Complete Game Notes

ROCHESTER, N.Y. - The Mercyhurst University men's hockey team (2-2-1, 2-1-0 AHA) will put its three-game unbeaten streak on the line on Friday night when they travel to long-time rival Rochester Institute of Technology (2-4-1, 1-1-1 AHA). Faceoff is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. from the Ritter Arena.

This will be Mercyhurst's only game of the weekend while RIT will also host Canisius on Saturday.

RIT leads the overall series with the Lakers, 28-14-6. The teams went 1-1-1 last season with Mercyhurst winning in Erie early in the season. Mercyhurst dropped a 5-1 decision before bouncing back for a 2-2 tie the following night in Rochester last January.

The Lakers are coming off a weekend sweep of Sacred Heart last Friday and Saturday, winning by the scores of 3-0 and 3-1. Mercyhurst got a shutout from senior Max Strang on Friday night while junior Jordan Tibbett was just as good on Saturday, stopping 39-of-40 Pioneer shots. Sophomore Ryan Misiak continued his torrid start to the season with a goal and two assists over the weekend. He has scored at least one point in all five games this year and has a seven-game scoring streak dating back to last season. He leads the Lakers with three goals and four assists.

Meanwhile, the Tigers earned three of a possible four points against American International last Friday and Saturday. The teams skated to a 2-2 tie on Friday before RIT posted a 3-0 blanking of the Yellow Jackets on Saturday. Senior Jeff Smith paces the Tigers with nine points (four goals, five assists) through the team's first seven games. Junior Josh Watson and sophomore Jordan Ruby have split time in goal, trying to make up for the loss of graduated Shane Madolora. The two have combined to post a 3.95 goals against average and a .881 save percentage.

You can follow all of the action via live stats from Rochester, N.Y. by clicking here.

OTHER NOTES

Mercyhurst: Mercyhurst swept Sacred Heart over the weekend to pick up its first victories of the 2012-13 season. Mercyhurst moved to 2-2-1 overall and 2-1-0 in the Atlantic Hockey Association standings with the victories and have now swept the Pioneers in back-to-back seasons. With the wins, Mercyhurst evened the all-time series with Sacred Heart – 19-19-5. On Friday, Mercyhurst blanked the Pioneers 3-0 for the team's first win of the year. Sophomore forward Ryan Misiak had a goal and an assist while sophomore defenseman Grant Gettinger scored his first collegiate goal (his 43rd career game), which also proved to be the game-winner. Last season's leading scorer, sophomore Daniel Bahntge, had the other goal for the Lakers. Senior goaltender Max Strang stopped all 28 Pioneer shots for his first shutout of the season, and the fourth of his career. Strang had allowed seven goals in two periods in his prior start at Ferris State two weeks ago, but bounced back in a big way on Friday. In two conference games this season, Strang is 1-1 with a 1.01 goals against average and a .970 save percentage. On Saturday, junior goaltender Jordan Tibbett got the call in net and he turned in Mercyhurst's second straight stellar performance in goal. Tibbett allowed a first period goal, but the Lakers scored three unanswered to defeat Sacred Heart 3-1 to complete the sweep. Tibbett stopped 39-of-40 Pioneer shots including all 20 in the third period. His 39 saves tied his career high set against Western Michigan on October 16, 2010. In two games this season, the junior from Indianapolis, Indiana has allowed one goal on 54 shots (.981 save percentage). Mercyhurst got goals from Bahntge and fellow sophomores Matthew Zay and Tyler Shiplo in the victory. Ryan Misiak added an assist in the win and has now scored at least one point in all five games this season. He has a seven-game point scoring streak dating back to last season. He leads the Lakers with three goals and four assists through the first five games. Strang and Tibbett combined to stop 67-of-68 Sacred Heart shots over the weekend (.985 save percentage). Mercyhurst is in the midst of 11 consecutive games on the road to start the season.

RIT: RIT snapped its five-game winless streak on Saturday, recording its first shutout of the 2012-13 season, 3-0 at American International. The two teams skated to a 2-2 tie on Frday. In Friday's contest, Brad Reid and Adam Mitchell scored goals for RIT, while Greg Noyes dished out two assists and Jordan Ruby made 29 saves. RIT out-shot AIC and was 1-for-2 with the man-advantage. The Tigers out-shot AIC, 43-31. On Saturday, Josh Watson made 19 saves for his first collegiate shutout, while Chris Saracino tallied a goal and an assist and Adam Mitchell and Mike Colavecchia scored. RIT was 1-for-7 with the man advantage and held AIC to 0-for-2 on the power-play. RIT out-shot the Yellowjackets, 36-19. RIT is now 20-3-2 all-time against AIC. Before this weekend, the Tigers struggled mightily on defense, allowing 27 goals through their first five games (5.2 per game). After allowing just a pair of goals this weekend, RIT is now allowing 28 goals in seven games (4.0 per game). RIT's power-play has scored at least one goal in four straight games and is in the middle of the pack in Division I, 29th at 17.8 percent. RIT's penalty-killing unit did not allow a power-play goal for the first time in seven games on Saturday, and is off to a rough start at 73.5 percent, 57th nationally. Saturday's shutout was RIT's 22nd since the start of the 2009-10 season. RIT is 14-6-28 in overtime games at the Division I level. Adam Mitchell has four goals over his last three games. Despite losing its AHA home opener to Robert Morris on Oct. 25, RIT is 35-4-10 against AHA foes at Ritter Arena dating back to the 2009-10 season. RIT is 28-14-6 against the Lakers, 12-5-3 since 2005. Last season, the Tigers went 1-1-1 against the Lakers, losing in Mercyhurst and then securing a 5-1 win and 2-2 tie at Ritter Arena. RIT is 55-15-1 all-time against the Golden Griffins and 16-5-0 since the start of the 2005-06 season. Last season, the Tigers went 2-1-0 against Canisuis, losing 3-1 in October in Buffalo, then winning 3-1 in Buffalo and 5-2 at Ritter Arena in February.