BUFFALO, N.Y. (December 7, 2024) – After being swept on the road last weekend, the Sacred Heart University men's ice hockey team headed into a busy, three-game week looking to make a statement to end the first half. The Pioneers came away with eight of a possible nine points from the week, following a shootout win after a 3-3 (OT) tie at Canisius on Saturday night. Felix Trudeau (Terrebonne, Quebec) provided the shootout winner to clinch the extra Atlantic Hockey point for SHU at Harborcenter.
 
The two teams traded goals in quick succession late in the first, with Canisius (5-9-2, 5-3-2 AHA) opening the scoring at the 17:36 mark, as SHU (9-7-3, 8-5-2 AHA) turned the puck over in its own end and saw it end up in the back of the net. With a 2-on-1 down low, Cooper Haar provided the feed from the left side and Oliver Tarr had the easy finish on his fourth of the year.
 
Sacred Heart responded just 52 seconds later, on the first collegiate goal for Luke Amell (Mars, Pa.). From the right-wing corner, Trudeau moved the puck up the boards to John Jaworski (Grinnell, Iowa), who sent it up to the point for Amell. Amell stickhandled his way into the right circle and then tried to send a pass to the back post for Reid Pabich (Verona, Wis.). Pabich was prepared to swipe it home, but the skate of a Canisius defenseman took care of that instead and left Amell with his first career score, at 18:28.
 
SHU jumped to a 3-1 lead with two tallies in the first eight minutes of the second period. Early, on the forecheck, Marcus Joughin (Tecumseh, Ontario) forced a turnover behind the Canisius net. From the right-wing side, he then centered for Cole Galata (Newmarket, Ontario), who picked the top-right corner for his second of the year, at 3:20.
 
Later, Charles Tardif (Quebec City, Quebec) won a faceoff straight back in the left circle and Jake Hewitt (Fitchburg, Mass.) swooped in from the left wing to collect it. Hewitt immediately fired it inside the far post for his fourth of the campaign, at 7:55.
 
Canisius kickstarted its comeback with a shorthanded marker at 11:29 of the second. Despite having the manpower advantage, Sacred Heart managed to concede a 3-on-2 rush the other way. Cole Kodsi and Robert Kincaid criss-crossed in the high slot, with the former dropping the puck for the latter. Kincaid then snapped home his first of the year.
 
The Golden Griffins would eventually get the game level just shy of the midpoint of the third period. From the left wing, Trey Funk put the puck on net from a sharp angle, which Cullen DeYoung (Canton, Mich.) kicked aside in the SHU net. However, he left a juicy rebound out in front of the crease, which Matteo Giampa cleaned up for his sixth of the season, at 9:08.
 
The SHU power play had a chance to find the winner late, after Kyle Haskins was sent away for interference at 16:29, but first-year goaltender Petter Wickstrom Stumer came up with a highlight-reel save to make sure the game went to overtime. Daniel Ebrahim (Brooklin, Ontario) put a shot on net from the left side, and the rebound came right to Pabich at the top of the crease. Pabich showed off some coordination, kicking the puck out into open space on his forehand, but Wickstrom Stumer sprawled to commit robbery with his glove hand at the left post.
 
After overtime went scoreless, the game went in the books as a 3-3 tie, with a shootout set to determine who came away with the extra standings point. Saves were at a premium in the shootout, as each team scored on each of its first two attempts. In the third and final round, Giampa deked to the right post, but was stuffed by DeYoung. Trudeau followed with a nifty left-to-right deke of his own and roofed a backhand to send SHU home and into the semester break with a five-point weekend.
 
DeYoung (2-5-2) finished with 29 saves against 32 shots in the crease for SHU. Wickstrom Stumer (0-1-1) stopped 27 of 30 between the pipes for Canisius.
 
Sacred Heart will open the second half in three weeks' time, on the road for an Atlantic Hockey contest at American International to close out the 2024 calendar year. Puck drop is set for a 1 p.m. Saturday matinee in downtown Springfield, Mass.