ERIE, Pa. - The Mercyhurst University men's hockey team, fresh off a weekend sweep against Sacred Heart this past Friday and Saturday, will jump right back into action on Tuesday night when it hosts longtime-rival Canisius College at the Mercyhurst Ice Center. Faceoff is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.
The rare Tuesday night contest is a makeup from the originally-scheduled game that was postponed on November 21 due to the heavy snowstorm that hit the Buffalo area.
The game will mark the 80th career meeting between the two programs with Mercyhurst holding a 40-29-10 advantage in the all-time series.
The Lakers (10-6-3, 8-3-2 AHC) and the Golden Griffins (8-8-5, 7-4-4 AHC) are currently in a three-way tie for third place in the Atlantic Hockey Conference standings - one point behind second-place Holy Cross and five points behind conference-leading Robert Morris. The teams met earlier this season, on November 22, in Buffalo with the game ending in a 3-3 overtime tie. Senior
Daniel Bahntge had a pair of first period goals while sophomore
Kyle Dutra had the other Laker tally. Ryan Schmelzer, Ralph Cuddemi, and Cody Freeman had the goals for Canisius.
The game marked the first collegiate start for freshman goaltender
Brandon Wildung, who has started each of the last three contests for the Lakers. He stopped 35-of-38 Canisius shots to earn the tie.
Bahntge is as on fire as any college hockey player in the country at the moment. He had a career-high five-point night (two goals, three assists) in Friday's 7-2 victory over Sacred Heart and then notched a goal and an assist in Saturday's 4-2 victory. He recorded both game-winning goals over the weekend and now has a team-leading four on the season - also ranking him tied for fourth in the country in that department. Including the game at Canisius on November 22, Bahntge has scored at least one point in seven of nine games and has eight goals and seven assists in that nine-game stretch. All told, the senior from Westlake, Ohio, leads the Lakers with nine goals and eleven assists for twenty points this season.
Bahntge enjoys playing against Canisius, having posted seven goals and six assists in twelve career matchups.
His new linemate, redshirt freshman
Jack Riley, is just as torrid. He enters the contest on a seven-game point-scoring streak and has five goals and eight assists over the last seven games. He was the Atlantic Hockey Conference and the Hockey Commissioners' Association National Rookie of the Month for December. Riley ranks tied for second on the team with six goals and eleven assists for seventeen points.
In the weekend against Sacred Heart, the line of Bahntge, Riley, and freshman
Kane Elliot combined to score four goals and twelve assists in the two victories.
Wildung has started each of the last three contests and is 2-0-1 in those three starts. During the stretch, he has stopped 93-of-99 shots and is now 3-1-2 with a 2.52 goals against average and a .922 save percentage this season.
Canisius, meanwhile, enters after sweeping second-place Holy Cross by identical 2-1 finals this past Friday and Saturday. Cuddemi, who has traditionally played very well against Mercyhurst in the past, leads the Golden Griffins in scoring with twelve goals and ten assists for 22 points. In eight career games against the Lakers, Cuddemi has nine goals and three assists for twelve points.
Sophomore Shane Conacher is right behind with five goals and 16 assists for 21 points this season.
In goal, junior Keegan Asmundson has started a dozen games and is 4-5-3 with a 2.52 goals against average and a .915 save percentage. Freshman Reilly Turner, who stopped all 24 shots he faced in relief of sophomore Adam Harris in the 3-3 tie against Mercyhurst on November 22, is 4-3-2 in eight starts, posting a 2.64 goals against average and a .910 save percentage.
After the Tuesday night contest, the Lakers will be back in action on Friday, January 16 and Saturday, January 17 when they host Holy Cross at the MIC. Faceoffs are scheduled for 7:05 p.m.
