ERIE, Pa. - The Mercyhurst University men's hockey team returns to Atlantic Hockey Association action this weekend at the Mercyhurst Ice Center when it entertains Army on Friday, November 7 and Saturday, November 8. Faceoffs are scheduled for 7:05 p.m. both nights, with Saturday's game serving as the team's Third Annual Teddy Bear Toss. Fans that bring a stuffed animal to the Saturday contest will receive free admission. Then, when the Lakers score their first goal, fans can throw their stuffed animals onto the ice with all toys collected being donated to Toys For Tots.

Mercyhurst holds a commanding 31-9-4 advantage in all-time series against Army, including 21-1-2 mark in games played at the Mercyhurst Ice Center. Last season, the Lakers swept the Black Knights in West Point, New York, for the first time since February 13 and 14, 2004. Mercyhurst won by identical 3-1 finals last January 3 and 4 to improve to over .500 lifetime at Tate Rink.

Mercyhurst (3-3-0, 1-1-0 AHA) is coming off of a weekend split at fourth-ranked Colgate last Friday and Saturday in Hamilton, New York. The Lakers' victory over the Raiders on Saturday marked the highest-ranked opponent that the program had ever beaten since becoming a Division I member in 1999-2000. Meanwhile, the Black Knights (2-4-1, 2-3-1 AHA) lost their only game of the weekend last Friday - a 4-2 decision against Brown in West Point. In fact, all seven of Army's games entering play this weekend have been on its home ice.



Last Meetings ...

January 3, 2014
Mercyhurst 3 at Army 1

Mercyhurst jumped out to a 2-0 lead and held on for a 3-1 victory at Army to take game one of a weekend series. Chris Bodo scored a power play goal in the opening period and then Matt Zay added a power play tally midway through the second to give the Lakers a 2-0 lead. After Andrew O'Leary scored for Army to cut the Laker lead in half, Daniel O'Donoghue scored with 17 seconds left in the second period for the final score of the night. Jimmy Sarjeant did the rest, stopping 32-of-33 Army shots. Zay finished the night with a goal and an assist.

January 4, 2014
Mercyhurst 3 at Army 1

Mercyhurst completed a sweep of Army in West Point for the first time since February 13 and 14, 2004, when it edged the Black Knights by an identical 3-1 final. Ed DeWald scored his first collegiate game-winning goal when he broke a 1-1 tie at the 14:33 mark of the second period. Daniel O'Donoghue added a power play goal with roughly 90 seconds left in regulation to seal the win. Daniel Bahntge scored a first period power play goal to give the Lakers a 1-0 lead. Army answered with a goal from Clint Carlisle just seconds into the middle period. Jimmy Sarjeant stopped 28-of-29 in the win. O'Donoghue finished with a goal and an assist.

LAST WEEKEND ...

Mercyhurst split a weekend series for the third time in three weeks when it traveled to fourth-ranked Colgate for a weekend series. The Raiders blanked Mercyhurst 4-0 last Friday before the Lakers responded with a 2-1 victory on Saturday night - the biggest upset win in program history. Jonathan Charbonneau and Daniel Bahntge had the goals for Mercyhurst while Jimmy Sarjeant stopped 39-of-40 shots in the win. Mercyhurst improved to 2-6 lifetime against Colgate.

THE SERIES VS ARMY ...

Mercyhurst holds a 31-9-4 edge over Army in the all-time series and is 21-1-2 lifetime against the Black Knights at the Mercyhurst Ice Center. Last season, Mercyhurst swept Army in West Point for the first time since February 13 and 14, 2004, when it won back-to-back 3-1 games at Tate Rink. Army's only victory in Erie came on February 25, 2006, when it defeated Mercyhurst, 3-2.

SCOUTING THE BLACK KNIGHTS ...

Army enters with a 2-4-1 overall mark and a 2-3-1 record in conference play with all seven of its games being played on home ice. The Black Knights did tie with Robert Morris back on October 25 which is the only blemish on the Colonials' record to date. Army played one game last weekend, a 4-2 loss against Brown on October 31.

