ERIE, Pa. – The Mercyhurst men's ACHA team spent their final weekend of the season facing off against the Golden Griffins of Canisius. With the first game at the Mercyhurst Ice Center and the final game in Buffalo, the Lakers were looking to finish the season on a high note.
 
In game 1, senior goaltender Connor Bridges got the start in net for the Lakers.
 
In the 1^st period, the Lakers found themselves on the scoreboard early thanks to a goal by Conner McCusker at 1:49, assisted by Nicholas Ramm. The period would remain highly contested with Canisius scoring a pair of late goals at 15:46 and 16:37. Despite a late opportunity on special teams, the Lakers were unable to capitalize as Canisius led 2-1 heading into the intermission.
 
In the 2^nd period, Hayden Cox found the back of the net on the power play for his 6^th goal of the season at 16:59. He was assisted by Christopher Trokey and Lorenzo Shipley. Cox found the back of the net again at 18:18, with Cameron Glance being credited for the assist. The Golden Griffins secured a couple of late power play goals, one of which came with under a second remaining on the clock.
 
In the 3^rd period, Ian Brown came into the game for Bridges after he was assessed for a 10-minute misconduct at the end of the 2^nd period. The Lakers were unable to take advantage of their early power play, while Canisius was able to score on their power play at 10:00. The final goal of the game came at 16:44 by the hand of Glance, his 3^rd of the season. He was assisted by McCusker and Cox. Both teams battled for the remainder of the period, but neither could either pull away or equalize in the frame.
 
The Lakers ultimately fell 5-4 in a close battle.
 
Bridges stopped 16 of his 20 shots while Ian Brown stopped 6 of his 7.
 
In game 2, Francesco Scibbarrasi got the start in net for the Lakers.
 
In the 1^st period, Canisius found the back of the net at 2:08, while Cox was able to answer at 7:46 with his 8^th goal of the season. He was assisted by William Neeld and McCusker. Bowman Klippenstein capitalized on the Laker power play and scored his 12^th goal of the season at 10:46, getting his assists from Nicholas Botzenhart and Glance. The Lakers would be sent to the penalty box twice by the end of the period, but were able to kill off the penalties and remain in the lead heading into the 2^nd period.
 
In the 2^nd, Brown entered the game in relief for Scibbarrasi. Canisius would score 4 unanswered goals, one of which was shorthanded towards the end of the frame. The Lakers would go on the power play 3 times, but were unable to capitalize this time around.
 
In the 3^rd period, Bridges entered the game to play in the final frame. Both teams traded penalties throughout the period, with only Canisius managing to capitalize.
 
The Lakers ultimately fell in their final game of the season by a score of 7-2.
 
Scibbarrasi stopped 9 of his 10 shots while Brown and Bridges stopped 9 of 13 and 10 of 12 respectively.
 
The young core of the Laker team will be looking to usher in a new era of Mercyhurst hockey in 2026-2027 campaign, where the university will celebrate its centennial anniversary.
 
The Lakers wish to thank captain Cameron Glance, assistant captain Lorenzo Shipley, Connor Bridges, Conner McCusker, Colin Barry, Christopher Trokey, Nicholas Viselli, as well as the graduating staff members for their hard work and dedication to the program during their time at Mercyhurst.