Who are the Air Force hockey team’s shooting stars? Part 3 of the Flight Path’s exclusive Falcons player survey, which returns for a second year, tackles this topic.

A total of 18 of the 28 players on the roster, or 64 percent, responded to the 2018-19 season survey. The survey includes 25 questions, broken down into various categories. Players were given multiple choices and promised anonymity for their answers. Questions pertaining to skaters only had skaters listed, same for goalie-related questions.

I hope you enjoy this fun exercise that picks the Falcons’ brains to help shed light on which teammates they view as the strongest in various categories.

MORE SURVEY QUESTIONS

Part 1 (Questions 1-4) deals with skating

Part 2 (Questions 5-7) deals with strength and toughness

Part 4 (Questions 11-14) reveals the good hands Falcons

Part 5 (Questions 15-17) looks to the eyes

Part 6 (Questions 18-22) gets defensive

Part 7 (Questions 23-25) hard work an leadership

Question 8: Which Falcons player possesses the hardest shot?

• Zack Mirageas – 8 votes (44 percent)
• Trevor Stone – 6 votes (33 percent)
• Evan Giesler, Max Harper, Erich Jaeger, Jake Levin – 1 vote

Analysis: Equipment manager Robert Rush told me over the summer that Mirageas shoots the puck so hard that they had to adjust the flex of his stick up from what he used in juniors. Stone, as you will soon read, has many strong components in this area of his game, but his snap shot is harder than some players’ slappers.

Question 9: Which Falcons player has the most accurate shot?

• Evan Feno – 7 votes (39 percent)
• Trevor Stone – 3 votes (17 percent)
• Matt Serratore – 2 votes
• Marshall Bowery, Kieran Durgan, Kyle Haak, Shawn Knowlton, Zack Mirageas, Walker Sommer – 1 vote

Analysis: The top two are contrasts in style. Feno, who is enjoying a good start and leads the Falcons with eight goals, excels at picking his spots. Stone, who has four goals, can do that, but puts more power behind his shots. This is one of the longer lists in the entire survey, with nine players appearing.

Question 10: Which Falcons player has the quickest release?

• Trevor Stone – 6 votes (33 percent)
• Evan Feno – 5 votes (28 percent)
• Kieran Durgan – 3 votes (17 percent)
• Marshall Bowery, Shawn Knowlton, Matt Pulver, Walker Sommer – 1 vote

Analysis: As much as anything, this category speaks to the changing nature of offense at high levels of hockey. How quickly can you get your shot off? Defenses and goalies are so positionally sound and teams so well scouted now that a quick release is vital. So it should come as no surprise that three of the Falcons’ top four goal scorers – Feno (8), Durgan (6) and Stone (4) – are at the top here.

NEXT: You’re in good hands with these Falcons

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