Bowling Green Set To Host Northern Michigan In Non-Conference Series This Weekend

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - The Bowling Green State University hockey team will be at the Slater Family Ice Arena for the second straight weekend, hosting Northern Michigan on Jan. 15 and 16 in a non-conference series. This will be the first meeting between the two teams this season. This series will serve as a preview to the series that will count towards conference records that will take place on Feb. 19 and 20, but Northern Michigan will be the host of that series.

No. 8 Bowling Green Falcons (12-2-0, 3-1-0-0 WCHA)
vs.
Northern Michigan (2-6-0, 0-2-0-0 WCHA)

GAME INFORMATION	Friday, Jan. 15, 7:07 p.m. // Saturday, Jan. 16, 7:07 p.m.
LOCATION	Bowling Green, Ohio / Slater Family Ice Arena
WATCH (FloHockey)	Friday / Saturday
RADIO	Falcon Radio Network
LIVE STATS	BGSUFalcons.com
LISTEN ONLINE	BGSUFalcons.com
GAME NOTES	Bowling Green
GAME PROGRAM	Bowling Green

Ready For The Wildcats
Northern Michigan has had a tough start to the season. They were only able to play four non-conference games in December before WCHA play began in January. In those four non-conference games they went 2-2, sweeping Ferris State, but also being swept by Michigan Tech. Once WCHA play started, Northern Michigan had another tough task. In their first series they were shutout in both games by Minnesota State, getting swept by a cumulative score of 9-0. The Wildcats then took on Lake Superior State, being able to score three goals over the series, but it wasn't enough as they were again swept.

The Games At A Glance
It's been more than a calendar year since the Falcons and Wildcats met on the ice in a game that went into overtime. Since that meeting it's been a tale of two teams. Bowling Green went on a tear, being 21-6-3, while Northern Michigan has gone 9-15-2. The Falcons' success over that time has come from an experienced roster that now features three 100-point scorers. On the other bench, the Wildcats will roster 31 players total with 19 of them being either a freshman or a sophomore, accounting for over 60% of their roster. However, these teams know each other well and have matched up evenly in the past. Over the last 10 games between the Falcons and Wildcats, each team has been able to capture five victories, splitting those 10 games.

Last Time Out
Bowling Green will enter the series against Northern Michigan coming off of a series split with Bemidji State on Jan. 7 and 8. The Falcons took a 3-2 victory in the first game of the series but was on the short end of a 4-3 final in the second meeting that also served as the Orange and Brown's first taste of overtime this season. Over the course of the series Brandon Kruse led the way for the Falcons with an assist in the first game and a goal in the second. Freshman Chrystopher Collin also registered two assists in the second game of the series, becoming the first freshman this season to have a multiple-point outing.

Moving Toward The Millennium Falcons
Picking up yet another win last weekend, Bowling Green is now up to 998 wins in program history, needing just two wins to reach the millennium mark of 1,000 wins all-time. If the Falcons can reach the mark, they would become the 26th program in the country to hit the milestone in NCAA ice hockey history. With two games on the weekend slate, the Falcons will have the chance to reach that milestone against Northern Michigan.

Picking Up Where He Left Off
Max Johnson missed a few games but returned to action against Bemidji State last weekend and picked up where he left off. Johnson was able to not only score a goal in his first game back, but he logged the game-winning goal in Thursday's victory. With the goal, Johnson already has four game-winning goals in just 10 games played this season. That total is currently tied for the most in the nation with Minnesota's Scott Reedy who has four through 11 games. The goal for Johnson also moved him into the record book, tying him for eighth in program history for most career game-winning goals with 12.

Balanced Attack Working For Bowling Green
Thanks to leading marks in both scoring offense and scoring defense, the Falcons are currently averaging the best scoring margin in the country with a mark of 2.21. Bowling Green is just one of four teams with a scoring margin north of two and have played the most games among those four teams. On offense, the Orange and Brown are averaging the fourth most goals per game at an even number of four. As for defense, the Falcons come in at third, giving up 1.79 goals per game on average, one of just five teams below two goals per game.

Dop, Rose On Historic Pace
Both Eric Dop and Zack Rose are currently on pace to put their names in the record book for single season goaltender statistics. Beginning with Goals Against Average, Eric Dop's mark of 2.13 would put his 2020-21 season as the third best mark. However, it would quickly become the fourth best mark because Zack Rose's current 1.35 average would set a new program record for a single season. The story is the exact same for save percentage as well. Dop currently has a save percentage of .924, which would be the third best in program history. However, Rose's mark of .937 would set a program record for a single season, bumping Dop's number down to fourth.

Follow the Falcons
Be sure to follow the Falcons hockey team on social media
Twitter - @BGAthletics and @BGFalconHockey
Instagram - 'bgfalcons' and 'bgfalconhockey'
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YouTube - 'Falcon Athletics'

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