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Men's Ice Hockey

Two-Point Games for Dzakhov, Mills Not Enough In 5-3 Niagara Loss

Box Score NIAGARA UNIV., N.Y. – Looking to even the weekend series after a tough loss on Friday night, the Niagara Purple Eagles hockey team fell at Dwyer Arena on Saturday night to the Air Force Falcons once again, pulling within one before an empty-net goal by the Falcons yielded a final score of 5-3. Niagara tied the score to make the score 2-2 with just over 10 minutes to play in the first period, thanks to multiple-point performances from Stanislav Dzakhov and Zach Mills. Derian Plouffe tied the NCAA lead and moved into the AHC lead with his third shorthanded goal of the season, while Noah Delmas and Nic Mucci each had assists for the Purple Eagles.  

Game Summary
  • Final Score: Air Force 5, Niagara 3
  • Niagara Goal Scorers: Stanislav Dzakhov, Zach Mills, Derian Plouffe
  • Niagara Assists: Noah Delmas Stanislav Dzakhov, Zach Mills, Nic Mucci
  • In Goal: Brian Wilson (9-14-2) – 4 GA, 22 SV
  • Power Plays: Niagara – 0-for-2 (1 SOG); Air Force – 1-for-5 (6 SOG)
  • Records: Niagara – 11-15-2 (10-10-2 AHC); Air Force – 13-11-3 (8-9-2 AHC)
  • Location: Dwyer Arena – Niagara University, New York
  • Attendance: 736

Game Recap
  • Looking to avenge their loss on Friday night to the Falcons, the Purple Eagles wasted no time in what became an action-packed first period to claim the first lead of the game. Just 2:05 into the opening period, Stanislav Dzakhov slid behind the defense off a long feed form Zach Mills and quickly found the back of the net to give Niagara the early lead, 1-0.
  • Air Force would return the favor quickly however, with two goals in the following six minutes thanks to Ben Kucera and Joe Tyran to give the Falcons their first lead of the game less than eight minutes through the first period, 2-1.
  • Just over two minutes later, Dzakhov returned the favor to Mills for his fourth goal of the season to tie the game, 2-2, the fourth goal of the night within the first 10 minutes of the contest. A holding call on Air Force's Brady Tomlak gave Niagara the first power play of the game at 11:58 in the first, but Niagara was unable to take its second lead of the evening with the man advantage.
  • Similar to the first period, the scoring in the second period started fast. Only 2:02 into the period, Air Force's Dan Bailey found Marshall Bowery for the goal to regain the Falcon lead, 3-2.
  • The Purple Eagles found themselves with their backs against the wall, with a pair of Niagara penalties giving Air Force over a full minute of a 5-on-3 advantage. Air Force took advantage of their opportunity, with a Matt Serratore goal creating the first two-goal lead for the Falcons, 4-2.
  • Niagara had an opportunity to trim the deficit in the final minutes of the period, when Air Force's Kucera was called for interference. In the final 2:12 of the second period, however, the Purple Eagles were unable to score, trailing by two going into the final period of play.
  • The third period started off quietly, but the Purple Eagles once again found themselves down two men thanks to a pair of penalties, giving Air Force another 5-on-3 matchup. This time around however, Brian Wilson was in full force between the pipes, standing pat and not allowing the Falcon lead to grow further for the time being with just over half of the final period to be played.
  • After Niagara found themselves shorthanded once again, the Purple Eagles used the opportunity to better themselves down a man. On a deflection from a Noah Delmas shot, Derian Plouffe scored his team-best third shorthanded goal of the season to cut the deficit in half, 4-3, with less than six minutes to play in regulation.
  • The Purple Eagles came out in the final minutes with a man advantage after Wilson was pulled, but Erik Baskin gained control of the puck and sunk an empty net goal to close out Niagara's aspirations of tying the score once again, giving Air Force another victory on the road at Dwyer Arena.
 
Coach's Corner
  • Head coach Jason Lammers: "I was real impressed by our commitment to each other to stick with it and we just feel like we're playing the right way right now. We're going to keep working to get better. Our leaders said some really insightful things in the room, and they continue to believe in themselves and each other, and as a staff, we really believe in these guys. We're excited to continue doing something special, we feel like we're getting right to the tipping point and our perseverance is going to pay off for us."
 
Inside the Numbers
  • Derian Plouffe, who was nominated for the 2018 Hobey Baker Award back on Jan. 16, extended his active point streak to five games with his shorthanded goal in the third period. Plouffe currently leads the AHC in shorthanded goals in addition to leading Niagara in points this season (30).
  • Nic Mucci has been in control for the Purple Eagles as of late, extending his point streak to a career-best three games. In that stretch, the freshman forward has recorded five assists for Niagara, including the first three-assist game for a Purple Eagle this season on Jan. 20 at Holy Cross.
  • After recording just two points in the first 17 games to open the season, Stanislav Dzakhov has found the net often as of late, recording five points in his last three appearances, including four goals. Both Dzakhov and Mucci have two multiple-point games in their last three games.
  • Freshman Zach Mills recorded his first career two-point game with an assist on Dzakhov's opening goal before Dzakhov returned the favor later in the first period for Mills' fourth goal of the season.
  • Coming off a season in which they were shut out on five different occasions, the Purple Eagles have scored in each of their 28 games to start the season, and have scored two or more goals in five of their last six games.
  • Air Force held a slim 27-25 lead in shots on goal, while the two teams each won 34 faceoffs.
  • The Falcons scored once on their five power-play chances, but Plouffe scored the team's sixth shorthanded goal of the season, tied for the most by any team in the NCAA.
 
Up Next
  • Niagara hits the road next weekend when they battle the Army Black Knights on Friday, Feb. 2 and Saturday, Feb. 3. Puck drop on both nights is scheduled for 7:05 p.m., with Jeremy White handling play-by-play duties on WLVL 1340 AM.
 
Stay connected with the Purple Eagles through social media. Follow Niagara Athletics on Twitter @NUPurpleEagles and for hockey updates, follow Niagara hockey on Twitter and Instagram. Check in with the Purple Eagles on Facebook.com/PurpleEagles and on Instagram @NUPurpleEagles.
 
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