BOWLING GREEN — Bowling Green State University is right in the thick of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association race, and the Falcons are hoping to start their final stretch of league play with a pair of wins.

BGSU (10-12, 7-7) will be hosting Lake Superior State (3-15-2, 2-9-1) in a CCHA series on Friday and Saturday night at Slater Family Ice Arena. The Falcons, who are fourth in the conference standings but only two points out of first, ended a four-game skid with a couple of home wins against Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute last weekend.

“If we’re going to try to get to where we would like to get to, we start this 12-game stretch of CCHA games off on the right foot,” BGSU coach Ty Eigner said. “Coming off of last weekend’s sweep, everybody feels good, and you’re excited. Now, our focus is trying to do what we need to do this week to take advantage of the next opportunity.”

BGSU’s 23 points in the CCHA trail only Bemidji State (25), Michigan Tech (25), and Minnesota State (24). Ferris State (20) and Northern Michigan (18) are also within striking distance.

BGSU outscored Lake Superior State 12-5 in notching two road wins in early December. Although the Lakers have struggled this season after recording 18 or more wins in three of their previous four campaigns, the Falcons aren’t looking past them.

Lake Superior State’s last two wins have been against Michigan Tech (3-0 win on Dec. 16) and Bemidji State (3-2 overtime win on Dec. 9).

“Everyone in this league can steal a game, everyone can beat anyone,” BGSU senior forward Alex Barber said. “…It can happen at any time, and we’ve got to keep our focus and make sure we’re prepared and ready to go.”

Barber and sophomore goaltender Christian Stoever are coming off a memorable game.

In BGSU’s 5-2 win over RPI on Saturday, Barber dished out two assists to reach 100 points for his career. He became the 75th player in BGSU history to reach the milestone and is one of 18 active players in the NCAA with 100 or more points.

“It was really cool. It was something that was always in the back of my head,” Barber said. “I was thinking about it, and after I had a good couple years earlier in my career, I knew I could achieve it.

“It was a goal of mine to get there this year, and I’m just really happy that I was able to do it.”

Barber has racked up 40 goals and 60 assists in his five seasons with the Falcons. He has reached double digits in assists in each of the past four seasons; his career high in goals (11) and assists (16) came in the 2019-20 campaign.

Barber said keeping things simple while on the ice has been important in his BGSU career.

“I don’t really try to do anything too crazy out there,” he said. “Obviously, I’m playing with a lot of good players from playing with Brandon Kruse and Connor Ford earlier in my career, and playing now with [senior forward] Taylor Schneider, I’ve been playing with him for a couple years, and we have a little bit of chemistry going on. It’s nice to keep that going.”

Stoever, meanwhile, notched his first career assist and made 29 saves, including one on a penalty shot. On Tuesday, he was named CCHA goaltender of the week for the second time this season (third in career) after totaling 60 saves in the series sweep versus RPI.

“I’ve been going for that long pass for a while now, so I’m happy it paid off finally,” Stoever said of his assist.

Stoever has been one of the top goaltenders not only in the CCHA, but the country this season. His 554 saves rank first in the CCHA and fifth in the NCAA, while his .917 saves percentage is third in the league and 28th nationally.

Sophomore forward Austen Swankler has also continued his stellar play for BGSU. He leads the CCHA in goals (14), shot percentage (30.4), and totals points (28), while his 14 assists rank second. Swankler’s 28 points are tied for fourth in the nation, while his 1.33 points per game are eighth. On Wednesday, he was named national player of the month.

Power plays on both sides of the ice have been a big part of BGSU’s success.

The Falcons’ 23 power-play goals are first in the CCHA and tied for second in the NCAA, while their penalty-kill percentage of 83.9 is second in the league and 15th in the country.

“We look at is as special teams can win a hockey game,” Barber said. “It can turn the tide, so we focus on it a lot. We practice it two or three times a week.

“It’s working out for us on the power play and our penalty kill is shutting it down, too, so hopefully we can keep that going in the playoffs where it’s really going to matter.”

First Published January 5, 2023, 3:29 p.m.