Freshman Ryan Wiggins was named the “Man of the Match” as Air Force defeated the Hull Thunder, 5-0, in an exhibition hockey game Monday, Nov. 19, in Hull, England.
Air Force is on a four-game trip to England, playing teams from the British Findus British National Ice Hockey League. The super division consists of many players with NHL experience. AFA will face teams from the second division, a group of former college and minor league (IHL, WCHL, ECHL, etc) players.
The Falcons out-shot the hosts, 64-12, overall. Falcon goalies Mike Polidor (51:30) and Tyler John (8:30) combined for the shutout.
Sophomore winger Shane Saum gave the Falcons a 1-0 lead at 8:33 of the first period. The eventual game-winner was a rebound from Kyle Fransdal.
The Falcons scored three times in the second period. Andy Berg’s slap shot on the power play came 17 seconds into the second period. Justin Hamilton gave the Falcons a 3-0 lead at 4:35. With 43 seconds left in the second period, Wiggins scored. Scott Zwiers closed out the scoring midway through the third period as he took a pass and walked into the middle, and scored at 11:14.
Goaltender Andy Moffat was named the “Man of the Match” for Hull, who played their third game in three nights. Moffat made an astounding 59 saves in the game.
“We played a little tentative in the first period, but the guys played hard in the second and third periods,” assistant coach Derek Schooley said. “What a great scene after the game. There were more than 700 fans at the game and they gave us a standing ovation when the game was over.”
The road trip continues, Nov. 20, as the Falcons play the Milton-Keynes Kings, Nov. 20 in Milton-Keynes, England. The Falcons also play the Peterborough Pirates, Nov. 21 and the Coventry Blaze, Nov. 22.
