Falcons idle this week
11/5/2002 12:00:00 AM | Hockey
Nov. 5, 2002
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This Week: Air Force (4-4, 1-1 CHA) is off this week. The Falcons return to action Nov. 15-16 with a two-game College Hockey America series at Alabama-Huntsville, 7:05 p.m. CST at the Von Braun Center in Huntsville. UAH is 0-6 this season and is idle this week.
Radio/Television/Internet: None.
Conference Unbeaten Streak Ends: Air Force's eight-game regular-season conference unbeaten streak, a school-record, ended with a 6-2 loss to Niagara, Nov. 2. The Falcons were 6-0-2 on the streak. The streak dates back to last season and started with a 2-2 overtime tie at Bemidji State, Feb. 9. AFA then swept the home series with Alabama-Huntsville and took three points at Niagara, Feb. 22-23. Air Force swept Findlay in the final regular-season conference series last season. The streak was the second-longest in the league. Wayne State has a current 10-game regular-season conference unbeaten streak (9-0-1). The Warriors last loss was at home to Air Force, Jan. 12, 2002.
CHA Individual Leaders: Air Force boasts four of the top seven scorers in the CHA. Andy Berg is second (7-6-13), Scott Zwiers is third (3-8-11), Ryan Wiggins is tied for fifth (2-6-8) and Steve Mead is seventh (1-6-7). Berg is also second in the league with seven goals. Zwiers leads the CHA with eight assists while Wiggins and Berg are tied for second with seven. Berg leads the league with nine power-play points and six power-play goals. Mead leads all CHA defensemen with seven points. Brian Reaney and Ross Miller are tied for second with four points. Carson Strang is tied for second among CHA freshmen with four points, while Matt Bader is tied for first with three goals and is tied for fourth with three points.
CHA Team Leaders: Air Force leads the CHA in scoring with 3.75 goals per game. The Falcons are fifth of six teams in scoring defense, allowing 5.25 per game. The Falcons also lead the league with 21.6 penalty minutes per game. The Falcon power play (25.0) ranks third while the penalty kill is fifth (74.1).
National Leaders: Andy Berg is tied for 13th in the nation with 13 points and is tied for ninth with seven goals. Berg is also tied for second with six power-play goals. Scott Zwiers is tied for 15th in the nation with eight assists. Mike Polidor is fourth in the nation with 450 minutes played.
Trifecta: Freshman Matt Bader has scored a goal in three straight games, the longest goal-scoring streak on the team. The forward from Beaverton, Ore., scored a goal in the second game against Holy Cross and then had one in each game against Bentley. His streak is the longest since Derek Olson scored a goal in five straight games in February last season. Bader missed the two games at Niagara with a concussion suffered in practice.
First Goal: Freshman Steve Cook scored the first goal of his career in the win over Niagara, Nov. 1. Cook came to the Falcons right out of high school in the Denver Area. A native of Morrison, Colo., Cook attended high school at the Colorado Academy and played midget hockey for the Arvada Midgets under coach Mike McCready.
Who's Hot: Andy Berg has scored at least one point in the last four games. In those four games, Berg has two goals and four assists for six points. In the last five games, Steve Mead has seven points, one goal and six assists. Seth Pelletier has scored three goals in the last six games after not scoring a goal in 13 games last season. Tom Starkey scored a goal in the first game at Niagara after not scoring a point in three straight games. Brian Reaney has a three-game scoring streak. Spanky Leonard scored just one point in the first four games and now has two goals and five points in the last four games. Scott Zwiers has scored at least one point in the last three games. In those three games, he has two goals and six points. Shane Saum has four points in the last three games.
Berg and Zwiers Climb Up the Charts: Seniors Andy Berg and Scott Zwiers continue to climb up the career scoring list at Air Force. Berg has 115 points (49-66) in 111 games and is 28th on the career scoring list. Zwiers has 101 points (41-60) in 118 games and is 36th on the list.
The Century Mark: Scott Zwiers became the 37th player in Air Force history to post 100 or more career points. Zwiers' 100th point was a goal against Niagara in the 5-2 win on Nov. 1. He moved ahead of former teammate and current assistant coach Brian Rodgers and into 36th place with an assist on Nov. 2.
Last Week: Air Force split a two-game series at Niagara, winning the first game, 5-2, and losing the second, 6-2. The series was the CHA opener for both teams.
On Deck: Air Force is at Alabama-Huntsville, Nov. 15-16, at 7:05 p.m. CST at the Von Braun Center in Huntsville.
