Air Force Travels to College Hockey America Tournament
3/5/2001 12:00:00 AM | Hockey
What: College Hockey America Tournament
When: Thur.-Sat., March 8-10
Where: Von Braun Center, Huntsville, Alabama
Radio: KUBL 1300 AM (All Air Force games)
On the Air: All of Air Force's games in the CHA Tournament will be broadcast locally in Colorado Springs on KUBL AM 1300. Jay Ritchie will do the play-by-play.
About the Tournament: The second annual College Hockey America Tournament kicks off March 8, with the quarterfinal game at 7:05 p.m. Air Force will face Findlay in the elimination game. The winner advances to the final four while the loser is out. Air Force and Findlay tied for fourth with 18 points. However, Findlay owns the tiebreaker over Air Force as the Oilers won three of the four games against the Falcons. Alabama-Huntsville earned its first regular-season championship with 31 points. Niagara was second with 23 points. Wayne State, who swept Niagara in the final weekend of the season, jumped from fifth place to third and finished with 22 points.
Down to the Wire: Air Force broke a school record by playing in eight overtime games this season. The Falcons broke the record of seven set by the 1972-73 team. AFA is 1-3-4 in overtime this season. Ten of the team's 19 conference games have either been tied or decided by one goal. AFA is 3-4-4 in those games. Thank You Fans: Air Force's six largest home crowds of the season came in the last six games. The largest crowd in 10 years at the Academy (3,093) watched the Air Force-Army game, March 2. Air Force averaged 1,529 fans per home game, the second highest average in the CHA. The average attendance is also AFA's highest since Frank Serratore's first season (1997-98) when an average of 1,531 watched Falcon hockey. Over the last six games, the Falcons averaged 2,218 fans per game.
Series Records:Air Force's series records and records this season are below:
Alabama-Huntsville: UAH won all four games against Air Force this season and holds a 22-9-1 record in the overall series. UAH won both games at the Academy (5-4 in overtime and 4-2) and in Huntsville (4-0 and 5-3). The Chargers have won 13 of the last 14 games in the series. AFA broke a nine-game losing streak to UAH with a 3-2 victory last season at the Cadet Ice Arena. AFA is 2-10 in Huntsville. The last Air Force win over UAH in Huntsville came in 1989.
Findlay: Air Force is 1-3 against Findlay this season. UF holds the series lead, 5-4-0. Last season, the teams split both series. Earlier this season, the two teams split the series at Air Force (AF 3-1, UF 4-3 in overtime). Findlay swept the Falcons (5-2 and 7-3) in Ohio. The 12 goals in the series is the most the Falcons have allowed all year.
Niagara: Air Force is 1-1-2 vs. Niagara this season, but the Purple Eagles hold the series lead, 11-6-2. The Falcons broke a nine-game winless streak against Niagara with a 5-2 win at Niagara in late February. Air Force also broke a six-game losing streak at Niagara with that win. Three of the four games this season went into overtime.
Wayne State: Air Force and Wayne State have only played four times with all the games being played this season. Air Force leads the series 2-1-1. The teams split the two-game series at Wayne State (AF 4-3, WSU 5-2) while Air Force took three points with a win and a tie (2-1 and 1-1 in overtime) at the Academy.
Scouting the Opponents:
Alabama-Huntsville: The Chargers (20-11-1 overall and 15-4-1 CHA) enter the tournament as the regular season champions with 31 points. UAH has won seven of its last eight with the only loss coming in overtime on the road at Findlay. Senior center Dwayne Blais, the preseason selection for player of the year, leads the team with 24 assists and 31 points. Sophomore goalie Mark Byrne has put up solid numbers this season with a .903 saves percentage and a 2.58 goals-against average. His CHA numbers are even better at .905 and 2.51.
Findlay: The Oilers (10-14-2 overall and 8-10-2 CHA) enter the tournament as the fourth seed. UF is 4-4 in its last eight games. The team was swept at Nebraska-Omaha last weekend. Freshmen Aaron Weegar and Christian Olson are tied for the team lead with 19 points. Brant Somerville is among the conference's leading scorers among defensemen with 18 points, all in conference games. Goalies Kevin Fines (3.68 and .906) and Jamie Vandespyker (3.14 and .917) have split time in the net.
Niagara: The Purple Eagles (13-18-5 overall and 10-7-3 CHA) are the second seed in the tournament. However, the Purps have struggled recently. The team is on an eight-game winless skid. NU was swept last weekend at Wayne State. The team's last win was a 5-0 victory over Findlay, Feb. 3. NU is 6-13-4 away from home. Sophomore center Bernie Sigrist leads the team with 17 assists and 28 points. Freshmen Rob Bonk (2.70 and .900) and Steve Lindsay (2.67 and .894) have split time between the pipes recently.
