Sacred Heart recorded four unanswered goals during the second period to erase a one-goal deficit and cruise to a 6-2 victory over visiting Canisius In Atlantic Hockey Conference action Saturday at Webster Bank Arena.
Mel Melconian, Marc Johnstone, Jason Cotton and Alex Bates all scored during the second-period salvo for the Pioneers (3-5-0, 1-2-0 AHC). Zach Tsekos opened the scoring in the first period while Vito Bavaro added an insurance marker early in the third to account for the other two Sacred Heart tallies.
Junior Felix Chamberland and sophomore Nick Hutchison were responsible for the two Golden Griffins’ goals (2-3-1, 2-3-0 AHC)
The teams traded tallies during the first period as Tasekos buried a goalmouth feed at the 11:42 mark to give Sacred Heart a 1-0 lead before Chamberland put home a rebound during a Canisius power-play opportunity a little less than four minutes later to tie the game at 1-1.
Hutchison gave the Griffs a 2-1 lead just 63 seconds into the second period on an even-strength tally, but the Pioneers responded by tying the game less than two minutes later when Melconian wired a wrist shot from the middle of the slot into the left side of the cage for his first collegiate tally.
Johnstone put the Pioneers in front at the 6:04 mark of the middle frame, finishing off a Sacred Heart rush to make it a 3-2 contest.
The Pioneers caped their outburst with a pair of tallies 38 seconds apart midway through the second period. Cotton made a 4-2 contest with a power-play goal at the 12:24 mark before Bates struck on the next shift by sneaking a puck into the Canisius net from close range for his second of the season.
Bavaro completed the scoring on the opening shift of the third period, scoring on a 2-on-1 break 15 seconds into the stanza for his team-leading sixth goal of the season.
Sophomore Daniel Urbani got the start in goal for Canisius and finished with 17 saves before being replaced by junior Simon Hofley during the third period. Brett Magnus posted 28 saves between the pipes for the Pioneers.
Head Coach Trevor Large’s Postgame Comments
“I think we learned today that smooth seas never made a skilled sailor. What I mean by that is that in every game there is adversity. Our adversity was obvious today.
“We’re a veteran team, so I know what our guys are going to do. We’re going to evaluate today’s game; we’re going to learn from it and we’ll be better tomorrow. That’s where our focus is currently.”
Game Notes
Canisius saw its lead in the all-time series against Sacred Heart move to 28-23-7 with the setback Saturday.
Canisius recorded a power-play goal for the fifth time in six games with junior Felix Chamberland’s man-advantage tally in the first period.
Chamberland recorded the 10th power-play goal of his career with the first period tally.
Sophomore Nick Hutchison scored his first even-strength goal of the campaign early in the second period after opening the season with three power-play tallies.
Seniors Jeff Murray and Ryan Schmelzer and junior Jimmy Mazza recorded points for the second straight contest as both players picked up assists on Saturday.
Up Next
The two teams conclude their two-game series Sunday with a 2:05 p.m. matinee at Webster Bank Arena.
