ERIE, Pa. - The Canisius Golden Griffins snapped a 2-2 tie with three third-period goals and went on to defeat the Mercyhurst University men's hockey team, 5-2, Tuesday night at the Ice Center. Canisius improved to 9-8-5 overall and to 8-4-4 in the Atlantic Hockey Conference (AHC). The Lakers fell to 10-7-3 and 8-4-2 respectively. The game had been scheduled for November 21 in Erie, but Buffalo was hit with a major snowstorm that week, forcing the postponement.

Mercyhurst got on the board early in the first period when red-hot senior forward Daniel Bahntge scored his tenth of the season, tops on the team, at 3:15. Bahntge picked up a loose puck just inside the blue line, split a couple of Canisius defenders, and beat freshman goaltender Reilly Turner with a forehand over the glove for his fourth goal in the last three games. The reigning AHC Offensive Player of the Week was helped by redshirt freshman winger Jack Riley, the current AHC Rookie of the Week, and junior forward Kyle Cook.

Canisius tied the game at 7:47 when, playing a man down, senior forward Tyler Wiseman lit the lamp with help from senior defenseman Logan Roe. Freshman goaltender Brandon Wildung stopped the initial shot from Wiseman but could not control the rebound, allowing the Canisius forward to cash in shorthanded. It was the second shorthanded goal allowed by the Lakers this season - the first came in a 6-3 win at Army December 6.

The score remained tied for only 50 seconds, however, as Riley banged home a rebound for his seventh of the year from seniors Zac Frischmon and Tyler Shiplo to restore the Mercyhurst lead. The Lakers outshot Canisius 10-7 in the period.

Canisius registered the second period's only goal when senior forward Mitch McCrank scored on a delayed Mercyhurst penalty to tie the contest at 1:59. Junior Chris Rumble and sophomore Geoff Fortman had the assists. The Golden Griffins outshot Mercyhurst 12-6 in the middle period.

Canisius took the lead midway in the third when sophomore forward Shane Conacher tallied on a power play at 10:23. Wiseman then cashed his second of the game at 14:05 and senior Braeden Rigney scored into an empty net at 18:45. Mercyhurst outshot Canisius 14-7 in the third and 30-26 over the 60 minutes - just the third time the Lakers have had an edge in shots this season in 20 games.

Eleven minor penalties were called in the contest, six to the Lakers. Canisius finished 1-for-5 with the man advantage while the Lakers were blanked in four tries and allowed a shorthanded goal.

Both teams used freshman goaltenders. Wildung (3-2-2) made his fourth successive start for the Lakers and stopped 21-of-25 Canisius shots. Turner (5-3-2) got the call for the Golden Griffins and turned aside 28 Laker shots. Wildung played all 65 minutes against Canisius in a 3-3 tie November 22 in Buffalo, his first collegiate game. Turner played the final 45 minutes of the November game and held the Lakers scoreless.

Riley extended his scoring streak to eight games and has totaled six goals and nine assists in that span. Bahntge has registered at least one point in seven of his last eight (seven goals and seven assists).

Canisius' win propelled the Golden Griffins into second place in the AHC with 20 points, three points behind Robert Morris and one point ahead of third place Holy Cross. Mercyhurst and Bentley are tied for fourth with 18 points apiece.

The game marked the 80th meeting between the two teams with the Lakers holding a 40-30-10 advantage. The teams will play two more games during the regular season: Friday, February 20, in Erie and Saturday, February 21, in Buffalo.

Mercyhurst's home record fell to 6-4-1 while the Golden Griffins evened their road mark at 4-4-1.

The Lakers will return to action this Friday and Saturday when they entertain AHC-rival Holy Cross at the Ice Center. Both games start at 7:05 p.m.