The Purple Eagles’ Playoff Run Continues at Air Force
NIAGARA UNIV., N.Y. – The sixth-seeded Niagara Purple Eagles continue their quest for their first AHA Tournament Title when Niagara travels to Air Force in a best-of-three quarterfinal series, March 14-16, at the Cadet Ice Arena in Colorado Springs, Colo. All three games are scheduled for 9:05 p.m. ET.
The Purple Eagles (13-18-5; 11-11-5 AHA) and third-seeded Air Force (20-12-4; 15-9-3 AHA) open the series Friday and Saturday at 9:05 p.m. ET, and Sunday’s game if necessary is also at 9:05 p.m. ET. The winner advances to the semifinal round (March 21) at Blue Cross Arena in Rochester, N.Y.
Niagara earned a spot in the AHA quarterfinal round with a 2-0 series win over AIC on home ice. The Purple Eagles won the first game in double overtime (1-0) and posted a 4-2 win in the rubber game the following day. The Purple and White are 6-3-0 all-time in the AHA Tournament, including 6-1-0 at home and 0-2-0 away from Dwyer. The first round series against the Yellow Jackets was the first since becoming a member of the AHA back in 2010-11 where the Purple and White dropped a 6-3 decision to cross-town rival Canisius in a single-elimination contest at Dwyer.
NIAGARA LEADERS
• Isaac Kohls and Hugo Turcotte lead the team in scoring with 24 points each. Kohls is at the top of the statistical board in goals (12), while Turcotte has 15 assists to his name to lead the squad. Ryan Rashid has also been a key offensive contributor, pocketing 11 goals and 10 assists.
• Matt Williams is first with a +16 plus/minus rating.
• Hugo Turcotte leads the squad with 122 shots on goal. Patrick Divjak is close behind with 116 looks on net.
• Freshmen goaltenders Jackson Teichroeb (7-12-3) and Adrian Ignagni (6-6-2) have split time, although Teichroeb has started the previous seven games. Teichroeb owns a .909 save percentage and a 2.66 goals-against average.
LAST TIME OUT
• Niagara hockey swept the AIC Yellow Jackets in the Atlantic Hockey First Round series, winning game one, 1-0, in double overtime and taking the second contest, 4-2
• Dan Kolenda scored at 4:43 of the second overtime in game one for the win while NU received goals from Sam Alfieri, Matt Chartrain, Ryan Rashid and Matt Williams the following day en route to the sweep
• Jackson Teichroeb earned the start both nights, making a combined 68 saves, including 39 in the double OT game for his third shutout of the season.
BEST-OF-THREE
• With the sweep over AIC, Niagara won their third straight AHA best-of-three playoff.
• Since joining the AHA in 2010-11, the Purple Eagles have not lost a best-of-three series. In 2012, they finished second and swept seventh-seeded Robert Morris in a matchup of former CHA rivals. Last year, Niagara swept RIT after finishing first.
• The Purple Eagles have never won a single game playoff, losing in the divisional first round in 2011 to Canisius and losing in the AHA Semifinals in both ’12 to RIT and ’13 to the Golden Griffins.
NOT PLAYING LIKE A ROOKIE
• After turning in a pair of solid performances in the weekend sweep over the AIC Yellow Jackets in the Atlantic Hockey First Round series, freshman goaltender Jackson Teichroeb pocketed AHA Team USA Rookie of the Week honors.
• This is the goaltender’s fifth conference weekly award of the season, and third Rookie of the Week honor.
• Game one saw Teichroeb push aside 38 AIC shots in a season-high 84:41 minutes of play. Teichroeb made 31 saves in regulation and stopped seven shots in double overtime for his third shutout of the season. The following day the rookie made his seventh consecutive start, snuffing 29 attempts on net to push his record to 7-12-3 on the season. On the weekend he had a .971 save percentage and a 0.83 goals-against average.
• In 25 games, Teichroeb has made 627 saves for a 2.66 goals-against average and a .909 save percentage.
BACK-TO-BACK-TO-BACK-TO-BACK
• NU’s Ryan Rashid pocketed a two-point evening against AIC (March 8) pushing him to 21 points on the season. Cracking the 20-point mark makes him the first Purple Eagle to net four consecutive 20-point seasons since Chris Moran achieved it from the 2006-10 season.
• Rashid has pocketed 20-plus points during his first three seasons as a Purple Eagle: 26 as a rookie, and 21 as a sophomore and junior. The co-captain currently has 21 points off 11 goals and 10 assists.
SERIES HISTORY
• Air Force and Niagara will meet for the 54th time with NU holding a 30-19-4 lead in the series that began in 1996 when both teams were independents.
• The 31 times played while both programs were members of the College Hockey America conference saw NU win 22 of 31 meetings.
• Air Force has had the upper hand since becoming AHA rivals, holding a 8-3-1 lead in the series.
SCOUTING THE FALCONS
• Air Force currently owns a 20-12-4 overall record, and finished the AHA regular season with a 15-9-3 mark for third place.
• The Falcons’ last pair of games came against Niagara on Feb. 28 and March 1. Air Force dropped game one, 4-1, while ending the regular season with a 4-1 victory over the Purple Eagles the following day to split the weekend series and take the overall series two games to one.
• Air Force is averaging 2.97 goals a game and are allowing 2.69, placing them 24th and 27th in the nation, respectively.
• The power play has gone 23-for-145, while the penalty kill is 102-for-126, ranking them 43rd and 40th in the NCAA, respectively.
• Cole Gunner leads the offense with 42 points off 14 goals and 28 assists. Chad Demers is just three points behind Gunner with 14 goals and 25 assists, while Scott Holm has cracked the 20-point mark (27) with 11 goals and 16 helpers.
• In the net, Jason Torf (12-6-4) has played the majority of games, playing in 23, while Chris Truehl (8-3-0) has also seen some time between the pipes. Torf owns a .912 save percentage and a 2.55 goals against average, while Truehl has made 278 saves for a .921 save percentage and a 2.01 goals against average.