Wayne State: The Warriors (16-14-3 overall and 8-9-3 CHA) jumped from fifth place to third by sweeping Niagara last weekend. WSU broke a seven-game winless skid with the March 2 win over Niagara. Sophomore Jason Durbin leads the team with 30 points and has 15 goals. Sophomore David Guerrera has seen the majority of the time in the net. He has a 2.72 GAA and a .904 saves percentage.
Scoring by Class: More than 70 percent of the team's offensive production has come from the sophomores and juniors. The senior class has scored 34 points (4-30), the juniors have scored 115 (42-73), the sophomores have tallied 103 (47-56) and the freshmen have collected 45 points (18-23).
The Falcon Seniors: The Air Force senior class played its final home game last Saturday (March 3) against Army. The class of Marc Kielkucki, Sean Broderick, Scott Bradley and Billy O'Reilly have helped lead the Falcons to 64 wins, the most by any class in 23 years. The class has certainly left its mark on Falcon hockey. Kielkucki will be remembered as possibly the greatest Falcon goalie in school history. Bradley, the team captain from Colorado Springs, ranks among the top 20 in career assists. A fierce competitor, O'Reilly has played in the second most games in school history. Despite seeing limited action behind Kielkucki, Broderick holds the fourth best goals-against average in AFA history.
Head Coach Frank Serratore: Frank Serratore (Bemidji State, 1982) is in his fourth season as the Falcons' hockey coach. Serratore has a 64-71-8 record at Air Force. He is in his eighth season as a college head coach with a 113-162-17 career record. Serratore came to the Academy from the Manitoba Moose of the International Hockey League, where he was the director of hockey operations in 1996. He was also the Moose head coach and general manager for two seasons and led the team to a 52-56-16 record. Serratore was the head coach at Denver from 1990-1994 posting a 49-91-9 record. Serratore spent seven seasons in the United States Hockey League with three different teams and collected a combined record of 247-103-6. He was named general manager of the year twice and coach of the year once in the USHL.
The Serratore Magic: In the two years prior to Serratore's arrival, the Falcons won a combined 12 games, all at home, and won just 24 percent of their games. In his fourth season, Serratore has led the Falcons to 64 wins and has won 47 percent of his games. Perhaps the most accurate measure of any Academy coach is his success against the other academies. Serratore is nearly perfect in that regard. Since Navy does not have a varsity team, the only competition is against Army. At Air Force, Serratore is 7-1-1 vs. Army.
Bradley moves up list: Senior winger Scott Bradley continues to climb up the career scoring list. The winger from Colorado Springs has averaged 30 points per season and could rank among the top 20 scorers in Air Force history. Bradley has 25 points this season and 122 in 142 career games.
16. Joe Delich, F (1985-89) 47-83-130 John Decker, F (1991-95) 58-72-130 18. Gerry Micheletti, D (1971-75) 32-95-127 John Klimek, F (1984-87) 48-79-127 20. Joe Doyle, F (1985-89) 57-69-126 21. Doug Leibbrand, D (1973-77) 35-87-122 Beau Bilek, D (1991-95) 33-89-122 Scott Bradley, F (1998-Pres.) 37-85-122
Kook Ranks Among Best Ever: Goalie Marc Kielkucki continues his assault on the Air Force record book. He holds the school record for goals-against average in a season and for shutouts in a season and career. He is also among the top goalies ever at the Academy in career wins, saves percentage and goals-against average.
Career Saves Pct. (more than 35 games) 1. .899 Kim Newman (1968-71) 2. .888 Marc Kielkucki (1998-Pres) 3. .881 Tom Talbot (1975-79) Career Goals Against Average 1. 3.16 Marc Kielkucki (1998-Pres.) 2. 3.37 Aaron Ratfield (1997-98) 3. 3.70 John Moes (1985-88) 4. 3.75 Sean Broderick (1998-Pres.) Career Wins 1. 72 Al Morrison (1972-75) 2. 50 Tom Talbot (1975-79) 3. 44 Marc Kielkucki (1998-Pres.) Games Played 1. 107 Marc Kielkucki (1998-Pres.) 2. 105 Al Morrison (1972-75) 3. 101 Pat Kielb (1993-97) Saves 1. 3,270 Al Morrison (1971-75) 2. 3,073 Kim Newman (1968-71) 3. 2,423 Marc Kielkucki (1998-Pres.) 4. 2,389 Tom Talbot (1975-79) 5. 2,296 Pat Kielb (1993-97)
Kook 2K: Senior goalie Marc Kielkucki became the sixth player in school history to post 2,000 career saves. His 2,000th was among the 68 saves he made in two games against Bemidji State, Jan. 12-13. Kielkucki currently stands in third place with 2,423 career saves.
Saving the Day: Goalie Marc Kielkucki has posted more saves this season than any Falcon goalie in the past 19 years. "Kook's" 868 saves this season are the most since Mike Drake stopped 886 shots in the 1981-82 season. Below is a list of the most single-season saves in Air Force history.
