2021–22 Air Force Falcons men's ice hockey season

2021–22 Air Force Falcons
men's ice hockey season
Conference6th Atlantic Hockey
Home iceCadet Ice Arena
Rankings
USCHONR
USA TodayNR
Record
Overall16–17–3
Conference11–12–3
Home8–9–1
Road7–7–2
Neutral1–1–0
Coaches and captains
Head coachFrank Serratore
Assistant coachesAndy Berg
Joe Doyle
Captain(s)Luke Rowe
Alex Schilling
Alternate captain(s)Blake Bride
Willie Reim
Air Force Falcons men's ice hockey seasons
« 2020–21 2022–23 »

The 2021–22 Air Force Falcons men's ice hockey season is the 54th season of play for the program and the 16th season in the Atlantic Hockey conference. The Falcons represented the United States Air Force Academy and were coached by Frank Serratore, in his 25th season.

Season

After the worst season for the program in 25 years and likely its most trying, Air Force returned to the ice ready to put COVID-19 in the past. At the start, senior netminder and team co-captain, Alex Schilling, got the starting role but didn't perform particularly well. The Falcons got off to a 2–5–1 start with Schilling allowing nearly 5 goals a game on average. Despite the horrid start, Frank Serratore stuck with Schilling and the goals against slowly declined as the team got into its conference schedule.

A bad stretch at home in November sent the Falcons to the bottom of the Atlantic Hockey standings. While they recovered a bit by taking a series against Canisius, Air Force opened the second half of its season getting swept by American International. Fortunately, the rest of January was kind to the Falcons and they won five of their next six games to pull back into the middle of the pack. The team was up and down in the final month of the regular season and Air Force ended up 6th, guaranteeing them a bye into the conference quarterfinals, but making them do so on the road.

Air Force began its postseason against their fellow service academy, Army. The first game was a see-saw battle that saw both teams take two 1-goal leads. The Falcon offense opened up on Army's goal, firing 51 shots in nearly 4 periods of work and managed to earn the overtime victory. The second match was just as close with the teams again trading leads but, again, Air Force netted a goal in overtime to sweep the series and make the semifinals. Their match against RIT turned out to be a series of short-lived leads for Air Force as the Tigers tied the game quickly on three separate occasions. Near the mid-point of the third, however, the Falcons finally were able to hold onto their lead and fended RIT off for the final 10 minutes to send the team to the championship game. Air Force's season ended with a thud when the team was completely dominated by AIC, 0–7. The Falcons kept the game close initially, but the team got into penalty trouble, taking 40 minutes worth of infractions, and allowed four power play goals.

Departures

Player Position Nationality Cause
Erik Anderson Goaltender  United States Graduation (retired)
Marshall Bowery Forward  United States Graduation (retired)
Thomas Daskas Forward  United States Transferred to Miami
Max Harper Forward  United States Graduation (retired)
Noah Kim Defenseman  United States Transferred to Wisconsin–River Falls
Shawn Knowlton Forward  United States Graduation (retired)
Zach LaRocque Goaltender  United States Graduation (retired)
Jacob Levin Defenseman  United States Graduation (retired)
Keenan Lund Forward  United States Transferred to Augsburg
Alex Mehnert Defenseman  United States Graduation (retired)
Zachary Mirageas Defenseman  United States Graduation (retired)

Recruiting

Player Position Nationality Age Notes
Guy Blessing Goaltender  United States 20 Chandler, AZ
Lucas Coon Forward  United States 19 Steamboat Springs, CO
Clay Cosentino Forward  United States 21 Framingham, MA
Andrew DeCarlo Forward  United States 21 Huntington Beach, CA
Mitchell Digby Forward  United States 21 Ottawa Lake, MI
Jason Kleinhans Forward  United States 20 Herndon, VA
Jasper Lester Defenseman  United States 21 Colorado Springs, CO
Frederick Paine Defenseman  United States 20 Duluth, MN
Austin Schwartz Forward  United States 20 Parker, CO
Drake Usher Defenseman  United States 21 Upland, CA

Roster

As of August 23, 2021.[1]

