Complete Mercyhurst Game Notes
Complete Holy Cross Game Notes
Live Stats
ERIE, Pa. - The Mercyhurst men's hockey team earned a first-round bye and home ice in the Atlantic Hockey Association quarterfinals on the final day of the regular season. The first day of the Lakers' postseason will begin on Friday.
Mercyhurst has not advanced past the Atlantic Hockey Quarterfinals since the 2008-09 season, when the Lakers lost in the title game, 2-0 against Air Force. This weekend, the Lakers have an opportunity to get back to the Blue Cross Arena in Rochester, New York as they get set to host a best-of-three series against the Crusaders of Holy Cross.
Holy Cross advanced to the quarterfinals after sweeping last-place Army in the first round of the playoffs, 3-2 and 5-2. The Crusaders have the second longest unbeaten streak in the country, having gone 9-0-1 in their last ten games, which started with a 6-1 win over American International on February 3. The Crusaders have outscored their opponents 45-17 during the streak.
Mercyhurst clinched a first-round bye after blanking Canisius 5-0, behind senior
Max Strang's third shutout of the season. Over his last four appearances, Strang has stopped 111-of-114 shots (.974 save percentage), including a career-high 50 saves in a 2-1 win at Air Force on February 18.
The two teams met twice earlier this season in Worcester, Massachusetts, with the Lakers taking three-out-of-four points the weekend of January 20 and 21. Sophomore
Daniel O'Donoghue scored 19 seconds into overtime in game one, propelling the Lakers to a 3-2 win. The second night saw the two teams play to a 5-5 overtime tie. It was the first time since Janaury 30 and 31, 2009 against Air Force that both games in a weekend series went to overtime.
Mercyhurst leads the overall series 24-10-5 over the Crusaders. The teams have met just one time in the Atlantic Hockey Association playoffs, with the Lakers posting a 4-3 overtime win in a 2005 semifinal contest.
Faceoffs both Friday and Saturday between the Lakers and the Crusaders are scheuled for 7:05 p.m. A third game, if necessary, will take place on Sunday night, also at 7:05 p.m.
