NMU Opponent Preview: Bowling Green Falcons

The Northern Michigan Wildcats men’s hockey team will continue their home stand this weekend against another nationally ranked WCHA opponent. Northern came into last weekend’s series against Minnesota-State at third place in the WCHA standings. After dropping both games to the Mavericks, the Wildcats are still in third place, but they are now tied with Michigan Tech and are further behind the Mavericks and their opponent this week, the #13 Bowling Green State University Falcons.

The Bowling Green Falcons head to Marquette this weekend for face the NMU Wildcats in a huge WCHA showdown.

Bowling Green State University Falcons

Head Coach: Chris Bergeron

2017–18 results: 23–12–6

WCHA Semi-Final (Lost to NMU)

Current Record:17–7–3 (12–6–2 WCHA)

The Falcons enter this weekend not only with a national ranking, but also sitting in second place on the WCHA table with 40 points (Minnesota State has 48, while Northern Michigan and Michigan Tech have 36). Bowling Green has a strong resume of big wins, and they have not yet been swept this season, but they do have some head scratching losses in conference play. In non-conference play, Bowling Green has two wins over Western Michigan, a single win over Mercyhurst, a win and a tie with an Ohio State team that went to the Frozen Four last year, and a split with Robert Morris. In conference play, they split with NMU at home earlier in the year, and they have sweeps of both Alabama-Huntsville and Minnesota State. Splits were the norm for the Falcons in January, with one loss each weekend to Bemidji State, Michigan Tech, Alaska and Ferris State. They also let some points slip away in the form of a 0–0 tie at Alaska-Anchorage back in November. Despite treading water in recent weeks, Bowling Green has been able to keep their standings in the WCHA, and the attention of the national media. They are a very talented team that can generate offense from deep down the lineup. They have strong defenseman and goaltenders, and many have predicted that this is the year that Bowling Green finally returns to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1990.

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Key Departures:

• Mitchell McClain- McClain had a great career in Bowling Green, totalling 53 goals and 48 assists in 161 games over four years. The forward from Baxter, Minnesota had 18 goals and 14 assists in his senior season, and is currently skating professionally for the Iowa Wild of the AHL. He has six goals and eight assists this season.
• Brett D’Andrea- With nine goals and seven assists, D’Andrea wasn’t a top scorer for the Falcons, but he was capable of contributing on offense. He is continuing his career in the Southern Professional Hockey League. He has skated in seven games for the Pensacola Ice Flyers this season.
• Tyler Spezia- The forward from Clinton Township Michigan only played in 33 games in his senior season, but was able to post ten goals and six assists. Falcons fans won’t have to travel far to watch him play, as he is spending his first professional season with the Toledo Walleye of the ECHL (8–10–18). He has even appeared in a few games for the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins (1–1–2).

Key Veterans:

• Brandon Kruse- The sophomore forward from Saline, Michigan currently owns the team lead in assists and points (8–21–29). A fifth round draft pick of the Vegas Golden Knights, Kruse has a knack for making plays for his teammates. As adept as he is at earning assists, he is capable of scoring goals frequently as well. His best game of the season was the very first game against Mercyhurst back in October, when he assisted on four Bowling Green goals.
• Max Johnson- The sophomore forward is second in every scoring category for the Falcons (11–17–28). He is an offensive threat who can score goals and set up his linemates. He has scored at least three points in four different games this season. Containing Johnson will be a high priority for the Wildcats this weekend.
• Lukas Craggs- the junior forward’s 13 goals set the pace for the Falcons. He has set a career mark for himself this season in goals and should set season highs in points, shots and plus-minus, and could possibly do the same for assists and power play goals. He has been shut out of the box score over the past three games, so he could break that slump this weekend in Marquette.
• Connor Ford- A sophomore from Pittsburgh, Ford is having himself a nice season in his second year in Bowling Green. At 10–7–17, the forward is on track to surpass all of his scoring totals from last season, and there are still eight regular season games to play. Ford’s scoring success this season is a testament to the depth of this Falcons roster.
• Stephen Baylis- The senior from Ottawa had a fantastic October, opening the season with five goals through the first five games of the season, including a hat trick on opening night against Mercyhurst. Baylis has slowed down dramatically since then, only scoring one goal and one assist throughout all of November and December. He is still a talented player with a wealth of experience who is capable of contributing on offense any given night.
• Alec Rauhauser- The big junior defenseman from Bismarck, North Dakota has five multi-point games this season. While he only has two goals, his 14 assists is the most among defensemen on the team. He is a two-way player that the Wildcats are familiar enough with now to know his capabilities.
• Ryan Bednard- The Falcons have two talented goaltenders on their roster, but the one who has been given more starts by head coach Bergeron is Ryan Bednard. The junior from Macomb, Michigan has played in 18 games, earning a record of 12–4–2. He has outstanding numbers, with a 1.84 GAA and a .929 SV%. The Wildcats will have to find a way to get pucks past Bednard if they hope to win this weekend.

Freshmen to Watch:

• Taylor Schneider- The forward from Lakeville, Minnesota has found the back of the net a handful of times this season. His eight points (5–3–8) are second in team scoring among freshman, and he is leading Falcon freshman in goals. He has yet to have a two point night this season, but he is making the most of his time on the ice.
• Tim Theorcharidis- the young defenseman from Ontario is leading the way in points among all Bowling Green Freshman. He has four goals and six assists so far this season.

Series Expectations:

After last weekend’s disappointing losses, this weekend is critical for NMU. At third place in the WCHA standings, currently tied with Michigan Tech and with Lake Superior and Bemidji State closing the gap, the Wildcats will need to pick up some points this weekend in order to keep up with the Mavericks and Falcons, and to protect their postseason home ice advantage. It will not be an easy task, but the Wildcats should be able to shake off the poor performance of last weekend and pick up at least a split against Bowling Green.

Predictions:

Friday- NMU 2- BGSU 0. Tolvanen plays perfectly, earning another shutout, while the Wildcats get scoring from both a veteran and a freshman.

Saturday- NMU 2- BGSU 3. The Wildcats play in a hard fought game, but end up losing in overtime.