The Canisius College hockey team couldn’t overcome a slow start as Air Force eased to a 4-1 victory on Saturday in the regular-season finale. The Griffs, who had already secured the second seed for the Atlantic Hockey Tournament, dropped to 16-11-7 on the season and 15-7-6 in Atlantic Hockey play, while the Falcons earned the seven seed for the tournament with a 14-19-4 overall record and 13-12-3 mark in league play.
“A difficult start put us behind the eight-ball tonight,” said Canisius head coach Dave Smith. “We played hard and played with composure against a team that was playing for its playoff position. I’m disappointed with the result tonight but happy that we were able to earn the second seed this weekend.”
Senior Tyler Wiseman (Burlington, Ontario) scored the lone goal for Canisius, extending his career-best point streak.
Freshman Reilly Turner (Temiscaming, Quebec) stopped 31 shots for the Griffs on the night.
The first 20 seconds were a sign of things to come in the first period as an early Canisius miscue gave Air Force a lead it would not relinquish. Miscommunication behind the Canisius net led to Cole Gunner scoring on an empty goal just 18 seconds into the game and the 1-0 lead.
Gunner then doubled the Falcons’ advantage to two with 7:47 remaining in the opening period. On a rush, Chad Demers left the puck for his linemate and Gunner and ripped a shot into the netting for his second tally of the day.
A.J. Reid finished off the strong first period for Air Force, knocking in a rebound with 5:04 remaining in the stanza to give the Falcons a 3-0 advantage through 20 minutes of play.
The score remained 3-0 until early in the third period when the Falcons took advantage of a five-minute power play. Gunner completed his hat trick 1:05 into the final frame to extend the Air Force advantage to four, 4-0.
Wiseman, however, ruined the Falcons’ shutout bid with his eighth tally of the season, scoring a short-handed goal. The senior got behind the Air Force defense and beat the netminder 1-on-1 with 44.8 seconds remaining for the 4-1 final score. Senior Matthew Grazen (Clarence, N.Y.) and sophomore Geoff Fortman (Crystal Lake, Ill.) both registered assists on the short-handed tally.
The Falcons finished the game with a 35-9 advantage in shots in the victory. Air Force also scored once in eight power-play chances, while the Griffs did not convert in four extra-man opportunities.
Canisius returns to action on Friday, March 13, beginning a best 2-of-3 Atlantic Hockey Quarterfinal series. The series against an opponent to be determined will begin at 7:35 p.m. at HARBORCENTER.
Game Notes: Turner is now 5-2-3 on the season in Atlantic Hockey play with both losses coming to Air Force … Canisius allowed more than two goals in a game for just the second time in 15 Atlantic Hockey games in 2015 … The Girffs’ nine shots are the fewest by the team since recording a record-low eight against Bowling Green on Nov. 11, 2011 … Wiseman extended his career-best points streak to six games … The senior also now has five career short-handed goals, one shy of Jason Weeks’ school record of six.
