The Canisius College hockey team secured home ice for an Atlantic Hockey First Round series after finishing off a weekend sweep against RIT, 4-2, on Senior Night at the Buffalo State Sports Arena. The Griffs earned the seven seed for the league’s tournament with a 12-13-2 Atlantic Hockey record and a 13-18-5 overall mark. The Tigers finish the regular season at 13-16-5 overall and 11-12-4 in league play.
“It was a complete effort from everybody tonight,” said Canisius head coach Dave Smith. “Our focus was excellent and once again, we scored timely goals today. We showed a great amount of character to grind out a crucial victory.”
Senior Ben Parker (Port Perry, Ontario), junior Kyle Gibbons (Westlake, Ohio) and sophomores Mitch McCrank (Haileybury, Ontario) and Cody Freeman (Toronto, Ontario) all scored for the Griffs in the winning effort.
Junior Tony Capobianco (Mississauga, Ontario) recorded 36 saves to earn the victory in goal.
RIT struck first in the contest thanks to a miscue by the Canisius defense. Brad McGowan intercepted a pass in the Griffs zone and Matt Garbowsky scored for the early 1-0 lead 6:52 into the contest.
Canisius answered back and quickly turned the momentum in its favor thanks to a pair of scores 22 seconds apart. Parker netted his first goal of the season at the 10:41 mark of the opening frame. Sophomore Matthew Grazen (East Amherst, N.Y.) slid the puck back to Parker at the blue line and the senior defender found an opening for his first tally in nearly three years. Senior Preston Shupe (Weyburn, Saskatchewan) also registered an assist on the game-tying tally.
The Griffs then wasted no time grabbing the lead. Off a rush, Gibbons got a step on the RIT defense and then scored off his backhand for his team-leading 16th goal of the season. McCrank and freshman Stephen Miller (Boxborough, Mass.) both recorded assists on the go-ahead tally.
After a scoreless second frame, the Griffs stretched their lead to two with a power-play tally 4:01 into the third. From the left boards, junior Patrick Sullivan (Derby, N.Y.) sent a nice pass to McCrank right in front. The sophomore then tipped the puck in on an open net for his fifth score of the season. Gibbons added an assist to give the Griffs a 3-1 lead.
RIT did not go down quietly and pulled to within one with 13:12 remaining in the game. On a rush, McGowan’s shot hit off a stick in front and into the net for the 3-2 score.
Canisius, however, once again answered, sealing the victory with 8:29 remaining in the contest with Freeman’s seventh goal of the season. Taking advantage of another rush, Gibbons found Freeman open in the slot and the sophomore sent a wrist shot into the net for the two-goal lead. Parker added an assist as the Griffs secured the victory and home-ice advantage in the first round.
RIT held a 38-33 edge in shots on the night but Canisius won the special-teams battle. The Griffs were 1-for-4 on the power play, while killing both of the Tigers’ extra-man chances.
Jordan Ruby recorded 29 saves in a losing effort for the Tigers.
Canisius now turns its attention toward the postseason where the Griffs will host 10th-seeded Bentley in a best 2-of-3 series. The schools are set to begin the series on Friday night at the Buffalo State Sports Arena at 7:05 p.m.
Rochester, N.Y. – The Canisius College hockey team seized control of the game with a three-goal five-minute spurt in the first period and then held on for a 6-5 victory at RIT on Friday night. With the win, the Griffs move into eighth place in the Atlantic Hockey standings with an 11-13-2 league record and are now 12-18-5 overall. RIT drops to 13-15-5 and 11-11-4 in Atlantic Hockey play.
“We played fast and with a lot of pace tonight,” said Canisius head coach Dave Smith. “We were on pucks first and that was a big key to our win. We didn’t play a perfect game but we played with a lot of energy and heart. We did a good job of responding to RIT’s momentum with some big goals of our own.”
Sophomore Cody Freeman (Toronto, Ontario) led the Griffs with two tallies on the night, while juniors Ben Danford (Stillwater, MInn.) and Ryan Bohrer (West St. Paul, Minn.), sophomore Matthew Grazen (East Amherst, N.Y.) and freshman Stephen Miller (Boxborough, Mass.) all scored for Canisius in the win.
Junior Tony Capobianco (Mississauga, Ontario) recorded 37 saves to earn the win in net.
Grazen gave the Griffs the early advantage, scoring his seventh tally of the season at the 6:47 mark. Senior captain Preston Shupe (Weyburn, Saskatchewan) slid a pass back to the sophomore and Grazen finished for a lead the team would not relinquish. Sophomore Tyler Wiseman (Burlington, Ontario) also registered an assist on the go-ahead tally.
Canisius quickly doubled its lead, scoring just over two minutes later with Miller’s fifth goal of the season. Grazen intercepted a pass in the neutral zone and then found Miller open in the left face-off circle. The rookie then ripped a shot high into the net for the 2-0 lead.
The Griffs continued to add to its advantage, netting their third goal of the game just less than three minutes later. From his own zone, Wiseman sent a pass to a streaking Freeman, who then skated in 1-on-1 and beat the RIT netminder high for the 3-0 lead 11:48 into the contest. Sophomore Logan Roe (Fort Myers, Fla.) also recorded an assist on Freeman’s fifth goal of the season.
The Tigers cut the Canisius lead to two twice in the second but the Griffs answered right back each time. RIT scored on a delayed penalty when Chris Saracino’s one-timer from the high slot found the back of the net with 13:52 remaining in the second for the 3-1 score.
Canisius, however, quickly regrouped – killing off the RIT penalty and then scoring just more than a minute later. Danford’s shot from the point found its way into the back of the net as the Griffs reclaimed their three-goal lead, 4-1. Junior Kyle Gibbons (Westlake, Ohio) posted an assist on Danford’s first goal of the season with 10:40 remaining in the second.
RIT again pulled to within two when Ben Lynch knocked a rebound in with 7:30 left in the second but Canisius would respond even quicker this time, scoring just 25 seconds later. Bohrer knocked in a rebound of his own off a rush for his fourth goal of the season with 7:05 left in the period. Sophomore Doug Jessey (Langdon, Alberta) and senior Torrey Lindsay (Grosse Isle, Manitoba) both recorded the assists on the team’s fifth goal of the game.
The Tigers started the final stanza strong, netting two goals 123 seconds apart to pull within one at 5-4. Bryan Potts swatted a loose puck into the net with 15:46 left in the period and Greg Noyes then knocked the puck in on the power play from close range with 13:43 left in regulation.
Canisius, however, weathered the storm and then reclaimed its multi-goal lead when Freeman netted his second of the day. The sophomore scored on a wrap-around for his sixth of the season with 8:51 left in regulation. Gibbons and Danford both posted an assist to give Canisius a 6-4 advantage.
RIT attempted to fight back and once again got within one, 6-5, scoring with just 84 seconds remaining in regulation when Mike Colavecchia’s shot bounced over Capobianco. The Tigers would not get any closer as Canisius held on for the last 84 seconds, including 18 seconds on the penalty kill, for the 6-5 win.
The Tigers finished the game with a 42-33 advantage in shots on the night. RIT was also 1-for-4 on the power, while the Griffs went 0-for-2.
Jordan Ruby stopped 17-of-22 shots in the start for RIT, while Josh Watson recorded 10 saves in the loss.
The schools wrap up the regular season tomorrow night in Buffalo. With a win, Canisius will secure the seventh seed in the Atlantic Hockey standings. The Griffs can also earn a home-playoff series by matching Bentley’s result against AIC on Saturday night. Game time between the Griffs and Tigers is set for 7:05 p.m. at the Buffalo State Sports Arena.
