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ROCHESTER – Top-seeded Canisius continues its quest for the 2017 Atlantic Hockey Conference Tournament title Friday as it takes on No. 4 seed Robert Morris semifinal round action at Blue Cross Arena.
The Griffs (21-10-7) and Colonials (21-11-4) square off in the first of two semifinal contests Friday, with No. 2 seed Air Force and No. 3 seed Army West Point meeting in the nightcap. The winners of the two semifinal matchups will play for the title Saturday at Blue Cross Arena in a 7:05 p.m. puck drop.
Making its fourth semifinal appearance in the past five seasons, Canisius advanced to Friday’s semifinal with a sweep of long-time rival Niagara in quarterfinal round action last weekend at HARBORCENTER. The Griffs won the opener, 3-0, before recording a 2-1 victory in the finale. Canisius returned to the national rankings for the first time since the end of the 2013 campaign on Monday when they were ranked 20th in the last USCHO.com poll. The Griffs are unbeaten in their last 17 contests, posting a 14-0-3 mark in that span. The owners of the longest unbeaten streak in the nation, all 17 games of the current unbeaten streak have been played against AHC competition. Sophomore Dylan McLaughlin continues to leads the Griffs in scoring with 32 points (14g, 18a). McLaughlin, an All-AHC Third Team selection, has recorded 23 points (10g, 13a) during the Griffs’ current unbeaten streak. Junior Ryan Schmelzer is second on the team with 30 points (12g, 18a). The All-AHC Second Team pick posted his team-leading fifth game-winning goal of the season with 1:15 remaining in the third period to propel Canisius to a 2-1 victory over Niagara in the series finale last Saturday. Senior Charles Williams has been rock solid in goal for the Griffs this season. A Hobey Baker Memorial Award Top Ten finalist and a Mike Richter Award semifinalist, Williams leads the nation in save percentage (.946), is tied for first nationally in shutouts (6) and ranks second in goals against average (1.75). Canisius has found its offensive groove since the start of the 2017 calendar year as it is averaging 3.68 goals per game over its last 19 contests, compared to a 1.84 goals per game clip during the Griffs’ first 19 games of the season.
Canisius advanced to the semifinals of the Atlantic Hockey Tournament for the fourth time in the last five seasons with a sweep of long-time rival Niagara in quarterfinal round action last weekend at HARBORCENTER. Game one of the series saw the Griffs post a 3-0 victory as sophomores Jimmy Mazza and Dylan McLaughlin and freshman Nick Hutchison scored for Canisius. Senior Charles Williams stopped all 24 shots he faced as he recorded back-to-back shutouts for the first time this season. In game two, junior Ryan Schmelzer tallied the series-clinching goal with 1:15 remaining in the third period to break a 1-1 tie and give the Griffs a 2-1 triumph. Sophomore Felix Chamberland also scored for Canisius in the contest.
Fourth-seeded Robert Morris secured its fourth straight trip to Rochester last weekend with a sweep of No. 5 seed Holy Cross last weekend at home. The Colonials posted a 6-3 victory in game one before turning a 3-2 triumph in the finale. All-AHC First Team selection junior Brady Ferguson paces the high-powered RMU attack as he leads the team in goals (21), assists (34) and points (55). Ferguson captured the league’s regular-season scoring title, pacing all AHC players with 43 points (16g, 27a) during conference play. Ferguson is one of three Colonials skaters with more than 40 points this season as senior Daniel Leavens (14g, 32a) and sophomore Alex Tonge (19g, 23a) have both surpassed 40-point pleateau this season. In goal, freshman Francis Marotte has seen a majority of time between the pipes for RMU, posting a .933 save percentage and a 2.08 goals against average in 27 appearances. Marotte was named to the AHC All-Rookie Team two weeks ago.
In 26 all-time meetings between the two schools, Robert Morris holds a 15-8-3 advantage. The Colonials hold a slight edge in recent meetings, posting a 3-2-1 record in the last six meetings dating back to the start of the 2015-16 season. Canisius took three out of four points from Robert Morris in their lone series this season all the way back in October at HARBORCENTER. The Griffs won the series opener, 6-3, behind a hat trick from sophomore Felix Chamberland before the two sides played to a 2-2 draw the following evening. The teams have faced off once in the Atlantic Hockey Tournament. The Colonials defeated the the Griffs in the 2014 championship game by a 7-4 margin.
The Griffs are in their 19th season competing at the Division I level, having compiled a 26-25 postseason mark during that span, including a 23-19 record in the Atlantic Hockey Tournament. Since 2013, Canisius is 17-6 in the Atlantic Hockey Tournament. The Griffs have advanced to the final four in four of the past five seasons, winning the program’s first title in 2013 and finishing as runner-up in 2014.
For the first time since the 2013 season and just the second time in program history, Canisius finds itself in the national rankings as the Griffs checked in at No. 20 at the latest USCHO.com poll released on Monday. Canisius was ranked for the first time in school history at No. 20 after winning the 2013 Atlantic Hockey Tournament in March of that year. The Griffs were tabbed No. 19 in the final poll of the 2013 season the following month.
Unbeaten in its last 17 contests, Canisius is not only the owner of the nation’s longest active undefeated streak, but the Griffs have also established a program mark for consecutive games without a loss. The streak is also the longest for any Division I program this season. The current stretch marks the first time in the Division I era of the program that it has gone 10 or more games without a loss. The previous longest unbeaten streak during the Division I era came during the 1999-2000 season, when the Griffs went 7-0-2 from Nov. 13-Jan. 15. The previous longest unbeaten streak in program history occurred during the 1996-97 campaign, when Canisius ran off 11 games without a loss from Dec. 9-Feb. 2 of that season.
