NIAGARA UNIVERSITY, N.Y. – An end-to-end affair between the Niagara University men’s hockey team (13-10-3) and Canisius (5-8-7) ended in a 3-3 tie, illustrating all the characteristics of the heated-crosstown rivalry between the Purple Eagles and Golden Griffins.
After earning a 6-3 win over Canisius Thursday, Niagara fell behind 1-0 just 22 second into the contest, as the Griffs came out with an entirely different attitude than they displayed in the loss two days prior. Hard-hitting throughout the game, several altercations occurred after play had ceased, including an on-ice fight between the two teams as time ran down in the overtime period - ending the game.
"It was a very spirited game," Niagara head coach Dave Burkholder said. "Their goalie played well again and we’ll take three out of four points."
The sellout crowd of 1,600 at Dwyer Arena fell silent early in the first period, as Canisius forward Michael Cohen followed a shot by teammate Rob Martin that ricocheted off the chest of Purple Eagles goaltender Jeff VanNynatten (Stratford, Ont.), falling in front of the goal crease. Cohen was able to put in the loose puck, lifting the visiting Griffs to a one-goal lead just 22 seconds into the first period.
Not to remain down, Niagara senior forward Joe Tallari (Thunder Bay, Ont.) -- who has six goals in the past three games -- equalized the game at 1-1 at the 15:27 mark of the first, getting a stick on a cross-ice pass from linemate Justin Cross (Camarillo, Calif.) and one-timing the puck past Canisius goaltender Bryan Worosz.
With freshman forward Chad Murray (Vernon, B.C.) in the penalty box at the start of the second period, the Purple Eagles surrendered a power-play goal to Canisius early in the middle stanza. Forward Ryan Corcoran drove down the left wing and was able to find an opening between the left post and the pad of VanNynatten, giving the Griffs a one-goal advantage.
As neither team was to build more than a one-goal lead in the game, sophomore Marc Norrington (Grand Blanc, Mich.) tied the game midway in the second, scoring in his third-straight game.
With the score tied heading into the third period, senior Paul Muniz (Gloucester, Mass.) gave Niagara its first lead of the contest, gathering the puck near the Griffs’ crease and shooting it into the roof of the net, over Worosz who was still down after making an initial save on the seniors wrap-around attempt.
The Purple Eagles -- undefeated when entering the third period either leading or tied this season -- held onto the one-goal lead until the 13:12 mark of the final period. A long slapshot from Canisius forward Tim Songin beat VanNynatten, who may have been screened on the attempt according to Burkholder, tying the game for the visitors.
Several scoring attempts by both teams in the final moments of the third period and overtime would follow the Songin goal, however the score would end at 3-3.
"We certainly had enough chances," Burkholder said following the tie. "We just couldn’t buy a goal."
Niagara outshot Canisius, 40-25, in the game. Remaining undefeated in his last seven starts, VanNynatten made 22 saves in the tie. Worosz made 37 saves for the Golden Griffins.
The Purple Eagles are idle until a Feb. 6 contest with Wayne State at Dwyer Arena, the first time Niagara has a weekend off since mid-December. Following Saturday’s tie, the Purple Eagles extended their unbeaten streak against non-conference opponents to four games, as well as remaining unbeaten against Canisius in the last three meetings.
