BGSU hockey (0-2) started its regular season on the road against the Niagara University Purple Eagles. The Falcons left the weekend with two losses, but did have bright spots throughout the roster.
One of the brightest spots was the impressive play from the newcomers to the Bowling Green roster.
Freshmen forwards Dominik Rymon, Connor Levis, Jake Sloan, Tanner Scott, Noah Morneau, and Jérémie Minville, freshmen defenseman Brian Lonergan, Brayden Crampton, and sophomore goaltender Tyler Palmer all made their NCAA collegiate debuts over the weekend.
Junior forward Tyler Hotson and junior defenseman Rihards Simanovičs also made their debuts in the Orange and Brown after spending the first two years of their college careers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) and Miami (OH), respectively.
These newcomers didn’t just take up a roster spot this weekend, as many of them made notable contributions despite the results in the two games.
Brayden Crampton currently leads the team in shots on goal as the defenseman took a total of nine over the weekend. The defenseman also recorded his first career collegiate point during Saturday’s contest after assisting on Morneau’s tally and blocking two shots over the weekend.
Speaking of Morneau, the Windsor, Ontario native scored his first career collegiate goal during Saturday’s game. The freshmen also impressed in the faceoff dots as Morneau won 13 of the 23 faceoffs he was tasked with.
Even better in the faceoff circles was Levis, who finished the weekend with 20 wins out of 34 attempts. Levis also recorded his first career collegiate point when he assisted on the first goal of the season that was scored by Hotson.
Hotson currently leads the Falcons in points with a goal and an assist. Hotson is also second on the team in shots on goal, as he recorded seven and even had a solid performance in the faceoff dots due to winning five of seven draws.
Another notable performance was Rymon, who recorded all six of his shots during Saturday’s contest and currently ranks third on the team in the category behind Crampton and Hotson.
Tyler Palmer also had a solid contribution as the sophomore goaltender, who spent last season playing for Canadian USports’ University of Alberta, made his first NCAA appearance during the third period of Saturday’s contest and stopped all four shots he faced.
While the two losses weren’t the results that the Falcons or head coach Dennis Williams wanted, it is reassuring to see many of the newcomers get their debuts and have notable performances in those debuts.
Of the Falcon’s 28 players on the roster, 14 are newcomers, and many pointed to the idea that these newcomers will likely be the difference between BG having a good season or a disappointing season. If these newcomers can adjust to the NCAA quickly and efficiently, then Bowling Green is very likely to have a strong season.
With this in mind, it is a very positive sign to see that multiple newcomers were able to perform well in their first appearances in the Orange and Brown.
While they’re still adjusting to the CCHA and/or the NCAA together, this weekend was a good sign towards their adjustment, and if they are able to continue adjusting at this rate, then the Falcons will likely begin winning games sooner rather than later.
