Flames look to end four-game skid by extending four-game streak against Bulldogs

Flames senior forward Ryan Finch is checked against the boards in front of the Adrian College bench in last January's series at the LaHaye Ice Center. (Photos by Ethan Smith)

Flames look to end four-game skid by extending four-game streak against Bulldogs

1/29/2026 12:27:00 PM | Men's D1 Hockey

No. 9 Liberty has plenty of opportunity to move up the rankings down the stretch with eight games against higher-ranked teams, starting with No. 8 Adrian this weekend at the LaHaye Ice Center.

Kal Essenmacher digs puck out along boards vs. Adrian — Flames sophomore forward Kal Essenmacher controls the puck beside Adrian defenseman Ethan McLaughlin at the LaHaye Ice Center.

Traditionally a top five showdown, Liberty University's ACHA Division I men's hockey team and Adrian (Mich.) College, a perennial power in the Great Lakes Six Hockey Conference, have slipped a few spots in the rankings this season with both teams cooling off following hot starts.

The Flames, who remained at No. 9 in this week's national rankings, began the spring semester the way they ended the fall, with back-to-back home losses against former and current top-ranked teams Niagara (N.Y.) and Minot State (N.D.), respectively. Despite outshooting the Purple Eagles, Liberty was unable to get on track offensively, generating one goal or less for the third straight outing in the 3-1 opening loss before letting a 3-2 lead slip away in a 5-3 defeat that completed the sweep.

"The guys know what's at stake," Flames Head Coach Kirk Handy said. "Last weekend, we didn't get the job done. At the end of the day, we need to win games. For us, it's back to work this week and I've loved our guys buy-in to what we're doing, and I think we're in a really good spot going into the weekend."

Adrian, which stayed at No. 8, is 15-2 at home but only 5-3 on the road. The team started 2026 by splitting home-and-home series against Hope (Mich.) College and Calvin (Mich.) University, winning the openers at the Arrington Ice Center before dropping the rematches on the road.

Brad Barker vs. Adrian College — Flames sophomore forward Brad Barker skates beside Adrian defenseman Nathaniel Mott in last season's series at Liberty.

"It's been a good rivalry (with the Bulldogs)," Handy said. "It's two teams that know each other very well, and it's going to be a great set of games this weekend. We are excited to play in these games, and we've got to find a way to win them. We want to be in them, and we believe it's part of the refining process for us. We're going to make sure we have our guys ready to go for Friday night."

With eight regular-season games left on the schedule — including two at home against No. 6 Maryville (Mo.) University and four against No. 2 Ohio University — Liberty is approaching them as preliminary-round playoff games leading into the March 12-17 ACHA National Championships near St. Louis.

"We've got the best schedule in the country from here until nationals, and we are thankful for it," Handy said. "All these teams we're playing down the stretch are top competitors, teams that are going to be there at the end of the day and are going to be fighting for a national championship."

"Because we're playing against great teams, we're going to see things (areas of weakness) that maybe we wouldn't see if the teams weren't as strong," he added. "For us, it's important that we stick to it and make sure that we stay focused and are able to refine our game and get better as a team."

The Flames expect to return junior forward Aidan Carney to the lineup after he sat out the second game against Niagara due to a lower-body injury. However, sophomore forward Hayden DeMars will be sidelined after missing the rematch against the Purple Eagles with an upper-body injury.

"We're still tweaking a few of our line combinations," Handy said, noting the Flames also had a couple players out sick earlier this week before returning for Wednesday's practice.

Scouting Preview, Games 24-25: No. 8 Adrian College (21-5-2) at No. 9 Liberty (15-8), Friday at 7 p.m. and Saturday at 1 p.m. in the LaHaye Ice Center in Lynchburg, Va. Both games will be streamed live on ESPN+. Saturday's rematch is Chick-Fil-A Youth Day.

Tucker Shields crashes Adrian's goal — Sophomore forward Tucker Shields crashes the Bulldogs' cage manned by goalie Peyton Trzaska with McLaughlin right behind him.

All-time series: Adrian still leads 17-10-3, but Liberty has won four of the last five meetings, including the rematch in Michigan, 6-2, after dropping the series opener, 7-3 in October after doing the same thing in October 2024, 4-3 in overtime. Last spring, the Flames swept the Bulldogs by 3-1 and 4-2 scores at the LIC for the first time since February 2020, when they shocked the No. 1-ranked team in the nation on back-to-back nights at the LIC before the National Championships in Texas were canceled by COVID-19.

Liberty Scouting Report: The Flames' attack is sparked by senior forward Michael DeBrito (8 goals, 2 game-winning goals, 17 assists), junior defenseman Nick Pomerleau (3G, 19A), senior forward Ryan Finch (14G, 7A), junior forward Luke Munroe (10G, 11A), and sophomore forward Kal Essenmacher (8G, 3GWG, 7A).

Liberty's power play success rate has improved of late, and it is now scoring on 24 percent of its chances. The Flames' penalty kill unit, meanwhile, has killed off only 73.5 percent of opponents' power play opportunities.

Between the pipes, Liberty has platooned junior Konrad Kausch (8-4, 3.17 goals-against average, 88.9 save percentage, 1 shutout) and senior Nick Bernstein (6-4, 2.58 GAA, 91.4 SP) with similar success.

Adrian Scouting Report: The Bulldogs' roster features a homogenous blend of 17 players from various Canadian provinces and 10 from Michigan with no other states represented. Adrian's extremely balanced offense is paced by eight forwards with 20 points or more: Eli Reimer (10G, 21A), Matteo Turrin (16G, 13A), Sebastian Smith (14G, 3GWG, 13A), Keegan Decaluwe (10G, 2GWG, 14A), Cash Regan (9G, 3GWG, 15A), Blake Wideman (16G, 2GWG, 5A), Justin Jamer (8G, 2GWG, 13A), and Dylan Gajewski (11G, 2GWG, 9A).

Mac Ratzlaff alongside boards vs. Adrian — Sophomore forward Mac Ratzlaff battles near the boards alongside an Adrian player.

On special teams, Adrian has killed off 84.9 percent of its penalties and capitalized on 26.3 percent of its power-play opportunities.

In net, Payton Trzaska (13-2-1, 1.87 GAA, 93.3 SP, 4 SO) has logged the majority of minutes with stellar support from Dylan Eliason (7-3-1, 1.55 GAA, 93.8 SP, 3 SO).

Coaches: Handy is in his 26th season as head coach of the Flames, sporting a career record of 576-236-38 and leading Liberty to three ACHA DI Final Four appearances in the past five seasons. Gary Astalos is in his 10th season at the helm of the Bulldogs, compiling a record of 307-30-6 and leading Adrian to ACHA DI national championships in 2018, 2021, and 2024.

By Ted Allen/Staff Writer