins are the most the Falcons have had in a regular-season under sixth-year head coach Scott Paluch as the 2004-05 squad won eight road tilts. That total is also tied for the 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.
For More Information, Statistics and Player Notes See The Complete Release
