Old, new meet in Hawks-Ice Flyers series

AUGUSTA, GA – New vs. old. Freshmen vs. sophomores. Rookie coach vs. veteran bench boss.
A year ago, the Pensacola Ice Flyers were one of three expansion teams that entered the Southern Professional Hockey League and one of two that qualified for the post-season in their first year. This year’s new team, the Augusta RiverHawks, burst onto the scene and came within two wins of claiming the regular season crown.
Come Friday night, all of that goes out the window when the two teams meet in game one of their best-of-three first round playoff series at the James Brown Arena in Augusta. The match-up promises to be a good one even though the teams head into the playoffs seemingly heading in different directions.
The second-seeded RiverHawks head into the post-season as probably the hottest of all six playoff qualifiers. Winners of 11 of its last 12 games, Augusta went from losing its first three games of the season to a 35-21 record with a roster top heavy with rookies.
Rookie head coach Brad Ralph was not bashful with roster moves. Between call-ups and injuries,

Augusta saw 39 different players don a jersey for at least one game during the season. Somehow Ralph was able to continually find the right players to plug the holes, many of them coming from the new Federal Hockey League where general manager Mark Richards had direct connections. Ralph’s work keeping the RiverHawks focused and even-keeled earned him the league’s Coach of the Year award.
On the ice, the RiverHawks were impressive. That was proven last week when the SPHL All-Rookie and All-SPHL first and second teams were announced. The rookie team had three Augusta players (Jon Olthuis, Neil Graham and Branden Kosolofsky) on it while Olthuis was named to the All-SPHL second team and Matt Auffrey was placed on the first team.
Auffrey (21 goals, 49 assists, 70 points with a plus-19 rating and three game-winning goals) was a steady leader all season long. Graham (24-30-54, plus-18, seven game-winners), Kosolofsky (19-33-52, plus-12, five winners) and Egor Mironov (23-19-42,five power play goals, two short-handed goals) were just the tip of the offensive iceberg. On defense, Luke Lucyk (7-28-35, plus-1) was the big scorer until he left on a call-up to the CHL. Curtis Megginson (3-16-19, plus-5), who was discovered in a free agent tryout camp, has been solid as was Ed Snetsinger (5-10-15, plus-11) when he wasn’t up in the ECHL.
Goaltending has been a particularly strong point for Augusta. Olthuis posted a 19-10 regular season record with a 2.78 goals against average and .913 save percentage.His numbers might have been higher had he not spent a month-plus on call-up to the Dayton Gems of the CHL. After rolling through multiple net minders to fill in, Ralph settled on Peter Skoggard as the RiverHawks’ co-starting goalie. Skoggard, another FHL product, only went 6-0 in seven appearance with a 2.54 goals against average and .924 save percentage in late season action.
During the regular season, Augusta did quite well in many areas of the game. The RiverHawks scored the second-most goals (203) and allowed the fourth fewest goals against (177). Augusta’s power play was the sixth-best unit, scoring 48 goals in 298 chances for a 16.1 percent mark. Penalty killing was a bit more effective, killing off 259 of 310 disadvantages for an 83.5 percent success rate, which was the SPHL’s third best.
Pensacola heads into the series with a 28-28 regular season record but limped down the stretch, winning just three of its last ten games. The Ice Flyers were pretty consistent, posting a 14-14 record at home and a 14-14 mark on the road.
Coach Todd Gordon didn’t make as many roster moves as his counterpart in Augusta. 26 different players went through the Pensacola Civic Center before Gordon arrived at the roster that will take the ice starting Friday. The lineup is much more balanced between rookies and experienced players than it was a year ago.
Pensacola’s regular season numbers were fairly close to Augusta’s. The Ice Flyers’ power play clicked along at a success rate of 17.2 percent (47-273) which was fourth best. Penalty killing was a bit more problematic as Pensacola allowed 53 in 274 times short for a kill rate of 80.7 percent which was only seventh best.
The Ice Flyers’ offense showed that it has a good deal of punch as five players scored 40 or more points. Rookie Chris Wilson (39-32-71) led the way and earned All-Rookie and All-SPHL first team honors to go along with being named Rookie of the Year. Matt Whitehead (27-35-62)and Brett Liscomb (18-32-50) added a touch of experience to the forward lines. Newcomers Kyle Dorowicz (14-29-43) and Tanner Shultz (17-23-40) also made key contributions.
Mark Hinz (6-25-31) led the defensemen in scoring but it was the play of rookie Dan Ehrman (6-23-29) that got the most notice andEhrman a spot on the All-Rookie team. Tyler Lyon (5-14-19) also played well for Gordon on the blue line.
As for goaltending, Pensacola’s pair of net minders posted respectable numbers. Veteran Ryan Scott posted a 17-20 record but his goals against average was a decent 3.29 and his save percentage was .901. Peter Hirsch went 2-5 in his appearances with a 3.74 goals against and .864 save percentage.
Pensacola won the season series by winning three of the five meetings between the teams. Two of the games went to overtime with eachsquad winning one of those. Overall, the Ice Flyers outscored the RiverHawks 23-21 and out shot them 154-143. Pensacola also controlled Augusta’s power play well, allowing just three goals in 22 times short. The Ice Flyers did much better with the man advantage, scoring ten goals in 22 opportunities.
Pensacola’s Wilson, Whitehead and Shultz each scored three goals against Augusta to lead the Ice Flyers’ attack. In net, Scott won two of his three starts versus the RiverHawks. On the other side of the ice, Auffrey was far and away the best Augusta player against Pensacola, scoring three goals and adding eight assists. Kosolofsky, Graham and Lucas LaBelle each lit the lamp twice. Olthuis played against the Ice Flyers twice and went 1-1 with a goals against average of 5.00.
Having finished the season series back in February, it has been a while since the teams have seen each other. Chances are it won’t take long for the renewing of acquaintances to end and the battle to begin and by the end of the weekend, one team will move on and one will go home.
Editor’s pick: Pensacola may have won the season series but in order to win the playoff war, they will need a near-perfect performance. They have already shown the way to keep the Augusta power play under control and how to exploit the RiverHawks’ penalty kill. Scott and Hirsch will certainly have to step up their games. Augusta simply needs to play like they have for the majority of the season, especially in the final 12 games. The RiverHawks will no doubt play physically but if they can’t keep Wilson, Whitehead and company in check, Olthuis will have to dominate from between the pipes. In the end, Augusta’s fearlessness and balance gives them the series in two straight, leaving them to plan for the semifinals and home games during the Masters.
Contact the author at don.money@prohockeynews.com