Falcons Follies

This story first appeared on the New England Hockey Journal website.  To view the original story by Jim Connelly click here.

By Jim ConnellyDec 12 2007 4:38 PM

A 4-1-1 start in league play seemed to have the Bentley Falcons poised to make a run toward the top of Atlantic Hockey. But a few bumps in the road in the last month have many wondering if Bentley is simply beginning to come back to Earth.  

Last week, Bentley looked defensively hopeless in a 6-5 loss to Sacred Heart. And a 4-1 non-

league loss at UMass-Lowell Saturday sent Bentley to the break riding a five-game winless streak.  

The silver lining, though, comes in the team's effort, according to head coach Ryan Soderquist (Stoneham, Mass.). The Sacred Heart game seemed to be an aberration for all involved, Soderquist said, and Saturday's loss against Lowell - which saw a hard-fought effort from the Falcons for much of the game - was more indicative of the way this Falcons team has played much of the season.  

Saturday, Bentley was less than a tick of the clock away from heading to the game's final period tied at 1. Instead, the Falcons surrendered a goal with 0.9 seconds remaining.  

"You can never give up a goal late in a period, never mind with under a second left," said Soderquist. "We had a chance to get the puck out twice and we didn't. It was pretty disturbing."  

Soderquist felt his team left everything on the ice in the game's final period, but after falling behind, that simply wasn't enough.  

Still, Bentley's overall play in the game could be something to carry the Falcons into the second half on a somewhat positive note.  

NEHJ Player of the Week

Andrew Loewen, So., Canisius The goaltender continued to backbone Canisius in net - stopping 72 shots in back-to-back 3-3 ties against Air Force. Loewen's 40 saves in Saturday's series finale was a season best for the sophomore.  

Looking Ahead

AIC at Mercyhurst, Friday & Saturday, Dec. 14 & 15 It should be an interesting battle in Erie, Penn., this weekend as the Lakers and Yellow Jackets square off in the league's only battle. AIC was one of the league's hottest teams, until RIT cooled them off on Saturday night. Mercyhurst, idle this past week, is looking to close out a tough first half of the season with some victories. This could be a battle of the netminders, as a healthy Matt Lundin mans the net for the Lakers and Dan Ramirez looks to bounce back off a tough 5-0 loss Saturday.  

Around Atlantic Hockey  

Air Force
Brent Olsen took over the team lead in scoring by netting two goals in Saturday night's 3-3 tie with Canisius. Olsen has seven goals on the season, one better than Eric Ehn and Jeff Hajner.  

AIC
The Yellow Jackets earned their first every victory over RIT Friday night with a 4-1 win. It's the fourth league victory of the season for AIC which the club just three shy of their total for all of last year with 17 games to play.  

Army
Senior Bryce Hollweg is among the 20 players announced as candidates for the 2007-08 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. Hollweg, a team captain, is eligible for the award that honors a player who has combined excellent in athletics, academics and community support.  

Bentley
The Falcons are the only team in Atlantic Hockey that will not play a holiday (either Thanksgiving or post-Christmas) tournament this season. The Falcons, in fact, won't return to play again until 2008, when they head to Canisius in the first weekend of January.  

Canisius
The Griffs came from behind twice this past weekend to earn 3-3 ties with Air Force. Friday's tie was the more dramatic, as Canisius held a 2-0 lead entering the third, surrendered three third-period goals, but then knotted the game in the final two minutes. The two ties were Canisius' third and fourth this season.  

UConn
To say that last-place UConn's offense needs a shot in the arm is a bit of an understatement. The Huskies have scored more than three goals in a game just once this season - the season opener, a 4-2 win over AIC. UConn has scored just five goals in its last eight games.  

Holy Cross
The Crusaders enter the break on a four-game unbeaten streak, its longest of the season, but have posted three ties in that span. Last Tuesday's tie against Merrimack improved the Crusaders to 1-0-1 against Hockey East opponents this season.  

Mercyhurst
After playing just five home games thus far this season, Mercyhurst will begin play its next six games in Erie beginning this weekend against AIC. The Lakers-Yellow Jackets series is the only one on the conference slate this week.  

RIT
The Tigers and their goaltender Louis Menard posted their first shutout of the season Saturday, a 5-0 victory over AIC. Though having to settle for a split on the weekend, forward Jesse Newman had a banner night on Saturday, registering his first career two-goal game. Newman, a junior, had just four career goals entering the game.  

Sacred Heart
Alexandre Parent posted his first four-point game of the season and third of his career tallying two goals and two assists in Wednesday's 6-5 win over Bentley. Parent had twice tallied four points in a game previously, both occurring in his sophomore season.