"We were focused right from the first puck drop," said Canisius head coach Dave Smith. "We challenged our seniors and I thought they played really well tonight. All of our guys played really well and focused and that starts with the seniors."

Junior Cory Conacher once again led the Canisius attack, recording three points on a pair of goals and one assist. Conacher, who extended his career-long streak of recording a point to 11 games, now ranks first nationally with 17 goals and second with 34 points this season.

Seniors Jason Weeks and Carl Hudson and sophomore Eric Rex also scored for the Griffs on the evening.

Sophomore Dan Morrison recorded 26 saves to earn the victory.

After a scoreless first period, Canisius wasted no time scoring in the second frame, connecting on a power play opportunity 1:13 in. Sophomore Scott Moser found Weeks open in the right face-off circle and Weeks buried the shot for his seventh goal of the season and the 1-0 advantage. Sophomore Dave Kostuch also registered an assist on the goal.

Canisius added to its lead just 1:17 later when Rex netted his second goal of the year. Rex knocked in a loose puck from a scrum in front of the goal to stretch the Canisius advantage to two. Seniors Ryan Klusendorf and Peter MacDougall each posted an assist on the goal.

Army cut its deficit to one at the 5:09 mark of the second, scoring on the power play. Eric Sefchik found Cody Omilusik stationed in front of the goal and Omilusik was able to get the puck past Morrison for the score.

Canisius, however, would answer right back when Conacher scored his first of the night at the 6:34 mark. Hudson wrapped the puck around the boards and freshman Preston Shupe chipped the puck back to Conacher. The junior then sent a wrist shot to the top corner of the net to give the Griffs a 3-1 advantage.

Hudson would score a goal of his own at the 14:45 mark of the second stanza, connecting on the power. Junior Vincent Scarsella won a faceoff back to Conacher, who chipped the puck back to Hudson. After Hudson and Scarsella passed back-and-forth on the blue line, Hudson one-timed a shot in for his seventh tally of the season.

Army would pull to within two right before the end of the second period. Andy Starczewski knocked in a rebound as the teams headed into intermission with Canisius leading, 4-2.

Conacher added the only goal of the third period to secure the Griffs' victory. Senior Josh Heidinger found the junior open in front of the net and Conacher knocked the puck in for his NCAA-leading 17th goal of the season.

"We know that we just have to think about our last 12 games and finishing in the top four of the Atlantic Hockey standings," Conacher said. "We earned two big points tonight and take a little jump in the standings. We played good defense and Dan Morrison played well in net. If we stick to our game, we can be a really good team. It is just simple hockey."

Army held a 28-24 advantage in shots on the night. Canisius was 2-for-3 on the power play, while the Black Knights converted one extra-man opportunity in five chances.

The two teams wrap up the series tomorrow night. Game time at the Buffalo State Sports Arena is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.

Game Notes: Conacher has recorded 23 points during his 11-game scoring streak ... He registered his 10th multi-point game of the season and his fifth multi-goal contest ... Conacher moved into sole possession of first in the country with his fifth game-winning goal and tied the program's Division I single-season record ... Weeks is now one goal shy of the program's Division I goals record, scoring 48 in his tenure ... David Deeves holds the mark with 49 career scores ... Shupe has registered a point in a career-best six-straight games ... Canisius dominated faceoffs on the night, winning 44-of-63 draws (69.8 percent).