By Colton Pankiewicz, Sports Editor
Canisius opened up their season on the road in a pair of non-conference games against Miami of Ohio which saw them lose both by scores of 4–2 and 4–1.
In the first period of the game, both teams came out firing offensively, producing a 2–1 deficit for the Griffs early with senior Randy Hernandez claiming their first goal on a breakaway. The second period was much calmer, with both teams stalemated at a 2–1 score before Miami of Ohio took advantage of their powerplay and extended their lead to two goals. Another Canisius penalty gave the Redhawks another prime scoring chance in which they buried just two minutes and twenty five seconds into the third. It took until late in the third period for the Griffs to find the back of the net again, and it was freshman Matteo Giampa who found a loose puck in front of Miami’s net and finished with a backhander for his first collegiate goal in his first collegiate game. Neither team was able to add another tally to the score sheet, and Canisius found themselves on the wrong side of a 4–2 final. The loss came despite outshooting Miami 33–26 while giving the Redhawks six power play opportunities, which they converted on two of.
In the second game of their weekend series against Miami, the first period began much calmer than the night before. The final four minutes and five seconds of the period, though, not as much, with Miami finding the back of the net twice in the last four minutes of the frame. The Redhawks increased their lead to three on their second powerplay of the night, midway through the second period. Canisius responded 43 seconds later when captain Max Kouznetzov buried his first goal of the year to cut the score to 3–1. That would be the lone goal the Golden Griffins notched for the night, while Miami added a fourth goal in the third period, for a 4–1 final in favor of the Redhawks.
Head coach Trevor Large expressed his disappointment in the teams weekend, with the majority of his disappointment revolving around the teams’ physicality. “Miami is a big and physical team, and we got outworked in that aspect. I’d like to see us check more effectively to create chances for ourselves with the puck,” said Large.
Canisius faces Michigan State late in the week as they look to take home their first win of the season. The Griffs will get two chances to take down the number eight team in the country, with games Thursday and Friday night.