Air Force knew it could be better after Friday night’s loss to Bentley, and it was on Saturday.
Air Force (6-5-1, 2-2-0 Atlantic Hockey) peppered Bentley goalie Connor Halsey with 42 shots, and the freshman was nearly as good as Blessing, who bounced back from a rough start Friday.
Here are three observations from Saturday’s game:
Blessing’s bounce back bodes well
Giving up four goals in less than 10 minutes is no one’s idea of a good time, but it had to be a particularly tough pill to swallow for Blessing. His teammates admitted they hung him out to dry.
Fast forward to Saturday, and the sophomore was locked in from the start. His teammates gave him plenty of help in the D zone, packing it in more and staying inside Bentley forwards who tried to get into scoring position.
The shutout was the athletic Blessing’s second of the season.
Isn’t that special
One night after badly losing the special teams battle, Air Force won it handily on Saturday.
DeCarlo buried a rebound on a power play to give the hosts an all-important first goal, and Rowe, who had an assist on the first goal, scored the second one late in the third period on another power play.
In all, Air Force went 2 for 6 with a man advantage, and it killed off all six Bentley power plays.
All-around energy
You expect energy from the Falcons’ third and fourth lines, and they again provided that. But every line, and every D pair played with increased intensity on Saturday, limiting Bentley’s chances while providing a multitude of their own.
Time and again Air Force won puck battles or reached pucks first. One night after being put on their heels, the Falcons were the aggressors to win for the third time in four games and the fourth in six.
©First Line Editorial 2022
