MERCYHURST (3-18-1, 3-10-1 AHA) vs. CANISIUS (11-9-2, 6-6-2 AHA)
Friday, Jan. 23 – 7 p.m.
Saturday, Jan. 24 – 5 p.m.
Erie, Pa.  
TV: Flo Hockey
 
The Mercyhurst men's hockey is closing the gap on Niagara after their series sweep over the Purple Eagles last weekend. The team has won three of their last four and have 10 points in the conference behind Niagara's 12. The team hosts sixth-place Canisius this weekend at the Mercyhurst Ice Center. Puck drop for game one will take place Friday, Jan. 23 at 7 p.m. Game two will begin at 5 p.m. the following day. Viewers can find live coverage on Flo Hockey. 
 
Previous Results
The Lakers are on a two-game win streak and have won three of their last four. They have shut out an AHA opponent twice in their past two series They began the year at No. 12 Michigan and followed with a home series vs. Union. This series started a seven-game stretch on home ice. They began AHA play by hosting Holy Cross and then hosted UMass Lowell and Bentley. In November, they dropped a pair of tight conference matchups at RIT and Canisius. At the end of the month, they had a home-and-home against RMU. The Lakers picked up their first point of the year at RMU where they tied 1-1 before falling 3-2 in the shootout. Their lone matchup in December was a road contest at Holy Cross where they fell 4-1. 

The team began 2026 by traveling to No. 4 North Dakota. The Lakers fell 2-0 in game one and 6-1 in game two. Mercyhurst followed this with a series split at home vs. Army. They shut out the Black Knights 3-0 in game one and then got shut out 5-0 in game two. Most recently, they swept Niagara in a home-and-home series. They beat the Purple Eagles 3-0 in game one and 4-2 in game two. The first game had just two penalties, but the second game had 26. 
 
Matchup History
Mercyhurst has an overall record of 52-51-13 vs. Canisius. On Dec. 9, 2005, the Lakers won 5-4 in OT. The Lakers won the next four matchups before Canisius won their first contest by a score of 3-1 at the Pepsi Center in November of 2006. The two sides have been fairly even for the past couple of decades. The longest losing streak for the Lakers is seven games, and the longest win streak is five. 

The 2021-22 season was the most recent string of successful results for the Lakers. Here, they beat the Golden Griffins 5-2, 3-0, 3-1, 2-1 (2OT), and 3-1 all in-a-row. Since the Lakers won 5-1 in December of 2023, Canisius has had the upper hand. They have won 7 of the last eight matchups. The only other one was a tie that Mercyhurst won the shootout from. The Lakers have scored 223 total goals and are averaging 2.9 goals per game on Canisius. Both teams are coming off win streaks, with a lot on the line in terms of the current AHA standings. 

*Statistical info, aside from the overall record, dates back to 2005 on the Hurst Athletics website.* 
 
Lakers to Look Out for
Will Schumacher currently leads the Laker's scoring column with seven goals and three assists in 15 appearances. Schumacher has scored five goals in each of his last nine games. He recently scored in the team's 3-0 win over Army. And in the 4-2 win over Niagara. His ten points lead the team. 

Dominik Bartecko has four goals and four assists. His eight points are second on the team.  Bartecko had a two-point weekend in the team's home-and-home with Robert Morris at the end of November. The Nashville native scored at home and assisted a powerplay goal on the road. To start 2026, Bartecko fired a rocket into the top left corner of the net to briefly give the Lakers a 1-0 lead at No. 4 North Dakota. Most recently, Bartecko scored an empty-netter against Army. 

Jacob LeBlanc leads the team assists with eight. LeBlanc recorded six assists in nine games throughout October and November. He recorded an assist on the powerplay with Bartecko in the team's 1-1 draw at Robert Morris. Most recently, he assisted a goal in each game against Niagara. 

Defensively, Caleb Price, Christian Kocsis, John Larkin and Trent Sambrook have led the way in terms of shot stopping. Price leads the team with 30 blocks. Kocsis (2G, 2A, 4 PTS, 29 BLKS), Larkin (1G, 2G, 3 PTS, 29 BLKS), and Sambrook (0G, 3A, 3 PTS, 29 BLKS) are all tied on blocks. 

Between the pipes, Charles-Edward Gravel has played the most games. The Quebec native has a .903 save percentage, the highest on the team. Gravel also had a career-high 46 saves in the Laker's narrow 2-0 loss to No. 4 North Dakota in game one. He picked up his first shutout and made 39 saves in the team's 3-0 win against Army two weeks ago. He then made 26 saves and kept his second consecutive shutout in a 3-0 win against Niagara. 

Salvatore Evola started against Niagara in game two. Here, he made a season-high 36 saves in the teams 4-2 victory.
 
Scouting Canisius  

• The Golden Griffins opened their season by upsetting No. 20 Clarkson 3-1 at home. 
• They then beat St. Lawrence two days later, 4-2. 
• They split a series with LIU by winning 3-2 in OT then losing 6-1. 
• They then opened conference play by beating Army 3-1 before splitting a series with Colgate. 
• They ended October by dropping a series a Bentley, who currently leads the league. 
• On Nov. 1, they tied Army 2-2 and then shut them out in the shootout. 
• Sacred Heart swept them before they hosted Mercyhurst. They swept the Lakers 4-3 and 5-1. 
• Air Force came to Canisius to close out November. Canisius lost 6-3 and then tied 3-3 before winning the shootout. 
• They split a home-and-home by losing 3-1 on the road to RIT then beating them 4-2 at home. 
• To start 2026, they lost to Lindenwood 5-2. 
• They have now won their last three consecutive contests. 
• They beat Lindenwood 4-3 and swept RIT 5-3 and 4-1. 
• Walter Zacher (10G, 4A, 14 PTS), Grant Porter (6G, 14A, 20 PTS), and Jack Pascucci (0G, 4A, 4PTS, 50 BLKS) all lead the team in goals, assists, points, and blocks.