Close, but …

That summarizes Air Force’s night, its weekend, and its season.

AIC twice scored go-ahead goals in the third period, the second off a 4-on-1 rush with 9:48 left to defeat the Falcons, 4-3, sweep the Atlantic Hockey series, and mathematically eliminate Air Force from the AHA playoff race. It also concluded a stretch of six games in nine days for the Falcons (12-20-2, 8-15-1 AHA).

Two of Air Force’s three goals came courtesy of seniors – forward Bennett Norlin and defenseman Brandon Koch – on Senior Night. All seven of the Falcons’ seniors were in the lineup, including goaltender Austin Park, who made his eighth start in 2023 after not starting at all during his first three and a half years at the Academy.

“Obviously it’s tough. The whole year has been tough,” Koch said. “You see it tonight. You go up one-nothing, all of a sudden it’s 2-1 and we’re back on our heels like we have been the whole year. It’s just kind of a theme.”

Counter attack costs Air Force

Friday, the Falcons had to rally from a three-goal, first-period deficit, and they came up on the short end of a 3-2 verdict despite firing 38 shots at AIC senior Jarrett Fiske. Slow starts have been problematic, and Friday’s loss dropped Air Force to 4-16-1 when foes scored first.

Saturday, they got the first goal, by Norlin, but then gave up the next two and had to claw back from 2-1 and 3-2 deficits. Holt Oliphant poked in a rebound of Austin Schwartz’s drive to the net with 10:37 to go in regulation that made it 3-3. But AIC (16-12-6, 13-8-3) got a counter attack, and senior Dustin Manz scored his second goal of the game on a four-on-one rush.

“This was a nip-and-tuck battle,” Air Force coach Frank Serratore said. “We scored the first goal, and we came back and tied it in the third with that third goal. I thought that was a good omen, and then we had a breakdown.

“They’re a rush offense team. When you keep numbers back, they’re not a team that likes to dump it in and forecheck and grind it out. The biggest message between periods was let’s keep numbers back, let’s keep numbers above the puck, let’s not give them outnumbered chances. When it was all said and done, that’s  what cost us. We gave them an opportunity with numbers, and they capitalized on it.” 

AIC’s goaltenders weather the storm

The Yellow Jackets got excellent goaltending for the second night in a row. This time, it was from the junior Aslanidis, who made 34 saves.

“The story of the weekend, to me, was their goaltenders,” Serratore said. “They were good. They made some very timely saves for their team.”

Park was solid, as he has been throughout his final semester. He entered the game with a sub-3.00 goals-against average in his first seven starts, so he’s done his part in trying to help the Falcons overcome a nine-game midseason slide, which began at AIC in November. He was the fourth goalie to start for the Falcons this season, the most in NCAA Division I.

“We’ve been in every game,” Norlin said. “I’ve been with him four years. I’ve seen what he gives day-in, day-out, going back to the resiliency we have in the group. He hadn’t gotten the looks his first few years, but he’s stepped in and given us a chance to win.

“I couldn’t be more honored to take the ice with him once last time here.”

Ill-timed slumps sink Air Force

Saturday’s loss was the Falcons’ 20th. The nine-game slump played a part in that, to be sure, but they had not lost more than two games in a row outside of that all season, until Saturday.

One has to think fatigue played at least a small role. After starting the six-game gauntlet with a split at second-place Sacred Heart and a victory against Canisius, the Falcons dropped the final three games of the run. Win two of those three and maybe we’re talking about punching a playoff ticket at first-place RIT next weekend, or at least having the opportunity to.

“It’s kind of been the story of our season,” Serratore said. “Last night, getting off to a bad start, has been way too much of a theme. Tonight we got the first goal and we couldn’t stay on top of it.

“They were opportunistic, they found ways to win two hard-fought games. That’s why they’re in third place, battling for second place, and why we are where we are.”

Goals epitomize Air Force’s will

Norlin scored his second goal of the season, and fourth of his career, after an alert play by Luke Rowe at the AIC blue line just 4:05 into the game. The defenseman intercepted a pass and found Norlin circling back toward the high slot. Norlin wasted no time snapping a bar-down shot over Aslanidis’ glove hand.

“It was pretty cool with my family all here,” Norlin said. “I’m not the type of guy to put the puck in the back of the net every game, but to get it on Senior Night was pretty cool.”

Koch’s goal camp on a shot on a power play from above the right circle. The Falcons had good traffic in front of Aslanidis. His sixth goal of the season came with 6:10 to go in the second, and came 1:41 after Manz had tied it.

The Falcons’ second tying goal came when Schwartz went hard to the net and kept banging at the puck. Linemate Oliphant also was in the net-front pileup and was credited with the goal, which survived an officials’ review.

“There’s no give-up in this group,” Norlin said. “Every day you come to battle with them. There couldn’t be a better group to play with.”

Salute to seniors

The Falcons had a pregame ceremony to honor each of their seven seniors – Park, Koch, Andrew Kruse, Blake Bride, Norlin, Ty Pochipinski and co-captain Willie Reim.

The group has had to endure having a playoff run shut down by a pandemic in 2020, a shortened season in 2021 when some teams apparently were afraid to fly to Colorado Springs, a scintillating 2022 playoff run to the AHA championship game, and then a senior season that has had plenty of highs and lows.

Koch has played the most games thus far (119), and he has the most points (76, two more than Reim). Koch, Norlin and Reim have played in all 34 games this season.

Notes: Junior forward Nate Horn, the Falcons’ sixth-leading scorer (17 points), will miss the final three games of the season because of a lower-body injury sustained in Friday night’s 3-2 loss. Horn’s eight goals are third most on the team. He’s the third regular to suffer a season-ending injury. Fellow wing Lucas Coon and starting goaltender Guy Blessing have not played during 2023 after undergoing season-ending surgeries. … Rowe had two assists, giving him 24 points – one behind Reim and one ahead of Koch.

©First Line Editorial 2023