The Canisius College hockey team returns to the ice this weekend, opening up with an Atlantic Hockey matchup at Air Force. The schools are set to meet on Friday in Colorado at 9:05 p.m. ET.
SCOUTING THE GRIFFS
• Canisius lost its season opener to Niagara on Oct. 12. The Griffs had an early 4-1 lead but allowed the final five goals for a 6-4 setback.
• Four different players tallied goals for Canisius with three players registering two assists.
• Senior Kyle Gibbons is the team’s top returning scorer, ranking 12th nationally with 43 points (21g, 22a) a season ago.
• Senior Tony Capobianco recorded 37 saves in the opener at Niagara and is coming off a record-setting campaign as a junior.
TAYLOR LAW SCORES IN RETURN
• Senior Taylor Law quickly showed his 2011-12 form in the Griffs’ opener, netting a goal against nationally-ranked Niagara.
• Law was named the team’s MVP as a sophomore, leading Canisius with 26 points, 11 goals and 15 assists. However, he missed most of his junior campaign with an injury, totaling only two goals.
• The forward’s tally was his first since Nov. 10, 2012.
GETTING OFF TO A STRONG START
• One trend that the Griffs quickly changed this season was scoring early in the contest.
• Canisius scored four first-period goals in its opener against Niagara.
• Last season, the first was the Griffs’ least productive period as the team only scored 26 of its 113 tallies in the opening frame (23.0%).
• The four goals at Niagara were the most in a first period for Canisius since also netting four against Robert Morris on Dec. 15, 2009.
EXPERIENCE MATTERS
• As exciting as the 2012-13 season was for Canisius with winning its first Atlantic Hockey Championship, the Griffs know they have a great opportunity to repeat this season.
• Canisius features 17 upperclassmen on its roster – the second-most nationally. Only Mercyhurst has more on its team this season with 18.
CANISIUS – AIR FORCE SERIES HISTORY
• Air Force holds a slight edge in the all-time series against Canisius, 9-7-7.
• The teams are meeting for the first time since last season’s Atlantic Hockey Quarterfinal series, where the Griffs swept the playoff games with a pair of 4-3 wins in Colorado.
• Canisius won the opener when Kyle Gibbons scored with 9.1 seconds remaining in regulation and then completed the sweep with Duncan McKellar’s overtime tally. Tony Capobianco made 90 saves in the two wins, including a Canisius postseason record of 50 in the finale.
• The series has been one of the most competitive in Atlantic Hockey. In 13 of the last 16 meetings, the games have either resulted in a tie or a one-goal contest (not including empty-net tallies).
• Canisius is also just one of two Atlantic Hockey schools with a winning record at Air Force since the Falcons joined the league. The Griffs are 5-4-4 in Colorado with Air Force going 67-21-11 against the rest of the league.
ABOUT THE FALCONS
• Air Force enters conference play with a 2-2-0 overall record. The Falcons swept a pair of home games last weekend against Penn State, winning 5-2 and 3-1.
• Cole Gunner (3g, 2a) and Chad Demers (1g, 4a) are tied for the team lead with five points. George Michalke is tied with Gunner with a team-best three goals.
• Jason Torf has started all four games in net, posting a 2.79 goals against average and .895 save percentage.
CANISIUS – DENVER HISTORY
• The two schools are meeting for the first time on the ice.
GRIFFS VERSUS NCHC TEAMS
• In its first year of play, the Griffs have previously faced five of the eight teams from the NCHC.
• Canisius owns an all-time mark of 1-16-1 against the eights schools in the NCHC.
• The only victory against one of the league’s schools came during the 2010-11 campaign when Canisius defeated Western Michigan, 5-3.
• The meeting with Denver is the first of three-straight games against NCHC schools for the Griffs as the teams travels to face Miami next weekend.
ABOUT THE PIONEERS
• Denver is currently ranked 17th in the most recent USCHO.com national poll.
• The Pioneers lost a pair of overtime contests last weekend to Alaska and Alaska-Anchorage.
• Nolan Zajac leads the team with four points and three assists this season. David Makowski and Joey LeLeggia have each netted a team-best two tallies.
• Sam Brittain has started 3-of-4 games in net for the Pioneers, posting a 0.98 goals against average and .965 save percentage.
