The transfer portal takes and the transfer portal gives … unless you’re a U.S. service academy like Air Force or Army West Point. In their cases, it just takes.

That’s something the Falcons were reminded of Monday, when several outlets reported freshman defenseman Owen Baumgartner entered the portal. Two of his blue line colleagues, seniors Sam Brennan and Luke Robinson, previously entered because they can’t play a fifth season at the Academy.

Brennan and Robinson are going to pursue advanced degrees at other institutions, much like former Falcon Brandon Koch did at Minnesota State this season. Like Koch, Brennan and Robinson hope to utilize their NCAA-granted fifth season of eligibility thanks to (or no thanks to) the truncated Covid seasons. The 2024-25 season is the final one for extra Covid seasons.

Baumgartner’s Departure Dents Falcons’ Depth

Baumgartner’s pending departure will sting to some degree. He finished with 10 points in spot duty (24 games) and showed explosive skating and shooting skills. His puck management and defense were inconsistent, but that’s not unusual for young defensemen.

His exodus, plus the graduations of Luke Rowe, Robinson and Brennan does deplete the Falcons’ depth on the blue line. As it stands, rising seniors Mitchell Digby and Jasper Lester, rising junior Chris Hedden and rising sophomores Will Staring, Nolan Cunningham and James Callahan will return.

Hedden was one of Atlantic Hockey’s top defensemen and scored 37 points in 38 games. Digby battled injuries this season but has a strong offensive flair. Staring and Cunningham were the only others to play as many as 26 games.

Four Receive Atlantic Hockey Honors

Atlantic Hockey recognized four Falcons in the league’s postseason awards.

Junior Austin Schwartz was selected the league’s Defensive Forward of the Year. The speedy wing led the nation with four shorthanded goals and his 46 blocks were third most among forwards. His 19 points and 10 goals were careeer highs.

Senior Will Gavin was a First-Team All-Conference pick. Gavin’s career-high 19 goals were 19th most in Division I, and his 11 power-play goals were fourth in the nation.

Hedden made the second team, while Rowe appeared on the third team. Hedden was AHA’s top-scoring defenseman and was fourth among D-men nationally. Rowe finished with 29 points and was a four-time AHA Defensive Player of the Week.

It was the first time since 2016-17 that three Air Force players made all-conference.

Alumni tracker

Koch had a solid season at Minnesota State, scoring 14 points in 34 games, ninth-best on the Mavericks. His 13 assists were the same amount he had during his freshman season at Air Force. Koch capped his Falcons career with 24- and 25-point campaigns. …

Rowe signed a contract with the Ontario Reign of the American Hockey League upon completion of the Falcons’ regular season and he made a strong first impression. Rowe scored the winning goal in his second pro game. He also has an assist in five games thus far. …

Goaltender Shane Starrett, who backstopped the Falcons to the NCAA Tournament’s Elite Eight in 2017, is in his seventh pro season. After playing in the AHL and East Coast Hockey League, as well as spending a season in the UK, Starrett has played this season for Maine, one of the ECHL’s struggling teams. He’s 7-12-3 with a 3.40 goals-against average and a .889 saves percentage. As recently as last season he played in the AHL, and he won 24 games with 2.68 and .913 numbers for Kansas City of the ECHL.

©First Line Editorial 2024