Bentley Visits Army West Point Looking to Extend Winning Streak
The Matchup: Bentley visits Army West Point this weekend for two games with the Falcons looking to extend their three game winning streak. The series gets underway on Friday night and both games of the series begin at 7:05 pm.
Both teams will go into the weekend on three game winning streaks. The Falcons (6-8, 4-7 AHA) defeated Brown and swept Holy Cross last weekend to move up in the AHA standings. Army (10-4, 8-4 AHA) swept Canisius on the road last weekend, and is currently tied for first in the conference standings with Robert Morris with 24 points.
Follow the Games: Both games can be seen live on FloHockey.TV, which requires a subscription.
Things to Know: This weekend will be the second and third times Bentley and Army West Point have faced each other this season. They first met back on Oct. 25 at Bentley Arena in a 5-0 Falcons victory. Bentley led 2-0 after the 1st period and tacked on three goals in the 3rd period. Sophomore Jakov Novak and junior Michael Zuffante each had two goals. Senior goalie Aidan Pelino made 25 saves to earn his 4th career shutout. The five goals Bentley scored in that game are the most Army has allowed this season.
These teams will meet for a 4th time later this season, on Feb. 7 at Bentley Arena.
The all-time series between the two programs couldn't be much closer, with Army holding a slight edge at 28-27-15. In two games last season at Tate Rink, Bentley won (2-1) and tied (3-3) on the final weekend of the regular season. The Falcons won the season series last year 2-1-1. In the last 10 games in the series at Tate Rink, Bentley has a 3-2-5 edge.
Falcon Facts: Bentley's Jakov Novak is tied for 2nd in Atlantic Hockey with 16 points, on 9 goals and 7 assists. He's tied for 3rd in the AHA in goals scored, and his 9 goals is just three off the national lead. Three of his goals have been game-winners, tied for 2nd most nationally.
Novak had at least one point in seven of nine games in November.
Freshman Matt Gosiewski has three goals in the last four games, including the only goal in the 1-0 win over Brown on Nov. 26. He is 2nd on the team with 10 points (5g, 5a) and has the 3rd most points among freshmen in Atlantic Hockey.
Bentley has already scored five shorthanded goals this season. Novak and junior Brendan Hamblet each have two, which is tied for the 2nd most nationally.
Sophomore goalie Fraser Kirk was named the AHA Goalie of the Week on Tuesday. He started all three games last week to help Bentley to three wins, and he posted a combined .959 save percentage and 1.00 GAA. On the season, Kirk has a 4-1 record with a .938 save percentage and 1.50 GAA.
Looking at Army: The Black Knights have won six of seven games entering the weekend and are tied for the AHA lead with 24 points. They boast a strong defense, as they lead the AHA in both scoring defense (2.14) and penalty kill percentage (93.2). In goal, junior Trevin Kozlowski has started all 14 games, and he has a 1.98 GAA and .920 save percentage on the season.
Seniors Zach Evancho and Michael Wilson lead the team with six goals each.
Up Next: The Falcons will be back on the road for their next game, when they visit Dartmouth on Thursday, Dec. 12. That game can be seen on ESPN+, and will be the team's final game of the first half.