Hockey Returns Home to Host Bentley

Games 10-11
Canisius (4-4-1, 4-4-0 AHC) vs. Bentley (1-5-3, 1-4-3 AHC)
Date: Friday, Nov. 17 | Saturday, Nov. 18
Times: 7:35 p.m. | 4:35 p.m.
Location: Buffalo, N.Y. / KeyBank Rink at HARBORCENTER
TV/Webcast: AtlanticHockey.tv
Live Stats: www.GoGriffs.com
Tickets: www.ticketmaster.com
Game Notes: Canisius | Bentley
DI Series History: Canisius, 29-23-6

The Canisius hockey team returns to home ice this weekend when it hosts Atlantic Hockey Conference opponent Bentley in a two-game series at KeyBank Rink at HARBORCENTER.

Puck drop for Friday's contest is set for 7:35 p.m. while Saturday's matchup is set for a 4:35 p.m. start.

Scouting Canisius

The Golden Griffins (4-4-1, 4-4-0 AHC) are back home after completing a four-game road swing with a split of a league series at Mercyhurst last weekend.
Junior Dylan McLaughlin continues to lead Canisius in scoring with 14 points (7g, 7a). The reigning Atlantic Hockey Player of the Week, McLaughlin has recorded multiple points on five occasions this season, with the Griffs posting a 3-1-1 record in those contests.
Senior Ryan Schmelzer (4g, 8a) sits second on the team's scoring chart with 12 points thanks to a team-high eight assists. Schmelzer has recorded eight points (3g, 5a) during his current five game point-scoring streak.
Sophomore Nick Hutchison ranks third on the team in scoring this season with four goals and four assists for eight points. Hutchison has tallied a point in four of the Griffs' last five contests.
Junior Simon Hofley and Sophomore Daniel Urbani have split time in goal for Canisius this season. Hofley paces the team in goals against average (2.78) and save percentage (.904), while Urbani leads the way in total saves (147) and minutes played (283:21).
The power play continues to be effective as the Griffs are 11-of-44 (.250) with the man advantage thus far this season. Canisius enters the weekend tied with Niagara for 10th nationally in that category.

Griffs Wrap Up Road Swing with Split Versus Lakers

Canisius wrapped up a four-game road swing with a split of an AHC series at Mercyhurst last weekend.
The Lakers rallied to take the series opener in overtime, 4-3, before the Griffs rebounded with five third-period goals in a 7-3 victory in the series finale.
The seven goals scored by Canisius were the most since tallying seven in a 7-4 victory at Mercyhust on Jan. 25, 2014.
Canisius tallied multiple power-play goals in both games against the Lakers as they were a combined 4-of-12 with the man advantage against the Lakers.
Junior Dylan McLaughlin recorded four goals and an assist to pace Canisius during the two-game series. McLaughlin matched his career high with four points (3g, 1a) in the series finale against the Lakers, becoming just the 20th player in the Division I history of the program to record a hat trick.
Senior Ryan Schmelzer extended his point-scoring streak to five games as he finished the two-game series with two goals and three assists. Schmelzer matched his career high with three points (1g, 2a) in the Griffs' 7-3 victory over Mercyhurst on Nov. 11.
Sophomore Daniel Urbani picked up his second victory of the season between the pipes for Canisius, matching his season high with 37 saves in Saturday's 7-3 victory.
Junior Jimmy Mazza established a new career high for both assists and points with three helpers on Saturday.
Sophomore Matt Hoover tallied multiple points in a game for the first time this season and the fourth time in his career with two assists in the third period of Saturday's finale.

Scouting Bentley

The Falcons (1-5-3, 1-4-3 AHC) complete a five-game road swing this weekend with their second visit to Western New York in three weeks after squaring off against Niagara in a league series at Dwyer Arena Nov. 3-4.
Sophomore Jonathan Desbiens (5g, 3a) and senior Kyle Schmidt (3g, 5a) have paced the Bentley attack in the early going. Desbiens has scored three of his five goals on the power play while two of Schmidt's three tallies have been while the Falcons have had the man advantage.
Junior defenseman Tanner Jago is third on the team's scoring chart as he is tied with Schmidt for the team lead in assists.
Senior goaltender Jayson Argue has started seven of nine games between the pipes for Bentley, compiling a 2.80 goals against average and a .917 save percentage in 429 minutes of action.

