CANISIUS COLLEGE ATHLETICS
Canisius (0-0-0, 0-0-0 AHA) at Holy Cross (0-0-0, 0-0-0 AHA)
Date: Friday, Oct. 12 | Saturday, Oct. 13
Times: 7 p.m. | 5 p.m.
Location: Worcester, Mass./Hart Center
Live Stats: Friday | Saturday
TV/Webcast: AtlanticHockey.tv
Tickets: Friday | Saturday
Game Notes Canisius (PDF) | Holy Cross
The Canisius hockey team opens the 2018-19 season this weekend when it travels to Atlantic Hockey foe Holy Cross for a two-game series at the Hart Center in Worcester, Mass.
The series between the Golden Griffins and Crusaders gets underway Friday with a 7 p.m. contest. The teams complete their season-opening set Saturday with a 5 p.m. matinee.
Scouting Canisius
• Picked second in the Atlantic Hockey Preseason Coaches’ Poll, Canisius welcomes back 20 letterwinners from its 2017-18 squad that finished second in the Atlantic Hockey regular-season standings with a 17-11-0 record and advanced to the semifinals of the postseason tournament for the fifth time in the last six seasons.
• The Griffs return eight of their top nine scorers from a season ago, led by Hobey Baker Top Ten Finalist and 2017-18 Atlantic Hockey Player of the Year Dylan McLaughlin, who ranked among the top-10 players nationally in points (1.30/7th) and assists (0.84/8th) per game.
• Fellow All-Atlantic Hockey First Team selection Cameron Heath also returns after leading the Blue and Gold defensemen in goals (7), assists (14) and points (21). The Griffs are the only team in the country to welcome back two first-team all-league selections from a season ago.
• Junior Nick Hutchison was second on the team in scoring with 31 points on 16 goals and 15 assists. Hutchison paced the squad in both power play (6) and game-winning (5) goals last season.
• Junior Matt Hoover looks to build off a solid end to the 2017-18 season that saw him tally nine goals over the final 11 games of the campaign. Hoover finished the season fourth on the squad in scoring with 26 points (14 g, 12 a).
Toronto Defeats Hockey In Exhibition
• Toronto used four different goal scorers and a 34-save shutout from Alex Bishop to post a 4-0 victory over Canisius in a collegiate hockey exhibition contest Saturday at KeyBank Rink at Harborcenter.
• Despite holding a 34-18 shot advantage for the contest, the Golden Griffins were unable to solve Bishop, who posted a game-best 15 saves during the opening period and made 12 stops during the third.
• Kyle Clarke, Nathan Hudgin, Max Lindsay and Ryan Kirkup accounted for the four goals from the Varsity Blues.
• Senior Dylan McLaughlin led all players with eight shot attempts while nine other players registered multiple attempts on goal.
Scouting Holy Cross
• Tabbed eighth in the Atlantic Hockey Preseason Coaches’ Poll, Holy Cross enters the 2018-19 season looking to build upon its third place finish in the Atlantic Hockey standings a season ago.
• Senior Michael Laffin is back to lead a Crusaders offense that saw three of its top four point-producers depart due to graduation. Laffin was third on the squad in scoring a season ago with 28 points on 13 goals and 15 assists.
• Fellow seniors Peter Crinella and Spencer Trapp will be counted on to provide scoring depth as the duo pitched in 18 and 16 points, respectively last season.
• Holy Cross will look to the trio of senior Tommy Nixon, junior Beau Collins and freshman Erik Gordon to replace goaltender Paul Berrafato, who was the only goaltender to see playing time between the pipes for the Crusaders last season.
Canisius-Holy Cross Series Notes
• The Crusaders hold a 35-21-10 advantage in a series that dates back to 1986, including a 31-19-10 edge in Division I meetings.
• Canisius has enjoyed the better of play as of late, however, posting an 9-4-1 mark against Holy Cross in the last five seasons.
• The Griffs hold an 8-15-6 overall mark against the Crusaders in road contests, but Canisius has posted a 4-1-1 record in its last six games against Holy Cross at the Hart Center.
• The teams split their lone series last season at Harborcenter, with the Crusaders taking the opener by a 5-1 margin before the Griffs battled back to record a 5-2 triumph in the finale.
Up Next
• Canisius opens the home portion of its 2018-19 schedule Oct. 19-20 when it welcomes defending Atlantic Hockey Association tournament champion Air Force to KeyBank Rink at Harborcenter for a pair of games.
• The Oct. 20 contest serves as the team’s Pink the Rink game, supporting the American Cancer Society’s Real Mean Wear Pink initiative.
