Senior forward Andrew Dawe knocked in the game-winning goal with 42 seconds remaining in overtime to give Canisius a 4-3 win against Connecticut Saturday night at the Buffalo State Sports Arena.
“We had a much better effort tonight,” Canisius coach Dave Smith said. “It’s hard to win games. We were rewarded tonight with an overtime victory for a lot of hard work.
“There were a lot of ups and downs, and we got the final up.”
Canisius (5-6-1, 3-4-1 AHA) held a 3-1 lead before Connecticut rallied with two goals in the last two minutes of the game. Freshman forward Chris Myhro drove into the net and knocked home his own rebound to get Connecticut (3-5-1, 2-4-0) within one at 18:17. With an extra attacker on the ice, junior defenseman B.J. Crum shot from the point and utilized a screen to tie the game with 44 seconds left in regulation.
The Griffs registered the only three shots that came in overtime. On a pass from senior forward Fred Coccimiglio, Dawe drove to the net and, with one glove on, knocked in a loose puck above Connecticut goalie Scott Tomes to get the game-winner for the Griffs.
The win improved Canisius’ home conference record to 2-1-1 and was the second time this season the Griffs have won in overtime. Freshman goaltender Ryan Hatch (3-1-0) made 27 saves to pick up the win while Tomes (0-3-0) made 38 saves in the loss.
Junior forward Joey Coccimiglio extended his point streak to six games and goal streak to four games, both the longest on the team this season. With the three-point night he now has 11 points in six games. Freshman forward Spencer Churchill set a career high with three assists in the contest.
Connecticut got on the board first when Cole Koidahl knocked one in on a delayed penalty against Canisius just 1:18 into the game. The Griffs responded with a goal from Coccimiglio who went top shelf to tie the game at 1-1.
The Griffs extended their lead to 2-1 in the second when senior defenseman Tim Songin got his first goal of the year when he put one in after a battle in front the net. Canisius went up 3-1 when sophomore forward Joel Kitchen took a pass down the right side of the ice and went across the goal to beat Tomes on the left side.
