Junior Cory Conacher recorded the ninth hat trick in the program's Division I history to lead the Canisius offense. Senior Ryan Klusendorf also scored for the Griffs, while junior Vincent Scarsella paced the attack with three assists.

"It was the first hat trick for me in 10 years," Conacher said. "I have to give it up to my teammates. Vinnie Scarsella set me up for each of my three goals and they were just gifts. Preston Shupe is really strong. He works hard in the corner for pucks. I had really good chemistry with the two of them."

"I thought Cory Conacher and Preston Shupe played really well tonight," said Canisius head coach Dave Smith. "Cory has a terrific shot and he surprised their goalie twice with a great release. I thought Preston did a tremendous job of creating a lot of open ice for Cory and Vince."

Sophomore Dan Morrison recorded 38 saves in net to anchor the Canisius defense.

The Lakers (2-1-0) scored just 1:41 into the contest to grab the early advantage. Tyson Hobbins one-timed a shot past Morrison for his first goal of the season. Lake Superior State added a second goal at the 8:47 mark. Morrison stopped the initial shot but lost sight of the puck after the save. John Scrymegeour cleaned up the rebound and found the back of the net for his first goal of the year.

Lake Superior State stretched its lead to three when Brad Cooper scored his second goal of the season 1:53 into the second period. However, Conacher would dominate the remainder of the second period.

The sophomore scored his first goal of the season at the 5:03 mark, firing in a one-timer off a pass from Scarsella. Freshman Preston Shupe also registered an assist on the goal.

Conacher then added two goals in a 20-second span to knot the game. He pulled the Griffs to within one at the 15:43 mark, rocketing a shot into the net. Scarsella and Morrison both posted an assist on the goal. Conacher then gathered a loose puck and found the back of the net to complete the natural hat trick and tie the contest at three after two periods of play. Scarsella and freshman Chris Barrea each tallied an assist on the equalizing goal.

"It wasn't hard to play with Cory and Vince tonight," Shupe said. "Just go to the net and those guys are two tremendously skilled players who know how to finish."

The Lakers reclaimed their lead 56 seconds into the third stanza. Domenic Monardo took advantage of a Canisius turnover and rocketed a shot in to give Lake Superior State a 4-3 lead.

Klusendorf knotted the contest at four with his second goal of the season. Freshman Steven Shafer centered the puck from behind the net and Klusendorf scored with 12:49 remaining in regulation. Junior Pat Kenney also registered an assist on the score. However, Lake Superior State quickly reclaimed its lead just 42 seconds later when Cooper netted his second goal of the evening for the Lakers.

"We came out slow," Conacher said. "The first period and the beginning of the second almost lost us the game. We started to look alive halfway through the second but it turned out to be too late. It was an unfortunate game tonight but hopefully we can come out and get them tomorrow."

Lake Superior State held a 43-21 advantage in shots. Neither team was able to score on the power play with the Lakers going 0-for-2 and the Griffs 0-for-1. Brian Mahoney-Wilson recorded 17 saves to earn the win for Lake Superior State.

"We were fortunate to get back in the game," Shupe said. "We gave ourselves a chance but couldn't finish the job."

The teams wrap up the two-game set tomorrow night at 7:05 p.m.

Game Notes: Conacher's natural hat trick is the second in the program's Division I history. Chris Duggan recorded a natural hat trick against Sacred heart on Feb. 19, 1999 ... The assists for Barrea, Morrison, Shafer and Shupe were each of their first collegiate points ... Morrison is the first Griff goalie to register an assist since Dan Giffin against AIC on Feb. 24, 2006 ... The two schools were meeting for the fifth time in school history. It was the first game that did not advance to overtime in the series.