Tyler Pham, Maurice Alvarez, and Conor Andrle lead Army in scoring with four points apiece. Meanwhile, Parker Gahagen has been sensational in goal, posting a 2-2-1 record with a 2.37 goals against average and a .929 save percentage.

SIGNATURE WIN ...

Mercyhurst's upset win at fourth-ranked Colgate last Saturday marked the highest-ranked team that the program has defeated since becoming a Division I member in 1999-2000. The highest-ranked foe that the Lakers knocked off prior to Saturday night was a 6-4 win over #7 Princeton on November 29, 2008 in the opening round of the Rensselaer Holiday Tournament. Mercyhurst defeated fourth-ranked Michigan in a shootout on October 2, 2010 to open the 2010-11 campaign. However, the game went down as a tie in the record books.

BAHNTGE ON THE BOARD ...

Senior Daniel Bahntge picked an opportune time to pick up his first goal, and his first point, of the 2014-15 season. His goal with 3:10 left in regulation last Saturday at #4 Colgate proved to be the game-winner as the Lakers knocked off the Raiders, 2-1. It was Bahntge's 40th career goal with six of them being game-winning tallies. The senior has not missed a game in his collegiate career (128 games) and now needs eight points to become a member of the 100-point club during the Division I era at Mercyhurst.

WELCOME TO COLLEGE HOCKEY ...

Freshman Jonathan Charbonneau didn't take long to make his presence felt in the Mercyhurst lineup. After being held off the scoresheet in the season opener, Charbonneau had a goal and an assist in the Lakers' 4-2 win at Air Force in game two of the series. For his efforts, the St-Colombant, Quebec-native earned Co-Freshman of the Week honors from the Atlantic Hockey Association. Charbonneau is currently tied for the team lead in scoring with two goals and two assists in six games.

Defenseman Tyler Enns recorded an assist and was a +3 in his only game in the Air Force series (game two). Zach Todd took a whopping four games to pick up his first point - he earned an assist in the team's 3-2 win over Merrimack on October 25. Kane Elliot and Patrick Piacentini made their first appearance in the win at Colgate but did not factor in the scoring.

SARJEANT AT ARMS ...

The reigning AHA Player of the Year and Goaltender of the Year, senior Jimmy Sarjeant, has been heating up. After getting off to a rocky start at Air Force (five goals in 26 shots on opening night), the Laker netminder has stopped 177-of-191 (.927 save percentage) in his last five starts. In five of his six starts this season, Sarjeant has turned aside at least 30 shots, with a season-high of 40 coming in a 4-2 win at Air Force on October 11. He turned aside 39-of-40 in Saturday's upset win at #4 Colgate.

Last season, Sarjeant became the first Laker to win the AHA Player of the Year Award since the league's inception in 2003-04. He also became the first Mercyhurst goaltender to win the league's Goaltender of the Year Award since the league's inception. He became just the second goaltender to win both AHA Player of the Year and Goaltender of the Year in the same season (Josh Kassel, Army, 2007-08) and just the third goaltender to win Player of the Year honors (Kassel, Carson Chubak of Niagara, 2012-13).

Last season, Sarjeant went 14-0-5 with a 2.00 goals against average and a .943 save percentage against league opponents. His overall winning percentage of .724 (18-5-6) ranked seventh in the country while his .930 save percentage was fifth in the nation. He earned his first collegiate shutout with a 51-save masterpiece against Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts, last January. It was the most saves by a Laker netminder since Ryan Zapolski stopped 63 Canisius shots in a double overtime loss on March 13, 2010. The 51 saves set a program record for most saves in shutout since the team moved to Division I in 1999-2000 and marked the most stops in a non-overtime game since Jordan Wakefield had 52 saves in a loss at Air Force on January 6, 2007.

FRIDAY VS SATURDAY ...

After the weekend series at Colgate, Mercyhurst dropped to 0-3 in games played on Fridays and remained perfect at 3-0 in games on Saturday. The Lakers have been outscored 14-5 on Friday nights but have outscored the opposition on Saturdays by a 9-5 margin. Goaltender Jimmy Sarjeant is 0-3-0 with a 4.61 goals against average and a save percentage of .861. Meanwhile on Saturday, Sarjeant is 3-0-0 with a 1.67 goals against average and a save percentage of .957.

