Guelph jumped out to an early 1-0 lead with a goal in the first period, and then tacked on five second-period goals to take a 6-0 lead after 40 minutes of play. Kopstals scored the final two goals of the second period, with the first coming at the 9:43 mark and the second coming with just 2:44 left to play before the second intermission.
Canisius got on the board 3:34 into the third period on a goal by junior Ryan Schmelzer, and then added another tally at the 7:25 mark of the final period when junior Mike Sabatini beat Guelph netminder Scott Stajcer off an assist from freshman Jesse Pereira.
Head Coach Dave Smith said, “This game was like taking an exam. We really looked good in some areas where we knew coming in we’d be strong, and we were exposed a bit on some things that we still need to work on. I liked our response to adversity. We came out in the third and played our best period. We just need to respond to adversity quicker.”
Canisius will officially open the 2016-17 season with a two-game series at defending national champion North Dakota Friday and Saturday. Faceoff on Friday, is set for 8:37 p.m. The two-game series with the Fighting Hawks marks the first time the Griffs square off with the defending national champion since meeting Maine during the 1999-00 campaign.
from GoGriffs.com via IFTTT
