"Tonight was a great game," said Canisius head coach Dave Smith. "Connecticut played really hard and I thought we matched them and played just as good. There were some moments where we played our best hockey tonight. Their goalie played outstanding and I thought it was a good hockey game."

Seniors Carl Hudson and Dave Cianfrini plus freshman Preston Shupe all scored for the Griffs.

Senior Andrew Loewen recorded 20 saves to anchor a strong defensive night for the Griffs, including 10 in the third period to secure the Canisius victory.

The Griffs struck first behind Hudson's eighth power-play goal of the season 7:25 into the contest. Senior Josh Heidinger sent the puck to the defender and Hudson sent a blast into the net for the 1-0 advantage. Junior Cory Conacher also registered an assist on Hudson's 11th goal of the season.

In the second period, Canisius took advantage of a delayed penalty on a 4-on-4 situation to grab a 2-0 edge. Senior Jason Weeks sent a cross-ice pass to Cianfrini, who skated up into the face-off circle. The senior defender then knocked the puck in with 5:27 left in the period for the two-goal lead. Junior Matt Zuke also registered an assist on Cianfrini's fifth goal of the season.

The Huskies (4-21-3, 4-15-3 Atlantic Hockey) cut their deficit to one, scoring on a 5-on-3 power play with 12:38 left in regulation. Andrew Olson hammered the puck in for his sixth goal of the season.

Canisius would clamp down on defense after that and secured the victory when Shupe scored with 3:14 left in the game. Shupe knocked the puck to Conacher and the junior then skated in the zone and gave the puck back to his linemate. Shupe then scored from the slot for his sixth goal of the season. Junior Vincent Scarsella also registered an assist on the game-clinching goal.

The Griffs held a 32-21 advantage in shots on the night. Canisius was 1-for-9 with the extra-man advantage, while Connecticut went 1-for-8 on the power play. The Huskies' Garrett Bartus recorded 29 saves in net.

The two schools conclude the two-game series tomorrow night, meeting at 7:05 p.m.

Game Notes: Hudson extended the school's career power play record to 28 and his eight extra-man scores this season is one shy of the school record ... Hudson has scored 28 of his 41 career goals on the power play (68.3 percent) ... Cianfrini has matched his career high with his fifth goal this season ... Conacher is the second Griff to record 40 points in a single season ... Chris Duggan holds the school record with 48 points during the 1998-99 campaign ... Conacher entered the game ranked first nationally with 1.58 points per game.