WELCOME TO THE CLUB ...

Senior forward Matthew Zay scored with 32 seconds left in regulation last Friday night to force overtime and to become the 17th player in the Division I era at Mercyhurst to record 100 career points. It was Zay's first goal of the season and the 34th of his career. He has an even 100 points in 118 career games with the Lakers and has scored 86 points in his last 80 games after registering just 14 points in 36 games as a rookie.

SPECIAL TEAMS STRUGGLING ...

Mercyhurst went 0-for-8 on the power play at Colgate last weekend and has dropped to 2-for-27 on the season (7.4%), which ranks 48th in the country. The only two power play goals that Mercyhurst has scored was against Merrimack (Ryan Misiak, Matt Zay). Last season, Mercyhurst had one of the best power play units in the country, capitalizing on 35-of-160 chances for a 21.9% success rate. Meanwhile, the Lakers have struggled on the penalty kill as well, allowing six goals in 24 opponent chances (75.0%). That percentage ranks the Lakers tied for 52nd in the country. Last season, Mercyhurst killed off 83.5% of opponent power play chances and also led the country with ten shorthanded goals.

OUTSHOT IN EVERY GAME ...

Through six games, the Lakers have been outshot in every contest this season and have been outshot, on a whole, 217-146. However, the numbers were screwed drastically last weekend as the Lakers were outshot 77-44 in the two-game series against Colgate.

RIGHT PLACE, RIGHT TIME ...

Redshirt senior Kyle Just recorded, what proved to be, his first collegiate game-winning goal in the 3-2 win over Merrimack on October 25. His first goal of the season and first game-winner in 109 career games. His deflection off of a centering feed from redshirt freshman Jack Riley was originally waived off by the officiating crew but was overturned when the officials went to the video replay.

PICKING UP THE SLACK ...

Junior Anthony Mastrodicasa is taking over as the offensive-minded defenseman for the Lakers after the graduation of Nick Jones, who left Mercyhurst as one of the highest-scoring blueliners in program history. Mastrodicasa was second to Jones in points by a defenseman last season after recording five goals and 13 assists as a sophomore. After being held scoreless in the season-opening weekend at Air Force, Mastrodicasa tied a career-high with three points (one goal, two assists) in the 5-4 overtime loss to Merrimack on October 24. He added an assist in the 3-2 win over Merrimack on October 25 for a four-point weekend, leapfrogging him into a tie for the team-lead in scoring, where he remains through six games.

SPREADING IT OUT ...

The Lakers have scored 14 goals through six games and only senior Chris Bodo (two), freshman Jonathan Charbonneau (two), and junior Alec Shields (two) have more than one goal. In the opening weekend at Air Force, Mercyhurst had five goals and five different goal scorers. Against Merrimack, Mercyhurst had seven goals by seven different players, while last weekend, the Lakers had two goals by two different players

The Lakers already have 17 players with at least one point this season with only seven players (including goaltender Jimmy Sarjeant), who have played in at least one game, not recording a point this season.

PICKING UP WHERE HE LEFT OFF ...

During Mercyhurst's playoff run last season, Alec Shields emerged as an offensive threat in the Laker lineup. After recording two assists in his first 18 games last season, Shields had five points in his last four games, with four of those points coming in three playoff contests. His first collegiate goal was a game-winner in game two of the AHA Quarterfinals against Holy Cross. He also scored a pair of goals in the AHA Semifinal loss to Canisius.

In the first weekend of the 2014-15 season, Shields had the game-winning goal and added an assist in the split with Air Force. Last weekend, Shields tallied his second goal of the season in Saturday's victory. Dating back to last season, Shields has at least one point in seven of his last ten games.

OPENING WEEKEND ...

Mercyhurst jumped right into conference play to start the 2014-15 season as it traveled to Colorado to square off against the Air Force Academy. The Falcons defeated the Lakers 5-1 in the season opener on Friday, October 11, before Mercyhurst rebounded with a 4-2 win the following night to earn the split. The Lakers moved to 12-14-3 lifetime against Air Force and 8-5-1 at the Cadet Ice Arena.

