Sacred Heart at Canisius
Feb. 18-19, 2023 - 4 p.m.
Harborcenter - Buffalo, N.Y.
FloHockey
There are six more big points up for grabs for the Sacred Heart University men's ice hockey team this weekend, as they travel to western New York for a pair with Canisius on Saturday and Sunday. A pair of regulation wins, combined with anything less than two regulation wins for AIC in its series at Air Force, would allow the Pios to lock up second place ahead of their final-weekend home-and-home with the Yellow Jackets.
Opening puck drop is set for 4 p.m. both days at Harborcenter in Buffalo, N.Y. Fans can catch all the action live on FloHockey.
LAST TIME OUT
The goal horn got a workout on Saturday night at Martire Family Arena, and SHU picked up a much-needed three points. Austin Magera and Chikara Hanzawa struck early – the latter for the first of his college career – and the penalty kill went 4-for-4, as the Pios chalked up a 5-3 victory over visiting Air Force, in Atlantic Hockey play in front of a sellout crowd of 4152.
A LOOK AT THE PIOS
SHU (15-13-2, 13-7-2 AHA) would very much like to lock up second place in Atlantic Hockey before facing off with third-place AIC on the final weekend of the regular season. The Pios' magic number for clinching a home series in the quarterfinal round of the Atlantic Hockey Tournament is four points. After tallying six points (4-2-6) in three games last week, Neil Shea is now tied-second in Atlantic Hockey in points (12-16-28), third in points per game (0.93), sixth in goals (12) and eighth in goals per game (0.40).
SCOUTING THE GOLDEN GRIFFINS
For its part, seventh-place Canisius (12-15-3, 10-9-3 AHA) needs six points from its final four games to secure a postseason spot, after splitting a pair of rescheduled games at Air Force on Monday and Tuesday. The Golden Griffins are one of the least-disciplined teams in the country, at 13.17 penalty minutes per game, which is the nation's ninth-highest total. Canisius also struggles to get itself out of penalty trouble, with a penalty kill which ranks 10th and last in Atlantic Hockey, at 77.7% (80-for-103). Keaton Mastrodonato is tied-seventh in the AHA in points (11-14-25).
LAST MEETING
SHU swept away Canisius at home at Harbor Yard on Oct. 28-29, with 6-3 and 3-1 victories. Blake Humphrey scored twice on Friday and added a pair of assists on Saturday for a four-point weekend. Neil Shea and Todd Goehring each had 1-2-3 over the course of the weekend.
ALL-TIME SERIES
Former MAAC Hockey foes before the founding of Atlantic Hockey, SHU and Canisius have met 67 times on the ice, in a series that dates to 1998, with Canisius holding a 33-25-9 advantage. The Pios have historically struggled in western New York, with just an 8-20-2 mark in 30 all-time games at Canisius, which includes 2-5-1 in eight meetings at Harborcenter. The two SHU wins in October snapped a seven-game winless streak (0-5-2) for the Pios against the Golden Griffins.
GOT ONE!
The lone Japanese player currently active in Division I men's college hockey, Chikara Hanzawa cashed in his first career goal, with a highlight-reel finish from his backside on Feb. 11 against Air Force. The play was good enough to get Hanzawa and the Pios featured on that night's edition of SportsCenter's Top 10 Plays.
