"For 55 minutes, there were a lot of good things that we could take from this game," said Canisius head coach Dave Smith. "It's always good to get a game like this early in the year so we can analyze the video - both good and bad. It was a good chance for a new team to get used to each other in an intense situation and we'll get better from it going forward."

Junior Kyle Gibbons and Mitch McCrank each scored for the Griffs in the contest.

The three Canisius goaltenders - junior Tony Capobianco, redshirt freshman Keegan Asmundson and freshman Adam Harris - combined to make 22 saves on the afternoon.

The Gee-Gees struck first in the contest when Paul Forster knocked in a loose puck 5:54 into the contest.

The Griffs responded and would eventually take the lead. After sophomore Ryan Bohrer stole the puck in Ottawa's zone, he found Gibbons in the slot and the junior finished high with 2:23 remaining in the first to knot the game at one.

Canisius then claimed the lead 9:41 into the second when McCrank found the back of the net. Junior Taylor Law found his linemate open in the low slot and the sophomore buried his attempt for the 2-1 lead. Sophomore Tyler Wiseman also registered an assist on the tally.

The lead would hold up until just under five minutes remaining in regulation. Matt White and Forster netted goals just 21 seconds apart to take a 3-2 lead with 4:07 remaining. White then added a second tally with 47 ticks left before an empty-netter by Alexandre Touchette with eight seconds remaining clinched the 5-2 victory.

The Gee-Gees finished the game with a 27-25 edge in shots. Neither team scored on the power play, with the Griffs going 0-for-4 in the loss and killing both Ottawa extra-man chances.

Canisius now turns its attention toward the regular season, opening at Alaska-Anchorage. Game time on Friday is set for 8:07 p.m. AT (12:07 a.m. ET).