Canisius-Bentley Series Notes

In a series that dates back to 1981, Canisius holds a slight advantage in 60 previous meetings, 30-24-6, including a 29-23-6 mark in Division I contests.
The Griffs have dominated play in recent matchups with the Falcons, holding a 6-0-2 mark in the last six meetings, dating back to the 2013-14 season.
Canisius claimed three-of-four points from Bentley in their lone regular season matchup during the 2016-17 season, recording a 4-3 victory in the series opener before posting a 3-3 tie in the finale of their two-game set at HARBORCENTER last December.

McLaughlin Earns Weekly Honors from AHC, NCAA

Canisius junior forward Dylan McLaughlin was named the Atlantic Hockey Conference Team Travel USA Player of the Week, league officials announced Nov. 14.
McLaughlin was also recognized by the NCAA as he was named its Men's Ice Hockey Third Star of the Week.
McLaughlin tallied four goals and added an assist in leading the Golden Griffins to a split of its two-game series at conference foe Mercyhurst Nov. 10-11.
The Lancaster, N.Y., product recorded a power-play goal in the series opener on Nov. 10 before recording a hat trick and adding an assist in a 7-3 triumph over the Lakers in the series finale the following evening.
McLaughlin became the 20th player in the Division I history of the program to record a hat trick while his four-point effort matched his career high in that category, set against Bentley on Feb. 13, 2016.

Captain Clutch

Senior captain Ryan Schmelzer has shown a knack for coming up with big goals during his collegiate career.
Schmelzer has recorded nine game-winning goals during his collegiate career, placing him in a tie with five others for second place on the program's all-time list.
Former Canisius standout Cory Conacher '11 holds the program mark with 12 game-winning goals.
Schmelzer paced the Griffs and ranked ninth nationally with five game-winning goals during the 2016-17 season.
He has one game-winning goal to his credit this season, recording the decisive marker in the Griffs' 7-3 victory at Mercyhurst on Nov. 11.

Schmezler Making Mark on Record Book

Senior Ryan Schmelzer enters the weekend in 14th place on the program's Division I career scoring chart with 88 career points (31g, 57a).
The Buffalo native sits just one point behind Rob Martin (89) for 13th place and two points shy of Carl Hudson (90) for 12th place on the all-time list.
Schmezler's 57 career assists put him just one helper away from matching Michael Cohen (2003-07) for 10th place on the program's career assists chart.

Up Next

Canisius travels to West Point, N.Y., for a two-game Atlantic Hockey Conference series at Army West Point Nov. 24-25.
Puck drop of the series opener on Nov. 24 is set for 7:05 p.m. at Tate Rink while the series finale is set for the following afternoon at 4:05 p.m.

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Players Mentioned

#31 Simon Hofley: G; 5' 11"; Sophomore

#72 Matt Hoover: F; 5' 10"; Freshman

#91 Nick Hutchison: F; 6' 3"; Freshman

#77 Jimmy Mazza: D; 6' 2"; Sophomore

#13 Dylan McLaughlin: F; 5' 11"; Sophomore

#26 Ryan Schmelzer: F; 6' 2"; Junior

#29 Daniel Urbani: G; 6' 1"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#31 Simon Hofley
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: G

#72 Matt Hoover
: 5' 10"; Freshman
: F

#91 Nick Hutchison
: 6' 3"; Freshman
: F

#77 Jimmy Mazza
: 6' 2"; Sophomore
: D

#13 Dylan McLaughlin
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: F

#26 Ryan Schmelzer
: 6' 2"; Junior
: F

#29 Daniel Urbani
: 6' 1"; Freshman
: G