ALMOST THERE ...

Senior Matthew Zay became the 17th player in the Division I era at Mercyhurst to record 100 career points when he sent the opening game of the Merrimack series to overtime. Seniors Ryan Misiak and Daniel Bahntge are close to becoming numbers 18 and 19 to reach the plateau. Misiak had a goal on October 24 and is now just four points shy of 100. Meanwhile, Bahntge pulled to within eight points after his game-winning goal last Saturday at Colgate.

WILD PERIOD ...

A total of 12 goals were scored at the Cadet Ice Arena in the season-opening weekend between Mercyhurst and Air Force. Of the 12 goals, eight were scored in the second period, with six of those coming in the span of 3:21 of game action. On Friday night, Air Force snapped a 1-1 tie with three goals in the span of 1:18 late in the second period to break the game open. Mercyhurst returned the favor on Saturday night, scoring three goals in 2:03 to also break a 1-1 deadlock. Mercyhurst's four goals on Saturday all came in the second period and were scored in the span of 9:03.

EXHIBITION OPENER ...

Mercyhurst opened the 2014-15 season on October 5 with a 6-1 victory over Ryerson University of Toronto at the Mercyhurst Ice Center. After a scoreless first period, the Lakers scored four times in the second, three of which came during a 75-second span midway through the frame. Freshman Jonathan Charbonneau put Mercyhurst on the board with a power play goal before Ryerson tied it at 1-1 just over three minutes later. Seniors Ryan Misiak, Zac Frischmon, and Ed DeWald scored 75 seconds apart to give the Lakers a 4-1 lead after two. Sophomore Philippe Drouin and Stephen Hrehoriak closed out the scoring in the third. Misiak led the offense with a goal and three assists, while Charbonneau, DeWald, and Drouin had one goal and one assist each. Sophomore Spencer Bacon started in goal and stopped 14-of-15 shots in nearly 30 minutes. Freshman Brandon Wildung closed out the contest by stopping all 17 shots he faced.

NON-CONFERENCE SLATE ...

Since joining the Division I ranks in the 1999-2000 season, the Lakers have struggled against teams out-of-conference. Mercyhurst is 21-92-11 against non-conference opponents in its Division I history and posted a 2-8-1 non-conference mark last season. The Lakers earned victories over Merrimack and Rensselaer and a tie at Alaska in 2013-14. This season, Mercyhurst is 2-2-0 out of conference, having split against Merrimack two weekends ago and at #4 Colgate last weekend..

SEASON OPENING STRUGGLES ...

Since joining the Division I ranks in 1999-2000, Mercyhurst has not fared well in season openers. In fact, Mercyhurst is 0-15-1 in its 16 season-opening games since becoming a Division I member. The only non-loss in those 16 games was a 4-4 overtime tie at Michigan to open the 2010-11 season. The Lakers eventually defeated the Wolverines in a shootout but the game went in the record books as a tie. Mercyhurst has been outscored 68-30 in those 16 contests.

AYE, AYE CAPTAIN ...

Head coach Rick Gotkin announced that senior forward Matthew Zay will serve as this year's team captain, while seniors Ryan Misiak and Tyler Shiplo will be the assistants.

Zay, a native of Glendale, New York, entered the 2014-15 season needing just four points to become the 17th player in school history, at the Division I level, to record 100 career points. He has led the Lakers in each of the last two seasons in scoring, including a career-high 43 points last year. He was a First Team All-Atlantic Association selection and was named the team's Best Forward at the annual postseason banquet last season. Zay participated in the Chicago Blackhawks Prospect Development Camp over the summer.

Hailing from Shelby Township, Michigan, Misiak entered needing just five points to reach the century mark in his career. He had a career-high 25 assists last season, helping him tie his career-best of 38 points he also recorded as a sophomore. He led the Lakers with 29 points against conference opponents last season and was named an All-AHA Second Team honoree in 2012-13. Misiak attended the New Jersey Devils Prospect Development Camp in the summer of 2013.

