Bentley Continues Stretch of Road Games at Army West Point
The Matchup: Bentley will play its second of three straight series on the road against Army West Point this weekend. Both games on Friday and Saturday night begin at 7:05 PM.
The Falcons are coming off a split at Air Force last weekend with a 5-1 win in the first game and a 2-0 defeat in the second game. The Black Knights took on Lindenwood in non-conference games last weekend and were swept. They defeated Dartmouth 8-3 on Oct. 30 and the last time they played a conference game was an 8-2 defeat to AIC on Oct. 28.
Follow the Games: Both games this weekend can be seen on FloHockey.TV. A subscription is required.
Live stats can be found at https://bentleyfalcons.com/sports/mice/2022-23/schedule
Last Time Out: The Falcons were out in Colorado last weekend to take on Air Force and they won the first game 5-1 behind a fast start in the 1st period. They scored four goals in the first 9:22 of the game. Dylan Pitera scored just 42 seconds into the contest, the fastest goal scored in Atlantic Hockey this season. Junior Ethan Harrison scored at the 2:14 mark to make it 2-0, his third goal of the season.
A goal by defenseman Nick Bochen at 4:44 made it 3-0 and senior Joe Winkelmann lit the lamp at the 9:22 mark. Bochen added a power play goal at 19:29 of the 2nd period for his second goal of the night. Goaltender Nicholas Grabko made 31 saves to earn the win.
On Saturday Air Force won 2-0 despite 40 saves by freshman goalie Connor Hasley. Both Air Force goals came on the power play and Hasley was 33-33 at even-strength. The 40 save-performance was a season and career high for him and tied the third-highest save total in Atlantic Hockey this season.
Rookie of the Week: Hasley's performance on Saturday earned him Atlantic Hockey Rookie of the Week honors. It's his third award this season from the conference after he was Goalie of the Week on Oct. 17 and the Rookie of the Month for October.
Bochen Moves Up: With his two goals on Friday, Nick Bochen now has eight points on the season. That leads the team and is the 7th most among defensemen in Atlantic Hockey. He leads the team with five assists and is tied for second with three goals, behind Dylan Pitera's four.
Series History: This weekend will be the 80th and 81st all-time meetings between Bentley and Army. The series dates back to the 1981-82 season and it can't be any closer at 32-32-15.
The number of games makes Army the opponent Bentley has played second most, behind 82 games against Sacred Heart.
Bentley won both games against Army last season, by scores of 3-1 and 5-0 at home on Nov. 26 and 27. In the 3-1 win Dylan Pitera had a power play goal and the 5-0 victory featured the first two career goals by then-freshman Danny Pearson.
Army has won the last three games at Tate Rink, all played during the Covid altered 2020-21 season.
Up Next: Bentley is on the road again next weekend to take on Sacred Heart on Nov. 25 at 4:05 PM and Nov. 26 at 1:05 PM.