No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team NHL rights
1 Arizona Guy Blessing Freshman G 6' 3" (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 2001-05-08 Chandler, Arizona Lone Star (NAHL) —
2 Minnesota Andrew Kruse Junior D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1998-12-06 Delano, Minnesota Minnesota Magicians (NAHL) —
4 New Jersey Luke Rowe (C) Junior D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1998-08-08 Succasunna, New Jersey Boston Jr. Bruins (NCDC) —
7 California Brian Adams Sophomore F 5' 8" (1.73 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1999-12-07 San Ramon, California Wenatchee (BCHL) —
8 Colorado Blake Bride (A) Junior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1998-04-22 Broomfield, Colorado Sioux Falls (USHL) —
9 Colorado Lucas Coon Freshman F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 2001-11-24 Steamboat Springs, Colorado Odessa (NAHL) —
10 Colorado Austin Schwartz Freshman F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 2001-06-18 Parker, Colorado Bismarck (NAHL) —
12 Minnesota Billy Duma Senior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1997-11-17 Wayzata, Minnesota Amarillo (NAHL) —
14 Colorado Jacob Marti Sophomore F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1999-06-10 Highlands Ranch, Colorado Bismarck (NAHL) —
15 Minnesota Bennett Norlin Junior F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1998-10-26 Farmington, Minnesota West Kelowna (BCHL) —
16 Michigan Sam Brennan Sophomore D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 2000-01-16 Brighton, Michigan Lone Star (NAHL) —
17 South Carolina Parker Brown Sophomore D 5' 10" (1.78 m) 155 lb (70 kg) 1999-09-08 Hanahan, South Carolina Fairbanks (NAHL) —
18 Colorado Ty Pochipinski Junior F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1998-06-05 Colorado Springs, Colorado Penticton (BCHL) —
20 Minnesota Brandon Koch Junior D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1999-01-18 Hastings, Minnesota Wenatchee (BCHL) —
22 California Drake Usher Freshman D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 2000-04-29 Upland, California Wichita Falls (NAHL) —
23 Minnesota Willie Reim (A) Junior F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1999-01-11 North Oaks, Minnesota West Kelowna (BCHL) —
24 Minnesota Nate Horn Sophomore F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 160 lb (73 kg) 1999-03-02 Elk River, Minnesota Minnesota Wilderness (NAHL) —
25 Virginia Jason Kleinhans Freshman F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2000-10-04 Herndon, Virginia Danbury (NAHL) —
26 California Clayton Cosentino Freshman F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 2000-06-18 San Carlos, California Aberdeen (NAHL) —
27 Tennessee Luke Robinson Sophomore D 6' 3" (1.91 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 2000-02-16 Nashville, Tennessee Dubuque (USHL) —
28 Michigan Mitchell Digby Freshman D 5' 11" (1.8 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2000-06-26 Ottawa Lake, Michigan Lone Star (NAHL) —
29 Colorado Jasper Lester Freshman D 5' 11" (1.8 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2000-07-31 Colorado Springs, Colorado Fairbanks (NAHL) —
33 Minnesota Alex Schilling (C) Senior G 6' 1" (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1997-12-23 Medina, Minnesota Austin (NAHL) —
37 Connecticut Will Gavin Sophomore F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1999-10-21 Durham, Connecticut Northern (NCDC) —
41 Colorado Austin Park Junior G 5' 11" (1.8 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1998-06-05 Highlands Ranch, Colorado Wenatchee (BCHL) —
47 Minnesota Dalton Weigel Junior D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1999-12-30 Bloomington, Minnesota Aberdeen (NAHL) —
51 Colorado Maiszon Balboa Sophomore G 6' 2" (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2000-04-18 Colorado Springs, Colorado Shreveport (NAHL) —
77 Minnesota Frederick Paine Freshman D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 2000-11-21 Duluth, Minnesota Lone Star (NAHL) —
82 California Andrew DeCarlo Freshman F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2000-07-23 Huntington Beach, California Lone Star (NAHL) —

Standings

2021–22 Atlantic Hockey Standings
Conference record Overall record
GP W L T OW OL SW PTS GF GA GP W L T GF GA
#18 American International †* 26 17 7 2 1 2 0 54 97 61 38 22 13 3 134 95
Canisius 26 13 11 2 2 1 1 43 76 67 35 16 16 3 99 97
Army 26 12 11 3 0 1 2 42 75 68 35 14 17 4 98 100
RIT 26 12 10 4 1 3 3 41 69 82 38 18 16 4 92 115
Sacred Heart 26 11 12 3 0 1 3 40 72 70 37 15 18 4 95 100
Air Force 26 11 12 3 3 2 2 37 76 80 36 16 17 3 99 127
Mercyhurst 26 10 12 4 0 1 1 36 75 79 39 16 19 4 114 129
Niagara 26 10 13 3 2 2 1 34 70 79 36 11 22 3 82 122
Bentley 26 10 14 2 1 2 1 34 70 78 36 14 20 2 94 117
Holy Cross 26 10 14 2 3 0 0 29 56 72 37 12 23 2 77 108
Championship: March 19, 2022
† indicates conference regular season champion
* indicates conference tournament champion (Riley Trophy)
Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll

