Skip To Main Content
Skip To Main Content

Canisius University Athletics

#Griffs The Official Home of the Canisius University Golden Griffins | #Griffs
Canisius forward Markus Boguslavsky smiles as he celebrates a goal during the first period of Canisius' 6-4 victory over Sacred Heart at LECOM Harborcenter on Feb. 18, 2023
Lindy Feider
4
Sacred Heart SHU 15-14-2, 13-8-2
6
Winner Canisius CAN 13-15-3, 11-9-3
Sacred Heart SHU
15-14-2, 13-8-2
4
Final
6
Canisius CAN
13-15-3, 11-9-3
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 F
Sacred Heart SHU 1 2 1 4
Canisius CAN 2 2 2 6

Game Recap: Ice Hockey |

Hockey Outlasts Sacred Heart to Clinch Postseason Berth

Senior Keaton Mastrodonato scored two goals and fellow senior Ryan Miotto dished out three assists to lead Canisius in a 6-4 victory over Sacred Heart in Atlantic Hockey Association action Saturday at LECOM Harborcenter.
 
Seniors Markus Boguslavsky, David Melaragni and Daniel DiGrande and freshman Stefano Bottini also scored for the Golden Griffins (13-15-3, 11-9-3 AHA), who picked up their fifth win in the last six contests to clinch a berth in the 2023 Atlantic Hockey Association Postseason.  

Kevin Lombardi, Marcus Joughin, Austin Magera and Logan Britt accounted for the four goals for the Pioneers (15-14-2, 13-8-2 AHA)
 
Lombardi gave the Pioneers a 1-0 lead just 28 seconds into the contest, chipping a feed from Magera over the glove of senior Jacob Barczewski from close range to put the visitors on the board first.
 
Boguslavsky brought the Griffs level at the 6:47 mark of the opening frame, crashing the net and putting home a rebound after Sacred Heart goaltender Luke Lush turned aside graduate Erik Urbank's initial attempt on the rush. Bottini gave Canisius a 2-1 lead with less than two minutes to play in the first with a one-handed effort as he poked a loose puck past Lush during a zone entry for third of the campaign.  Joughlin tied the game just 1:04 into the second period, depositing a loose puck past Barczewski from the right face-off circle to make it a 2-2 contest.
 
The teams traded goals just 29 seconds apart less than three minutes later. Melaragni put Canisius back in front at the 3:53 mark of the frame, sliding a shot under the pads of Lush from the middle of the slot for his fourth of the campaign, only to see the Pioneers answer right back on the next shift when Magera's centering attempt hit the skate of a Canisius defender and deflected into the Griffs goal. DiGrande gave Canisius a 4-3 lead with a power-play goal at the 16:34 mark of the second period, firing a wrist shot over the glove of Lush from the top of the left face-off circle for his 10th of the campaign.   Mastrodonato expanded the Canisius lead to three with a pair of goals during the third period. His first came on a shorthanded effort with 7:29 elapsed in the third, finishing off a breakaway opportunity with a shot past the blocker of Lush before notching his second of the contest on an empty-net goal just with over three minutes remaining. Britt closed out the scoring with less than 10 seconds to play, whacking home a rebound to determine the final margin.
 
Barczewski made 26 saves between the pipes for Canisius while Lush stopped 16 shots in goal for Sacred Heart.  
 
Canisius Post Game Comments Game Notes
• Canisius recognized its senior class with a ceremony prior to the start of the contest.
• Sacred Heart outshot Canisius by a 30-22 margin for the game, including a 19-13 effort over the final two periods.
• The Griffs were 1-for-1 on the power play while the Pioneers went 0-for-3 with the man advantage.
• Canisius remained undefeated this season (11-0-0) when carrying a lead into the third period.
• The Griffs also improved to 8-2-0 in 2022-23 when tallying four or more goals in a game as it established a season high with its six-goal effort on Saturday.
• Mastrodonato recorded multiple goals in a game for third time in seven contests during the month of February. Mastodonato also extended his point-scoring streak to a career-best eight games with his two-point effort on Saturday.
• With his shorthanded goal on Saturday, Mastrodonato moved into sole possession of first place on Canisius' Division I era chart for career shorthanded goals with seven, breaking a tie with former Griff standout Jason Weeks (2006-10).
• Mastrodonato also tallied his second consecutive and third game-winning goal of season with his shorthanded effort on Saturday.
• Miotto established a career high with his three-assist performance on Saturday. He also matched his career high in points with his three helpers (Feb. 4, 2023 at RIT).
• Melaragni finished with multiple points for the second time this season as he notched a goal and an assist on Saturday.
• DiGrande notched his 10th goal of the campaign with his power-play goal in the second period, becoming the third Griff to reach double digits in goals this season.
• Senior Brenden Datema notched multiple assists in a game for the third time this season as he tallied two helpers on Saturday.
• With the win on Saturday, Barczewski moved into a tie with Bob Harrington (1984-88) of fourth place on the program's career wins chart with 38. 

Up Next
The teams complete their two-game series Sunday with a 4 p.m. contest at LECOM Harborcenter.
 
Tickets for the game are still available. They can be purchased by visiting the tickets page on GoGriffs.com or at the LECOM Harborcenter ticket kiosk.
 
For complete coverage of the Canisius hockey team, please follow the Griffs on social media at @GriffsHockey on Twitter and Instagram.
 
Print Friendly Version