WEEKEND PREVIEW: Aviators look to climb standings with trip to Philadelphia
After taking three out of four points against the Johnstown Tomahawks, the Elmira Aviators (13-17-5-2) are hitting the road to battle it out with the Philadelphia Rebels (14-17-2-6).
The Rebels sit in 7th place in the East Division, three points ahead of the Aviators. Also, Philadelphia has played two more games than Elmira this season.
This weekend’s series provides an outstanding opportunity for the Aviators to surge in the standings and find themselves on the doorstep of playoff positioning.
BUILDING ON POSITIVES
Last Friday, the Aviators smashed the Johnstown Tomahawks 5-1 for their largest margin of victory since Oct. 25 when Elmira defeated Danbury 7-2.
Saturday provided Elmira with the opportunity to pull within four points of a playoff spot. However, the Aviators’ attack struggled, and they lost 2-1 in a shootout.
Entering this weekend’s series, Elmira still sits in 9th place in the East Division, seven points back of a playoff spot.
There’s still plenty of season left for Elmira’s playoff push, and the Aviators have a lot to build on after their series against Johnstown.
The purple and black had a thriving, balanced attack last Friday. The 5-1 victory featured five different goal scorers. Tallies came from forwards and defensemen, and Elmira scored at even strength and on the power play.
Cole Brown scored his first career NAHL goal in Friday’s game as well.
One aspect of play that thrived all weekend for the Aviators was the goaltending.
Aiden McKenna earned himself East Division 2nd Star of the Week with a pair of tremendous starts against Johnstown. The Vermont commit allowed just two goals across the two games and posted an absurd .971 save percentage.
McKenna should get the nod this weekend against a Philadelphia side that’s struggled to score as of late.
One final area where the Aviators really turned up the heat last weekend is on special teams.
Elmira’s penalty kill went a stellar 10/11, and the power play went a solid 2/8 against Johnstown units that both rank in the top half of the East Division.
If the Aviators can continue to get balanced scoring, great goaltending and rising special teams units, they will be in a prime position to take all four points on the road this weekend.
THE REBELS
Philadelphia comes into this weekend’s series in 7th place in the East Division with 36 points, three ahead of Elmira. The Rebels are currently riding a three-game losing streak.
The Rebels swept the Aviators at Hollydell Ice Arena on Oct. 3 and 4 with dominant 5-3 and 7-3 victories.
More recently, Philadelphia has had a struggling offense, scoring just 2.2 goals per game over its last 10 contests. That figure is slightly carried by a seven-goal outing on Jan. 9.
The Rebels have a near-identical record to the Aviators over their last 10 games with a 3-4-1-2 mark. The Aviators are 3-4-2-1 over their last 10.
Historically, the Rebels have found success against the Aviators, going 6-2-0-0 lifetime against Elmira and 3-1-0-0 at Hollydell Ice Arena.
Philadelphia is a struggling attack on a losing streak without a series sweep since late November. This is the kind of series Elmira needs to sweep if it wants to be a serious threat in the playoff race.
The Aviators failed to come up with any points when they faced a similar situation in New Hampshire two weeks back. However, if Elmira builds off the success it found against Johnstown, the Aviators can take care of business on the road against Philadelphia.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Philadelphia: Abzal Alibek (‘06 F)
The Rebels only scored three goals in their series against Maine last weekend. Alibek contributed to all of them, putting up two goals and an assist.
Not only has the Kazakhstan native found recent success, but he’s also been great against the Aviators. In eight career games versus Elmira, Alibek has three goals and eight points. He put up two goals and two assists in the lone series against the Aviators this season.
Philadelphia will need its hottest scorer to continue being an “Aviator killer” while the rest of the attack tries to find its identity.
Elmira: Evan Dantas (‘05 F)
Dantas leads the Aviators in goals and points for good reason. He combines high skill play with excellent finishing around the net.
He is currently riding a three-game point streak with two goals and two assists during this stretch. Against Johnstown, Dantas showed off his soft hands for a breakaway goal and his fluid shot release with a power-play tally.
Dantas made his Elmira debut against Philly in October, and while the results weren’t there for the team, he thrived. The Brampton, Ontario native scored twice and assisted twice in his first two appearances for the Aviators.
Elmira will need Dantas to continue to flourish as it looks to find consistent scoring against the Rebels.
FOLLOW THE ACTION
Fans can catch this weekend’s action from Hollydell Ice Arena on NATV and WINGZ93. Game 1 is Friday, Jan. 23, at 7:30 p.m. and Game 2 is Saturday, Jan. 24, also at 7:30 p.m.
NATV viewers should be sure to have the stream switched to the “away” tab, so they get the Elmira coverage.
Fans can also keep tabs on the action by following the Aviators on social media @Elmiraaviatorsnahl.
Mac Young is the play-by-play voice of the Elmira Aviators. To contact him, email [email protected].