Schedule and results

Date Time Opponent# Rank# Site TV Decision Result Attendance Record
Exhibition
October 2 6:00 PM at Colorado College* Ed Robson Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado (Exhibition)     W 2–1  3,502
Regular Season
October 8 5:00 PM at Michigan State* Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, Michigan   Schilling W 3–2  4,420 1–0–0
October 9 5:00 PM at Michigan State* Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, Michigan   Schilling L 1–5  4,918 1–1–0
October 15 7:05 PM #11 Denver* Cadet Ice Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Schilling L 1–4  2,623 1–2–0
October 16 6:07 PM at #11 Denver* Magness Arena • Denver, Colorado   Schilling L 0–8  4,926 1–3–0
October 23 3:00 PM at Lindenwood* Centene Community Ice Center • Maryland Heights, Missouri (Exhibition)     W 6–1   
October 24 3:00 PM at Lindenwood* Centene Community Ice Center • Maryland Heights, Missouri (Exhibition)     W 7–3   
October 29 7:05 PM Colorado College* Cadet Ice Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado (Battle for Pikes Peak)   Schilling W 5–4 OT 2,650 2–3–0
October 30 5:07 PM at Colorado College* Ed Robson Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado (Battle for Pikes Peak)   Schilling L 1–8  3,570 2–4–0
November 5 5:05 PM at Niagara Dwyer Arena • Lewiston, New York   Schilling L 3–4  880 2–5–0 (0–1–0)
November 6 3:05 PM at Niagara Dwyer Arena • Lewiston, New York   Schilling T 3–3 SOW 765 2–5–1 (0–1–1)
November 12 7:05 PM Bentley Cadet Ice Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Schilling W 2–1  1,968 3–5–1 (1–1–1)
November 13 5:05 PM Bentley Cadet Ice Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Schilling L 4–5  1,895 3–6–1 (1–2–1)
November 19 7:05 PM Sacred Heart Cadet Ice Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Schilling W 3–2  1,925 4–6–1 (2–2–1)
November 20 5:05 PM Sacred Heart Cadet Ice Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Schilling L 1–3  1,390 4–7–1 (2–3–1)
November 22 7:05 PM Sacred Heart Cadet Ice Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Schilling L 2–4  1,350 4–8–1 (2–4–1)
November 23 7:05 PM Sacred Heart Cadet Ice Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Schilling L 1–3  1,207 4–9–1 (2–5–1)
December 3 7:05 PM Canisius Cadet Ice Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Schilling W 5–2  1,652 5–9–1 (3–5–1)
December 4 5:05 PM Canisius Cadet Ice Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Schilling T 3–3 SOW 1,565 5–9–2 (3–5–2)
January 1 5:35 PM at American International MassMutual Center • Springfield, Massachusetts   Schilling L 2–5  182 5–10–2 (3–6–2)
January 2 2:05 PM at American International MassMutual Center • Springfield, Massachusetts   Blessing L 3–4  299 5–11–2 (3–7–2)
January 14 7:05 PM Niagara Cadet Ice Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Blessing W 5–4  1,157 6–11–2 (4–7–2)
January 15 5:05 PM Niagara Cadet Ice Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Blessing W 3–2  1,456 7–11–2 (5–7–2)
January 21 5:05 PM at Mercyhurst Mercyhurst Ice Center • Erie, Pennsylvania   Schilling W 5–2  120 8–11–2 (6–7–2)
January 22 2:05 PM at Mercyhurst Mercyhurst Ice Center • Erie, Pennsylvania   Schilling W 5–3  120 9–11–2 (7–7–2)
January 28 7:05 PM Army Cadet Ice Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Schilling L 3–8  3,032 9–12–2 (7–8–2)
January 29 5:05 PM Army Cadet Ice Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Schilling W 3–2 OT 2,175 10–12–2 (8–8–2)
February 4 5:00 PM at Canisius LECOM Harborcenter • Buffalo, New York   Schilling L 2–4  523 10–13–2 (8–9–2)
February 5 5:00 PM at Canisius LECOM Harborcenter • Buffalo, New York   Schilling W 3–2 OT 424 11–13–2 (9–9–2)
February 11 7:05 PM Holy Cross Cadet Ice Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Schilling L 2–3  1,327 11–14–2 (9–10–2)
February 12 5:05 PM Holy Cross Cadet Ice Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Schilling L 2–3  1,542 11–15–2 (9–11–2)
February 18 5:05 PM at Bentley Bentley Arena • Waltham, Massachusetts   Schilling W 4–1  1,498 12–15–2 (10–11–2)
February 18 3:05 PM at Bentley Bentley Arena • Waltham, Massachusetts   Schilling T 4–4 SOL 1,250 12–15–3 (10–11–3)
February 25 7:05 PM RIT Cadet Ice Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Schilling L 2–3 OT 1,401 12–16–3 (10–12–3)
February 26 5:05 PM RIT Cadet Ice Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Schilling W 1–0 OT 1,465 13–16–3 (11–12–3)
Atlantic Hockey Tournament
March 11 5:00 PM at Army* Tate Rink • West Point, New York (Quarterfinal game 1)   Schilling W 5–4 OT 1,251 14–16–3
March 12 5:00 PM at Army* Tate Rink • West Point, New York (Quarterfinal game 2)   Schilling W 3–2 OT 1,350 15–16–3
Air Force Won Series 2–0
March 18 5:35 PM vs. RIT* Adirondack Bank Center • Utica, New York (Semifinal)   Schilling W 4–3  1,072 16–16–3
March 19 5:35 PM vs. American International* Adirondack Bank Center • Utica, New York (Championship)   Schilling L 0–7  250 16–17–3
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Mountain Time.
Source:[2]

