No. 6 Mercyhurst (18-16-5) vs. No. 4 Connecticut (19-13-4)
When: Friday, 7:05 p.m.
Where: Blue Cross Arena – Rochester, N.Y.
On the air: www.americaonesports.com (live stream), WMCE-FM/88.5 & wmce.mercyhurst.edu (radio), www.atlantichockeyonline.com (live scores)
Up next: Championship game (Saturday, 7:05 p.m. at Blue Cross Arena)*
What to expect: Mercyhurst has reached the Atlantic Hockey Association semifinals for the second straight season. The Lakers lost to eventual champion Air Force 5-2 in this round a season ago. … The Lakers rebounded from an eight-game winless streak with a sweep of 11th-seeded Army at Mercyhurst Ice Center two weeks ago and a series win at No. 3 Holy Cross last weekend. … Mercyhurst hasn’t reached the title game since consecutive trips in 2008 and 2009 (lost to Air Force both times). … The Lakers haven’t won an AHA championship since beating Quinnipiac 3-2 in the 2005 title game. They also beat Quinnipiac 6-5 to capture the 2001 title, when the league was known as the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. … Mercyhurst and UConn split their two-game, regular-season series in Storrs, Conn., with the Lakers losing 5-4 Jan. 18 and winning 5-0 the following night. … The Lakers lead the all-time series 32-13-3. Yet they have lost three straight and four of six games against the Huskies in the postseason, including a UConn sweep in the 2011 AHA quarterfinals. … With top-seeded and 15th-ranked Niagara (23-8-5) facing seventh-seeded Canisius (17-18-5) in the other semifinal, the conference will have a champion from a school other than Air Force and Rochester Institute of Technology for the first time since Holy Cross in 2006. Air Force, which lost to Canisius in the quarterfinals, had won five of the last six titles (2007-09, 2011-12). RIT, which lost to Niagara in the quarterfinals, won in 2010 on the way to the first NCAA Division I Frozen Four appearance for the Tigers and the AHA. … Senior F Grant Blakey has five goals and seven points in the Lakers’ five playoff games. … UConn senior G Matt Grogan has a 14-3-3 record, 1.88 goals-against average and .939 save percentage since taking over as starter midway through the season. He was the Huskies’ only player to earn all-conference honors (third team). Mercyhurst features three all-stars – junior D Nick Jones (first team), sophomore F Ryan Misiak (second) and sophomore F Matthew Zay (third). … Niagara has never reached the title game. Canisius hasn’t reached the final since 1999 (lost 4-3 to Holy Cross). … Niagara junior G Carson Chubak leads the nation with six shutouts and ranks among the top five in winning percentage (.773), goals-against average (1.81) and save percentage (.941). He’s one of 10 finalists for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award, which honors the nation’s top men’s hockey player. … Freshman F Ralph Cuddemi, a former Erie Otters draft pick, has two goals and seven points in 34 games for Canisius.
* If the Lakers win tonight

- Victor Fernandes

Atlantic Hockey Association final four schedule
at Blue Cross Arena – Rochester, N.Y.
Semifinals – Friday
No. 1 Niagara (23-8-5) vs. No. 7 Canisius (17-18-5), 4:05 p.m.
No. 4 Connecticut (19-13-4) vs. No. 6 Mercyhurst (18-16-5), 7:05 p.m.
Championship game – Saturday
Semifinal winners, 7:05 p.m.
Note: Champion earns an automatic bid to the NCAA Division I tournament.

Junior defenseman Nick Jones was one of three Mercyhurst men’s players named to the Atlantic Hockey Association’s all-conference teams, which were announced Tuesday. Jones earned first-team honors for ranking fourth among all defensemen with 18 points. Sophomore forward Ryan Misiak was named to the second team for totaling 30 points, while sophomore forward Matthew Zay earned a spot on the third team after leading the Lakers with 34 points.

Mercyhurst University (11-9-1, 9-5-0 AHA) at Canisius (8-11-5, 7-6-2)
When: Saturday, 7:05 p.m.
Where: Buffalo State Sports Arena, Buffalo
On the air: www.americaonesports.com (live stream), www.gogriffs.com (live audio and statistics)
What to expect: Mercyhurst meets longtime rival Canisius for the 72nd time after having Friday night’s game against the Golden Griffins at Mercyhurst Ice Center moved to Tuesday at 7:05 p.m. at MIC. A water main break in the city Thursday prompted university officials to close school and send students home through the weekend. … The Lakers are tied for second with Holy Cross in the tight Atlantic Hockey Association standings. Five points separate the Lakers from 10th-place Connecticut. The Golden Griffins are in seventh, but are only two points out of second. Niagara, which suffered its first conference loss of the season at Holy Cross last weekend, tops the standings by nine points. … The Lakers edged Canisius 3-2 in overtime Dec. 18 at MIC on sophomore F Matthew Zay‘s winnning goal to take a 38-24-9 lead in the all-time series. … Junior F Kyle Just (upper-body injury) could rejoin the lineup tonight after missing the past six games. … Junior D Randy Cure (upper body) and freshman D Anthony Mastrodicasa (lower body) are cleared to skate, but neither will rejoin the lineup tonight. … Sophomore F Nardo Nagtzaam (lower body) will miss at least another three to four weeks. … The Golden Griffins were swept by Bentley 3-2 in overtime and 7-2 last weekend. … Canisius junior G Tony Capobianco ranks second in conference play with a 2.13 goals-against average and third with a .930 save percentage. … Mercyhurst junior G Jordan Tibbett (.924) and fifth-year senior G Max Strang (.922) are fourth and fifth, respectively, in save percentage. Strang, the reigning AHA goaltender of the week, has a 5-1-0 record, 1.61 goals-against average and .954 save percentage in his past six appearances. … Senior F Paul Chiasson needs one point to become the 15th player in Mercyhurst’s NCAA Division I history to reach 100 points. … Junior F Daniel O’Donoghue has a five-game point streak and 11 points in six games this month. … Lakers coach Rick Gotkin needs five wins to become the 26th college coach to reach 450 wins. … Freshman F Ralph Cuddemi, a former Erie Otters draft pick (11th round in 2010), has no goals and two points in 18 games for the Golden Griffins this season. … Mercyhurst stands 14th in Division I at 3.19 goals scored per game. In contrast, Canisius ranks 47th out of 59 teams at 2.25 per game. … However, the Golden Griffins are seventh nationally in scoring defense (2.12 goals allowed per game). The Lakers are 40th at 2.90 per game. … The Golden Griffins are 0-7-0 in one-goal games and 0-3-5 in games decided in overtime.

- Victor Fernandes

The Mercyhurst University men’s hockey team needed a spark to gain control of a tight game Saturday against American International.
Daniel Bahntge provided it. The sophomore forward recorded his second collegiate hat trick, including the tiebreaking goal, in a 7-2 Atlantic Hockey Association win in front of 625 fans at Mercyhurst Ice Center. The Lakers rebounded from a 7-3 loss to AIC Friday.
Bahntge began his three-goal outing by snapping a 1-1 tie 8 minutes, 29 seconds into the second period. His goal sparked a stretch of six straight goals – four in the decisive second period – that opened a 7-1 lead. He capped the onslaught with his final two goals in the third.
Chris Bodo scored two goals for the Lakers (6-6-1, 6-3-0 AHA), while Matthew Zay had three assists. Max Strang made 26 saves to earn the win in net. Mercyhurst outshot the Yellow Jackets (4-8-3, 1-6-3) by a 38-28 count. The Lakers return to action next Saturday with a non-conference game at Clarkson, followed by an AHA home game Dec. 18 against Canisius.