After keying a series win at conference foe Holy Cross, Simon Hofley (Ottawa, Ontario) and Jack Stander (Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich.) of the Canisius College hockey team were both honored by Atlantic Hockey on Tuesday. Hofley was named the league’s Goaltender of the Week, while Stander earned Atlantic Hockey Defensive Player of the Week accolades.
A freshman netminder, Hofley anchored the Griffs to a draw and a win versus the Crusaders with 91 combined saves in the two games. In Friday’s 2-2 tie, Hofley recorded a career-best 49 saves before posting 42 stops in a 2-1 overtime victory on Saturday. His 49 saves are the most by a Griff in a regular-season contest since Dan Morrison in 2010, while he became the first Canisius netminder with at least 40 saves in back-to-back games since Tony Capobianco during the 2012-13 campaign.
In 14 games during his rookie season, Hofley has posted a 4-4-4 record to go along with a 2.46 goals against average and .929 save percentage. He has started each of the Griffs’ last seven contests, registering a 3-1-3 record, 2.06 goals against average and .940 save percentage.
A sophomore defender, Stander anchored a strong Canisius defense that held the Crusaders to less than half its season scoring average during the weekend series. Stander also chipped in two points in Saturday’s 2-1 victory, netting his first goal of the season to open the scoring before adding an assist on the game-winning overtime tally.
In 24 games this season, Stander leads all Canisius defenders with nine points, scoring one goal to go along with eight assists.
With Canisius on a season-long four-game unbeaten streak, Hofley, Stander and the Griffs return to action this weekend with a pair of home games against Air Force. The teams begin the two-game series at HARBORCENTER on Friday at 7:35 p.m.