Shiplo, who calls Oakville, Ontario, home, is one of two senior defensemen this season for the Lakers. He scored a career-high five goals last season and entered his senior campaign needing one point for 50 in his career. Last season, Shiplo was fifth on the team with a +13 plus/minus rating and was second on the squad with 66 blocked shots.

MUCH BETTER IN CONFERENCE OPENERS ...

In contrast to Mercyhurst's 0-15-1 record in season openers since becoming a Division I program in 1999-2000, the Lakers have fared much better in conference openers. Since the 1999-2000 campaign, Mercyhurst is 10-5-1 in its conference opening contests and have outscored the opposition by a 55-40 margin.

MERCYHURST PICKED TO WIN AHA IN PRESEASON POLL ...

For the first time since the 2006-07 season, Mercyhurst was picked to win the Atlantic Hockey Association according to the annual preseason coaches' poll. The Lakers garnered six first-place votes en route to the top spot in the voting. Coming off of the team's first-ever AHA regular season championship last season and first since winning the last of three MAAC Hockey League regular season titles in 2002-03, Mercyhurst has much of its team returning from a year ago. Last year's AHA representative in the NCAA tournament, Robert Morris, came in second and received three first-place nods. Air Force, Niagara, and Bentley rounded out the top five.

PLENTY OF FIREPOWER RETURNING ...

Mercyhurst has the luxury of returning 12 of its top scorers from an offense that averaged 3.61 goals per game and ranked third in the nation a year ago. Nine returners up front finished the 2013-14 season with double digit points, led by senior Matthew Zay (17g, 26a), who tied for the team lead with 43 points. He was an All-AHA First Team choice after earning Third Team honors as a sophomore. He led the AHA outright in scoring during his sophomore campaign, becoming the first Mercyhurst player to accomplish the feat since joining the conference. Senior Ryan Misiak (13g, 25a) established a career-high in assists and tied his career-high in points last season. He was an All-AHA Second Team member as a sophomore. Senior Daniel Bahntge (15g, 17a) was a member of the AHA All-Rookie Team as a freshman. All three of them are within ten points of reaching the century mark for their careers.

Redshirt senior Kyle Just established career-highs in goals (8) and points (27) while senior Nardo Nagtzaam (11g, 11a) tied his career-high in goals despite only playing in 23 games. Senior Zac Frischmon (8g, 14a) had career-highs in goals, assists, and points. Sophomore Kyle Dutra (7g, 15a) led all freshmen on the team in scoring and was the AHA Rookie of the Month for December. Senior Chris Bodo (10g, 11a), junior Kyle Cook (11g, 7a), and sophomore Stephen Hrehoriak (6g, 7a) also finished in double figures a year ago.

CLOSING IN ...

Three Lakers - seniors Matthew Zay, Ryan Misiak, and Daniel Bahntge - entered the 2014-15 season within 10 points of becoming members of the 100-point club at the Division I level at Mercyhurst. Zay became the 17th player to reach the milestone last Friday with his goal late in regulation. Prior to Zay, the last reach the benchmark was Daniel O'Donoghue, who reached the milestone last December. Misiak (38g, 58a) is just four points shy. Bahntge (40g, 52a) is eight points away from the century mark.

Also with a shot this season to reach the century mark are senior Chris Bodo (41g, 35a), redshirt senior Kyle Just (17g, 54a), and senior Nardo Nagtzaam (24g, 38a). Bodo, who is 24 points shy, recorded a career-high 27 points during his sophomore campaign and has two goals and an assist through the first four games. Meanwhile, Just (29 points away) and Nagtzaam (38 points away) would have to post career-highs to reach the plateau. Just's career-high is 27 set last season while Nagtzaam scored 30 as a freshman and had 22 points in 23 games last season.

GOTKIN CLIMBS THE LEADERBOARD ...

Head coach Rick Gotkin enters his 27th season as the Mercyhurst head coach. He is the only coach in NCAA history to take the same program to the NCAA tournament at all three divisions (D-III - 1991; D-II - 1993, 1995; D-I - 2001, 2003, 2005). He has guided the Lakers to a record of 477-339-72 and ranks 25th on the all-time list of NCAA coaches in victories. He ranks 12th among active coaches with his 477 victories and needs six wins to surpass Joe Marsh (St. Lawrence, 1985-2012) and to move into 24th on the all-time wins list. He is 23 wins shy of 500 victories with the Laker program.

