No. 17 Falcons host Sacred Heart, Feb. 24-25
2/21/2017 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
This Week
No. 17 Air Force (21-8-5, 18-5-3 AHC) hosts the Sacred Heart Pioneers (11-16-5, 9-14-6 AHC), Friday-Saturday, Feb. 24-25, at the Cadet Ice Arena. Friday's faceoff is at 7:05 pm MT while Saturday's game will start at 5:05 pm.
The Playoffs
Air Force is in second place in Atlantic Hockey with 39 points, one point behind Canisius (40). Canisius plays one game this week, at home against Mercyhurst on Thursday, Feb. 23. Even with a Canisius win, the Falcons would three back with four points available this weekend. The Falcons have already clinched a first-round bye and home ice in the quarterfinals, March 10-12, at Cadet Ice Arena. The lowest Air Force can finish would be second.
The Streak
Air Force's eight-game unbeaten streak (7-0-1) is the fourth-longest in the nation. Canisius holds the longest streak at 14 games (11-0-3). Harvard has a 10-game streak while Minnesota Duluth is at nine. During the streak, Air Force has out-scored its opponents, 32-12. Since Dec. 9, Air Force is 14-2-2, the best winning percentage (83.3) in the nation over the last 18 games.
The National Rankings
Air Force is in the national rankings for the third straight week, standing at 17th in the USCHO.com poll. It is the highest the Falcons have been ranked since being 16th in the final poll in 2011-12. It is the fourth week the Falcons have been ranked this season: No. 18 on Oct. 10, No. 20 on Feb. 7 and 19th on Feb. 14. Air Force is 15th in the PairWise rankings and receiving votes in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll.
Number 400
Head coach Frank Serratore needs one win for the 400th of his career. With one more win, Serratore will become the 21st coach in the history of NCAA hockey with 400 or more wins. He would also be just the eighth active coach with 400 or more, joining Jerry York (Boston College), Red Berenson (Michigan), Don Lucia (Minnesota), Dick Umile (New Hampshire), Jeff Jackson (Notre Dame), Bob Daniels (Ferris State), Mike Schafer (Cornell) and Dean Blais (Omaha).
Serratore had 49 wins in four seasons at the University of Denver before posting 350 at Air Force is 20 seasons.
Quick Strikes
* Air Force's 21 wins are tied as the third most in the nation (Denver and Union have 22).
* Air Force's 13 road wins are the most in the nation (Union and UMass-Lowell have 12).
* Air Force and Sacred Heart met back in December in Connecticut and AF needed two goals in the third period of each game to win, 3-1 and 3-2. Air Force came from behind to win game two.
* Air Force ranks first in the AHC and second in the nation in penalty kill at 88.5 percent
* Air Force is 19-1-3 when scoring three or more goals in a game.
Trending
Evan Giesler recorded his first career hat trick in the win over RIT, Feb. 17 ... It was the first hat trick by a Falcon since Cole Gunner vs. AIC in 2015 ... Phil Boje has scored a point in seven of the last eight games and is second in the league in points by defenseman in all games (7-17-24) ... Jordan Himley and Kyle Haak are tied for the team lead with 28 points ... Himley has nine points in his last six games (2-7-9) and Himley has 16-12-28 on the season ... He leads the team in goals ... Haak had two points in the win over RIT on Feb. 18 and 11-17-28 on the season ... He is tied for the team lead with 17 assists with Boje and Giesler ... Himley and Haak are tied for eight in the league in scoring in all games ... Himley is third in goals ... Boje is third in the league in blocked shots (65) ... Air Force has had 30 or more shots on goal in six of the last seven games.
Scouting Sacred Heart
Sacred Heart is 11-16-5 overall and 9-14-3 in Atlantic Hockey for ninth place. The Pioneers split a two-game series with Bentley last week, falling 4-0 on the road and winning 3-2 at home. Since Jan. 7, the Pioneers are 5-3-3 with one of the losses to first-place Canisius. Senior forward Justin Danforth leads the team with 26 points while fellow senior Jordan Minello leads the team with 15 goals. Sophomore Brett Magnus has started 23 games in goal, including the last 11, and has a 2.99 GAA and a .901 saves percentage.
Series vs. Sacred Heart
Air Force and Sacred Heart have played 37 times and the Falcons hold a 24-8-5 lead in the series that began in 2000. In Atlantic Hockey games, Air Force has a 21-6-4 advantage in the series. The teams have played six straight in Connecticut. The last series at Air Force was in 2014. In games played in Colorado, Air Force has a 12-1-1 advantage. The only SHU win in the series at Air Force came in game two of the league quarterfinals in 2009. Air Force won the third game and went on to win the AHC Final Four and advance to the NCAA Elite Eight that season. Air Force has won three straight in the series.
