Do you see what they see? Who has the best vision and hockey sense, and who is the strongest in the face-off circle for the Air Force hockey team? Part 5 of the Flight Path’s exclusive Falcons player survey, which returns for a second year, tackles these topics.

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 3 (Questions 8-10) reveals the shooting stars

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

Part 6 (Questions 18-22) gets defensive

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

Question 15: Which Falcons player has the best vision?

• Evan Feno, Matt Koch – 6 votes (33 percent)
• Shawn Knowlton, Zack Mirageas – 2 votes (11 percent)
• Kyle Haak, Brady Tomlak – 1 vote

Analysis: This goes hand in hand with the best passers category in a previous story, so it shouldn’t be a surprise to see Feno and Koch heading this list. Knowlton and Mirageas continue to make appearances all over the survey.

Question 16: Which Falcons player has the best hockey sense?

• Evan Feno – 5 votes (28 percent)
• Kyle Haak – 4 votes (22 percent)
• Zack Mirageas – 3 votes (17 percent)
• Matt Koch – 2 votes
• Evan Giesler, Shawn Knowlton, Matt Serratore, Brady Tomlak – 1 vote

Analysis: It’s no surprise eight players were named here or that five of the seniors were cited. Nor is it shocking there isn’t much of a consensus. The Falcons have a lot of smart, solid players. The top four often comprise the top penalty kill unit, at least to start before a center changes.

Question 17: Which Falcons player consistently wins important face-offs?

• Brady Tomlak – 11 votes (61 percent)
• Kyle Haak – 5 votes (28 percent)
• Evan Feno – 2 votes

Analysis: There are games when Tomlak might win all but one or two of a dozen or more draws. When he’s on, he’s that good. Haak tends to get better as games go along and he figures out opponents’ tendencies. Feno, who does so many other things well, also is a reliable option. And the Falcons have a good fourth option who wasn’t named and has battled injuries this season, Erich Jaeger.

NEXT: Getting defensive

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