Army West Point (12-8-3, 11-6-1 Atlantic Hockey) at Air Force (14-8-2, 11-5-2)
When: Friday, 7:05 p.m. MST; Saturday, 5:05 p.m. MST
Radio/TV: 1300 AM, GoAirForceFalcons.com/AtlanticHockey.tv (subscription)
Overview
At this point, this is the series of the season for the teams, who split a pair of games at West Point, N.Y., in early November. The Black Knights won the first game, 4-2, but the Falcons took the second, 3-1. AFA is 7-2-1 in its past 10 games, while Army is 5-3-2 in its past 10. Don’t expect many goals, especially on power plays. The Falcons’ penalty kill is fourth in Division I (88 percent), while the Knights’ is 10th (86.4). Overall, Army allows the second-fewest goals per game (1.91). Senior Parker Gahagen has outstanding numbers in net for Army – he leads D-I with five shutouts and his GAA (1.77) is fifth best and his save percentage (.938) is sixth best. Air Force sophomore Shane Starrett is boasts strong numbers – 2.39 GAA and .917 save percentage to go with his 13-4-3 record.
Who’s hot
Air Force’s Jordan Himley has 12 of his team-high 13 goals and a total of 16 points in his past 18 games. Linemate Kyle Haak has points in nine of the past 13 games, and fellow center Tyler Ledford has seven points in his past eight games. Evan Feno has goals in two of the past three games. Freshmen Brady Tomlak and Pierce Pluemer each had three-point games last Friday at Robert Morris. … The Black Knights are led by freshmen Zach Evancho and Dominic Franco with 17 points each. Evancho has 10 goals and Franco has tallies in two of the past three games. Another freshman, Brendan Soucie, has three goals in his past four games.
Need-to-know numbers
Air Force is 8-1-1 in its past 10 games vs. Army at Cadet Ice Arena and 8-1-3 in the past 12 meetings overall. … Both teams are near the middle of power-play efficiency in D-I, with Air Force at 17.9 percent and Army at 15.7. … Air Force’s team defense sits 21st (2.65), while its offense is 25th (3.00). Army scores 2.74 GPG (27th). … Evancho’s seven power-play goals are tied for eighth in D-I.