Buffalo, N.Y. — Mercyhurst took a trip to Buffalo for a one game series against Canisius, that saw the Golden Griffins triumphant over the Lakers by a score of 4-1 in their midweek matchup.
How It Happened
The Golden Griffins got out on the front foot quickly, despite Mercyhurst looking the team more likely to score. They were able to score on their first shot on goal and first real chance of the game. The puck was bobbled in front of goal by Oliver Tarr, which gave Jack Budd an opportunity to pounce and shove into the net. It's only the freshman's second career goal and first since November. A little over a minute Canisius got a big penalty kill, showcasing good hockey on both ends of the ice. The Lakers finished the period on a promising note as they dominated the offense in the last four minutes of the period, testing Golden Griffin netminder David Fessenden who made 5 of his 10 saves in that time frame.
After ending the first period strong, Mercyhurst was hit with another setback to start the second. Canisius grabbed another goal 57 seconds in, this time through captain Max Kouznetsov. Randy Hernandez and Matteo Giampa linked up for a nice little back and forth before Hernandez laid it back to Kouznetsoy, who was square to the goal and rifled it in for a 2-0 lead. A few minutes later, the road back for the Lakers got even longer. Jackson Decker got the goal after wiggling past two defenders on the right side to fire it in the back of the net, putting Mercyhurst 3-0 down. The Lakers weren't able to cook anything up the rest of the period with another power play opportunity and ripping off 18 more shots.
The Lakers entered the final period down 3-0, a similar position they were in earlier this season the first time they visited Canisius, coming back to win the game in a shootout. With hopes to recapture the comeback magic, the game opened up for both teams as each team had chances and breakaways in the opposition half. The boys couldn't get going in the final third, but Owen Say was making some big saves on the other end of the ice to give them the chance to get back into it.
Mercyhurst went on the power play again with six minutes remaining and went empty net in an all out attempt to score 6v4. They play ended up backfiring as Canisius got on the breakaway to see Erik Urbank guide it in for a 4-0 lead. That didn't stop the Lakers, who pushed till the very end and avoided the shutout with only 7 seconds left on the clock. Tyler DesRochers caught the puck against the board and left it for Will Margel who hit Garrett Dahm up the middle to slam it home. The assist marks DesRochers first career point at the collegiate level. It wasn't enough to change the tide for Mercyhurst though as they went back to Erie with a 4-1 loss.
Highlights
Garrett Dahm scored his 4th goal of the season.
Will Margel collected his 5th assist on the year.
Tyler DesRochers added his first career point with an assist in today's game.
Owen Say had 27 saves on 30 shots faced.
Scoring Summary
P3: 19:53 - Garrett Dahm from Will Margel and Tyler DesRochers
Next Up
Mercyhurst will look to rebound at home on Saturday, January 13th as they host Niagara for one game with puck drop at 7:00 pm.
