Earlier this month The Flight Path surveyed the Air Force hockey team about various player characteristics.

Twenty-five of the 30 players on the roster responded (83 percent) through an online survey. All results were anonymous. I’d like to thank the AFA players for taking the time to take the survey.

I’d also like to thank the following sponsors for helping make this possible:

Kostoff and Co. at Nova Home Loans – The Right Loan, The Right Lender

First Line Editorial – Your content, from concept to completion

What follows is fifth part of the series, which analyzes the results of the 20-question survey. The first four parts, which tackled various categories, were published last week. You can click here to read each of the four parts of the survey.

Previously

Part 1: Skating and strength

Part 2: Shooting and stick handling

Part 3: Passing, vision and face-offs

Part 4: Defense, positioning and leadership

Part 5: Breaking down the results

What was the widest margin of votes within a category?

19 – Hardest shot – Phil Boje

18 – Leads by example – Dylan Abood

17 – Hardest worker – Dylan Abood

16 – Consistently wins important face-offs – Brady Tomlak

14 – Toughest player – Dylan Abood

Behind the numbers: There were plenty of categories that were very close (one or two vote difference), but there wasn’t much doubt in the players’ minds about these five categories. That Abood appears in three of the five – all of them willpower categories – speaks to tone the two-time captain sets 24/7 for his teammates. That Boje and Tomlak dominated skill-specific categories by such wide margins also is impressive.

What were the highest vote totals in a category?

22 – Hardest shot (Phil Boje)

20 – Resiliency (Dylan Abood), Hardest worker (Abood), Leads by example (Abood)

18 – Wins important face-offs (Brady Tomlak)

17 – Toughest player (Dylan Abood)

Behind the numbers: This tracks very closely with largest voting margins.

Which categories had the closest margins of voting?

Best overall hockey sense – 1 vote separated Evan Feno (6) and Kyle Haak (5).

Best at forcing turnovers – 1 vote separated Jordan Himley (5) and Matt Serratore (4).

Most positionally sound – 1 vote separated Billy Christopoulos (6) and Kyle Haak (5)

Behind the numbers: Each of these categories had at least eight players drawing votes. This speaks to the balance the Falcons’ roster enjoys in many areas.

Which categories had the most players named?

12 – Best at forcing turnovers

11 – Most accurate shot and best overall hockey sense

10 – Best functional strength and best overall vision

Behind the numbers:  At least 10 players (half of a game-day lineup) were selected in 25 percent of the categories in the survey. And nearly all are hard-work and intelligence categories, two hallmarks of the Falcons when they’re playing at their best.

Which category had the lowest vote total by a leader?

5 – Best at forcing turnovers (Jordan Himley)

Behind the numbers: It’s no coincidence this category also had the most players voted for (12).

Which player made the most overall appearances?

13 – Jordan Himley

12 – Evan Feno

11- Tyler Ledford, Matt Pulver

10 -Matt Serratore

9 – Dylan Abood

7 – Phil Boje, Kyle Haak

6 – Erik Baskin, Trevor Stone, Brady Tomlak

5 – Matt Koch, Zack Mirageas, Joe Tyran

4 – Dan Bailey, Jonathan Kopacka, Kyle Mackey

3 – Marshall Bowery, Evan Giesler, Shawn Knowlton, Ben Kucera, Pierce Pluemer, Walker Sommer

2 – Erich Jaeger, Alex Mehnert, Isaac Theisen

1 – Billy Christopoulos, Jake Levin

Behind the numbers: When more than 80 percent of your roster is named in an exercise such as this, I believe that speaks to the variety and balance of skills the cohort has. And when 14 players (70 percent of a game-day lineup) are voted for in at least 25 percent of the categories, that also speaks to the balance and versatility of the roster. … Much has been written about the Falcons’ battles with injuries, but look at the first 11 players on this list – seven have missed time, and four have missed substantial time (Feno, Ledford, Haak, Abood). Serratore, Tomlak and Stone also missed multiple games. It’s not just the multitude of injuries but the magnitude. … Five players appeared in half of the categories, yet two (Pulver, Serratore) didn’t lead any of them, and another (Feno) led just one. …  In what was supposed to be a season of watching and learning for the freshmen, so it’s also interesting to note seven of them made this list. … There are also are two players named in multiple categories who have not played this season due to injury (Knowlton and Theisen).

Which player was voted the top person in a category the most times?

5 – Tyler Ledford

4 – Dylan Abood

3 – Jordan Himley

1 – Phil Boje, Billy Christopoulos, Evan Feno, Evan Gielser, Matt Koch, Ben Kucera, Trevor Stone, Brady Tomlak

Behind the numbers: Eleven players were voted the best at something in the 20 categories. The three multi-winners are all seniors, and two of their classmates also led a category. Half of the categories were led by players who have missed significant time due to injury as well.

The bottom line: When fully staffed, Air Force has a balanced lineup that includes many players who have skill, smarts and versatility to do a lot of things well. A closer look at the group of players who appear in multiple categories reveals there are several upperclassman who are capable of further elevating their game and their teammates in the second half.

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Copyright First Line Editorial 2017