1. 1,166, Kim Newman, 1969-70 2. 1,132, Al Morrison, 1972-73 3. 1,123, Kim Newman, 1970-71 4. 960, Tom Talbot, 1978-79 5, 914, Mike Drake, 1980-81 6, 886, Mike Drake, 1981-82 7. 868, Marc Kielkucki, 2000-01
National Leaders: Air Force is ranked in the top 20 in several NCAA categories for all games. The Falcons are 20th in power-play percentage (20.0) and 11th in penalty killing (86.1). Air Force is also the 16th least penalized team in the nation with 14.59 minutes per game.
CHA Team Leaders: The Falcons are tied for fifth in scoring offense (2.68) and fourth in defense (3.21). Air Force ranks third in power play (16.8) and second in penalty kill (89.9).
CHA Individual Leaders: All stats are for CHA games only:
Minutes Marc Kielkucki 1st 1141 Points Scott Zwiers T3rd 20 Points Brian Gornick T6th 19 Assists Scott Zwiers T2nd 14 Assists Scott Bradley T2nd 14 Goals Brian Gornick T1st 12 Goals Andy Berg T5th 11 PPG Brian Gornick T2nd 5 PPG Andy Berg T2nd 5 GWG Brian Gornick T4th 2 GWG Andy Berg T4th 2 DEF. Jace Anders T4th 10 pts GAA Marc Kielkucki 4th 2.95 SV % Marc Kielkucki 3rd .910 Fr.Def. Joe Locallo 3rd 5 pts
The Comforts of Home: Frank Serratore has brought winning hockey back to the Cadet Ice Arena. After back-to-back home losing seasons in 1996 and 1997, the Falcons have won 66 percent of their home games since 1998-99 (34-16-6). The team posted the best home winning percentage in 10 years last season (.722). This season, Air Force is 11-6-2 at home (.631).
Road to Success: Serratore has put the words road and success together in the same sentence. Prior to Serratore taking over the Falcons in 1997-98, AFA won just eight road games in six years. Under the fourth-year coach, the Falcons have won 16 road games. In the last 52 road games, the Falcons are 16-34-2 (33 percent). The Falcons won seven road games last season to tie the second most in school history. Air Force has won four road games this season.
Last Week: Air Force and Army split an intense two-game non-conference series at the Cadet Ice Arena.
Friday vs. Army (Mar. 2): Senior forward Mike Fairman scored two goals and Scott Hamilton made 30 saves as Army defeated Air Force, 5-2. The win by Army broke Air Force's eight-game unbeaten streak over the Black Knights. Army had not beaten Air Force since a 6-3 decision at AFA in 1997. Air Force head coach Frank Serratore suffered his first loss ever to Army in eight games. Army struck first as Fairman scored a short-handed goal at the 14:31 mark of the first period. The two teams combined for 28 shots in a fast-paced opening period. Air Force tied the score early in the second period as Brian Gornick netted a power-play goal at 5:58. His blast from the circle was assisted by Andy Berg and Scott Zwiers. Army jumped ahead again as Colorado Springs' native (Rampart High School) Patrick Topping scored at 17:16. Thirty seconds later, the Falcons again tied the score as Andy Berg scored unassisted after intercepting an Army pass at his own blue line. Fairman struck again early in the third period as he tallied the game-winner at 7:06 on a power play. Army's K.C. Finnegan gave the Black Knights a 4-2 lead at 11:06. Air Force pulled goalie Marc Kielkucki with 3:05 remaining and Army added empty-net goal with 41 seconds left in the game. Air Force out-shot Army, 32-28. The two teams combined for 28 penalties and 64 minutes.
Saturday vs. Army (Mar. 3): Freshman defenseman Joe Locallo scored two goals, including the game-winner, to lead Air Force to a 4-3 win in the final regular season college hockey game for both teams. This Air Force-Army series was a carbon copy of the previous 28 games. Hard-checks, intense play, end-to-end action and rough battles in the corners. Army's Alex Rogosheske gave the Black Knights a 1-0 lead at the 8:37 mark after punching in a rebound. Air Force came back one minute later to tie the game as defenseman Jake Tesar scored his first goal of the season. Brian Rodgers scored a power-play goal at 16:10 of the first period to give the Falcons their first lead of the series. Rodgers netted a rebound of Jace Anders' shot. Locallo, a freshman defenseman from Chicago, Ill., scored his first goal of the night and his second of the season midway through the second period. Army refused to give up and tied the game with two power-play goals late in the period. Air Force jumped ahead early in the third period and then held on for the win. Locallo netted his second goal of the night and the first game-winner of his career. Billy O'Reilly tipped a backhand pass to Locallo who skated in uncontested, beat Hamilton with a nice move and scored into an open net. Air Force out-shot Army, 37-24, and held the shot advantage in every period.
Gornick Streaking: Junior winger Brian Gornick has scored at least one point in his last five games, to tie the longest scoring streak on the team this season. During those five games, he has eight points. During the streak, he tied the team's longest goal-scoring streak of the season. His string of four striaght games with a goal ended agianst Army, March 3.
