AIC DOWNS CANISIUS
West Springfield, Mass. - Three players
registered multi point games as the American International College
ice hockey squad won their first contest of the season 3-1 over the
Golden Griffins of Canisius College Friday evening. The win moves
the Jackets to 1-5-1 overall and 1-4-1 in Atlantic Hockey while the
loss drops Canisius to 2-6-1 overall and 2-4-1 in the conference.
AIC grabbed the contest's first score under a minute into the second-period. Mike McMillan (Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.), parked right in front of the goal, redirected a pass from senior captain Bryan Jurynec (Orland Park, Ill.) into the back of the net. Senior Chris Bolognino (Carol Stream, Ill.) earned the second assist on the score.
The Jackets took a 2-0 lead less than four minutes later when Steve McLeod (Atikokan, Ont.) flicked the puck into an empty net after Golden Griffins goalie Andrew Loewen slipped to the ground playing the puck behind the goal. McMillan and Jereme Tendler (Viceroy, Sk.) both assisted on the goal.
Canisius didn't record a shot on net in the second-period.
The Golden Griffins got on the board six minutes into the third-frame when Josh Heidinger scored his fifth goal of the year after flipping home a rebound after Vince Scarsella shot.
Canisius pressed the Jackets for much of third-period. AIC goalie Dan Ramirez (Rochester, NY) made a sensational save with 11:06 showing on the clock, stealing a Kyle Bushee slap-shot out of the air with his glove.
The Golden Griffins also had a goal taken away with just over nine minutes showing on the clock, when the referees declared that the net had come off of the moorings before the puck crossed the goal-line.
AIC scored once more at the 12:56 mark when Tendler finished a Ross Whitford (Red Deer, AB) slap-shot from the blue-line. McLeod, registered his second point of the game with the second-assist on the goal.
Ramirez's play was solid in the third-period; he turned away 22 shots on the evening while his counterpart Loewen stopped 23 shots on goal.
AIC and Canisius will conclude the weekend match-up tomorrow
afternoon with 4:05 pm.