The Canisius College hockey team earned a 6-2 victory over first-place Robert Morris on Sunday night. With the win, the Griffs improve to 5-11-1 on the season and 5-6-1 in Atlantic hockey play, while the Colonials drop to 9-4-3 and 8-3-3 against league foes.
“It was a real character win for us tonight,” said Canisius head coach Dave Smith. “I’m proud of the way our team responded after a tough game yesterday and earned two big points against a good Robert Morris team.”
Senior Ralph Cuddemi (Concord, Ontario) recorded two points on a goal and an assist in the winning effort and in doing so, reached a pair of milestones on Sunday night. The senior became the ninth Griff in program history to record 100 career points and the fourth to reach the 50-goal mark.
Junior Shane Conacher (Burlington, Ontario) led the Griffs with three points on a pair of goals and one assist, while junior defender Geoff Fortman (Crystal Lake, Ill.) matched his teammate with a career-best three points, all on assists. Sophomore Ryan Schmelzer (Buffalo, N.Y.) chipped in two points on a goal and an assist with freshmen Cameron Heath (Troy, Mich.) and Dylan McLaughlin (Lancaster, N.Y.) each adding a tally.
Sophomore Reilly Turner (Temiscaming, Quebec) anchored the victory between the pipes with 32 saves for the Griffs.
One night after being shut out by the Colonials, the Griffs wasted no time scoring on Sunday when Heath netted his third of the season just 2:56 into the game. From the left boards, Heath sent a shot toward net that deflected off a Robert Morris defender’s stick and into the net for the 1-0 lead. Sophomore Jeff Murray (Newmarket, Ontario) and Fortman each registered an assist on the early tally.
The Griffs then doubled their lead when Schmelzer scored his fourth goal of the season just 6:07 into the contest. The sophomore corralled a loose puck near the goal crease and snuck it behind the Robert Morris netminder and into the net for the 2-0 advantage. Conacher and Cuddemi both registered assists on the tally, giving Cuddemi his 100th career point.
Robert Morris pulled one back when Zac Lynch scored an unassisted goal on the power play at the 7:37 mark but Canisius responded when Conacher scored his first of the day with 3:48 remaining in the opening frame. The junior stole the puck from a Robert Morris player in its zone, turned and fired a shot toward net that again deflected off a Colonials player and into the net for the 3-1 lead through one period of play.
In the second and third frames, the Canisius power play started to take over en route to the victory. The Griffs stretched their lead to three when McLaughlin scored with 2:45 remaining in the second. Off a pass from Fortman, the rookie blasted a one timer into the net for his third goal of the campaign. Murray also added an assist as Canisius grabbed a 4-1 lead after 40 minutes of play.
The Griffs then added two more power-play goals 55 seconds apart early in the third frame. With a two-man advantage, Cuddemi knocked a rebound in off a blast from sophomore Jack Stander (Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich.) at the 4:35 mark of the period, giving Canisius a 5-1 lead. The tally also marked the 50th career goal in Cuddemi’s career with Schmelzer also adding an assist for the Griffs.
Canisius then added its season-best third extra-man tally of the night when Conacher ripped a shot into the netting at the 5:20 mark on the continuing power play. Fortman and Stander each posted assists on Conacher’s team-leading 10th goal of the season.
Robert Morris finished the scoring for the night just 28 seconds later when Alex Dagnal scored at the 5:48 mark but it was too little, too late as the Griffs cruised in the final frame to the 6-2 victory.
The Colonials finished the game with 34-23 advantage in shots on the night. However, one night after losing the special teams battle, 4-0, the Griffs used a 3-1 advantage with the extra man on Sunday to earn the victory. The Griffs converted 3-of-6 power-play chances, while the Colonials were 1-for-4.
Terry Shafer took the loss for the Colonials in goal, making four first-period saves before giving way to Dalton Izyk, who stopped 13 shots in the final two frames.
Canisius takes a break from Atlantic Hockey action with a road game at nationally-ranked Merrimack. The Griffs and No. 19 Warriors are set to battle next Sunday at 4:05 p.m.
Game Notes: Canisius is now 5-1-0 this season when scoring on the power play and 0-10-1 when failing to score with the extra man … The Griffs netted three power-play goals in a game for the first time since a 6-3 victory over Robert Morris on Feb. 22, 2014 … Canisius also netted three first-period goals on Sunday after scoring five in the first frame during the other 16 games this season … Cuddemi is now tied with Jason Weeks (2006-10) for third in school history with 50 career tallies … Conacher has four game-winning goals this season (in five Canisius victories). He is just one shy of the single-season school record held by three players and is tied for third nationally (one of five players with at least four game-winning goals) … Murray and Stander each registered a career-best two assists on the night … The home team is now 13-2-1 in the series since Robert Morris joined Atlantic Hockey.