Scoring statistics

Name Position Games Goals Assists Points PIM
Will Gavin F 35 16 13 29 73
Willie Reim F 32 11 14 25 16
Brandon Koch D 36 3 22 25 22
Clayton Cosentino F 36 7 17 24 18
Nate Horn F 33 11 11 22 19
Sam Brennan D 34 6 13 19 38
Parker Brown F 34 5 14 19 21
Mitchell Digby D 36 6 12 18 33
Luke Rowe D 35 6 10 16 54
Andrew DeCarlo F 36 4 11 15 20
Lucas Coon F 36 5 5 10 10
Austin Schwartz F 36 3 5 8 10
Jacob Marti F 33 2 5 7 58
Brian Adams F 36 5 2 7 10
Bennett Norlin F 36 1 6 7 4
Blake Bride RW 31 3 3 6 11
Luke Robinson D 36 1 3 4 37
Drake Usher D 21 1 2 3 6
Ty Pochipinski F 7 2 0 2 6
Andrew Kruse D 23 1 0 1 0
Billy Duma F 2 0 0 0 0
Maiszon Balboa G 2 0 0 0 0
Jason Kleinhans F 2 0 0 0 0
Austin Park G 5 0 0 0 0
Dalton Weigel D 5 0 0 0 2
Guy Blessing G 8 0 0 0 0
Jasper Lester D 27 0 0 0 12
Alex Schilling G 34 0 0 0 0
Total 99 168 267 480

[3]

Goaltending statistics

Name Games Minutes Wins Losses Ties Goals Against Saves Shut Outs SV % GAA
Austin Park 11 80 0 0 0 3 31 0 .912 2.23
Guy Blessing 17 198 2 1 0 10 80 1 .889 3.02
Alex Schilling 34 1897 14 16 3 111 802 2 .878 3.51
Maiszon Balboa 5 13 0 0 0 2 4 0 .667 9.27
Empty Net - 23 - - - 1 - - - -
Total 36 2212 16 17 3 127 917 3 .878 3.44

Rankings

Main article: 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey rankings
Poll Week
Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 (Final)
USCHO.com NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR - NR
USA Today NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR

Note: USCHO did not release a poll in week 24.[4]

Awards and honors

Player Award Ref
Brandon Koch Atlantic Hockey Third Team [5]
Mitchell Digby Atlantic Hockey Rookie Team [5]
Clayton Cosentino
Brandon Koch Atlantic Hockey All-Tournament Team [6]
Will Gavin

References

  1. ^ "2021–22 Ice Hockey Roster". U.S. Air Force Academy Athletics. Retrieved October 20, 2012.
  2. ^ "Air Force 2021-22 Team Schedule". College Hockey Inc. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  3. ^ "Air Force Academy 2021-2022 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved March 2, 2022.
  4. ^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  5. ^ a b "Atlantic Hockey Announces 2021-22 All-Conference Teams". Atlantic Hockey. March 16, 2022. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  6. ^ "AIC Overpowers Air Force to Clinch Third-Straight Atlantic Hockey Postseason Championship". Atlantic Hockey. March 19, 2022. Retrieved March 20, 2022.