17 NAMED TO AHA ALL-ACADEMIC TEAM ...

Last June, Mercyhurst had 17 players named to the Atlantic Hockey Association's All-Academic Team, which was tied for sixth-most in the conference and part of a record 202 student-athletes to be named to the AHA All-Academic Team. Of Mercyhurst's honorees on the All-Academic squad, nine were repeat winners - tied for fifth-most in the conference. Senior Nick Jones was one of ten players named Student-Athlete of the Year for maintaining for 4.0 GPA throughout the entire season.

Earning spots on the AHA All-Academic Team were: Spencer Bacon (Freshman / Victoria, British Columbia), Kyle Cook (Sophomore / Middleburg Heights, Ohio), Philippe Drouin (Freshman / Cumberland, Ontario), Kyle Dutra (Freshman / Mississauga, Ontario), Trent Frey (Senior / River Falls, Wisconsin), Zac Frischmon (Junior / Ham Lake, Minnesota), Grant Gettinger (Junior / North Olmsted, Ohio), Stephen Hrehoriak (Freshman / Stittsville, Ontario), Kyle Johnson (Junior / Buena Vista, Saskatchewan), Nick Jones (Senior / Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania), Kyle Just (Redshirt Junior / Arnprior, Ontario), Anthony Mastrodicasa (Sophomore / Woodbridge, Ontario), Ryan Misiak (Junior / Shelby Township, Michigan), Mychal Monteith (Sophomore / Toledo, Ohio), Daniel O'Donoghue (Senior / Port Jefferson Station, New York), Tyler Shiplo (Junior / Oakville, Ontario), and Matthew Zay (Junior / Glendale, New York).

GOING CAMPING ...

Senior Matthew Zay participated in the Chicago Blackhawks Prospect Development Camp over the summer, joining a list of current Lakers who have been to NHL camps in the past. Nardo Nagtzaam participated in the Washington Capitals camp in the summer of 2012 while Ryan Misiak was at the New Jersey Devils camp in the summer of 2013. Nagtzaam also played for his native country, Netherlands, in the IIHF World Championships (Division I - Group B) in Vilnius, Lithuania this past April. He was the only collegiate player on the Dutch roster.

SARJEANT ON USCHO.COM AND MIKE RICHTER WATCH LISTS ...

Coming off of his brilliant 2013-14 campaign, senior goaltender Jimmy Sarjeant was recognized as one of ten goaltenders to watch according to USCHO.com and one of twenty on the initial list for the second annual Mike Richter Award, given to the nation's top goaltender. Sarjeant, who was one of 19 finalists for the inaugural Mike Richter Award, posted an 18-5-6 overall record with a 2.46 goals against average and a .930 save percentage last season.

CHECKING IN ON O'DONOGHUE AND JONES ...

At the end of last season, Daniel O'Donoghue became the fifth player from Mercyhurst in the history of the program to sign an NHL entry level contract when he signed with the Phoenix Coyotes. O'Donoghue joined Jody Robinson (New York Islanders), T.J. Kemp (Edmonton Oilers), Jamie Hunt (Washington Capitals), and Cullen Eddy (Philadelphia Flyers) as the list of NHL signees. Hunt remains the only Mercyhurst alum to play in an NHL regular season contest when he played one game for the Capitals in the 2006-07 season.

O'Donoghue, a native of Port Jefferson Station, New York, began the season with the Coyotes' AHL affiliate - the Portland Pirates. He played three contests with the Pirates at the end of last season.

O'Donoghue played one game for the Gwinnett Gladiators in the East Coast Hockey League, tallying one assist. He since has rejoined the Pirates and has not scored in his first two games with Portland this season.

Jones, meanwhile, signed a contract with the AHL's Worcester Sharks in the offseason. The Cranberry Township, Pa., native played two games with the Sharks at the tail end of last season. He is currently playing with the Indy Fuel in the East Coast Hockey League and is off to a terrific start, tallying one goal and four assists for five points in eight games.