Friday, December 8: Tickets | Live Video | Live Audio | Live Stats | Game Notes (Niagara) | Game Notes (Canisius)
Saturday, December 9: Tickets | Live Video | Live Audio | Live Stats | Game Notes (Niagara) | Game Notes (Canisius)

Coach Lammers on This Week In College Hockey: Part 1 | Part 2
USCHO Live! - Dec. 5, 2017
Coach Lammers with Howard and Jeremy on WGR 550 - Dec. 6, 2017

The Niagara Purple Eagles hockey team, ranked No. 20 in the nation in this week's USCHO.com Men's Division I Poll, looks to close out the first half of the 2017-18 campaign with a strong showing in the first two games in this year's edition of the Battle of the Bridge, taking on the Canisius Golden Griffins. Niagara and Canisius open the weekend at Dwyer Arena with a 7:05 p.m. matchup on Friday, Dec. 8. From there, the series shifts south of the bridge with a 4:35 p.m. rematch at HARBORCENTER in downtown Buffalo.
 
Friday's game at Dwyer Arena will be televised locally on LCTV, and both games will be streamed live on AtlanticHockey.tv. Pat Malacaro has the play-by-play call this weekend live on WLVL 1340 AM.

Tickets are still available at the Dwyer Arena box office for Friday night's home game. For ticket information, please contact the Niagara Ticket Office at (716) 286-TIXX (8499), tickets@niagara.edu or visit www.PurpleEagles.com/Tickets. 
 
Purple Points
• Last week, Niagara took over sole possession of first place in Atlantic Hockey with a two-game road sweep at Air Force, taking wins of 6-3 on Dec. 1 and 5-2 on Dec. 2. It was the first road sweep for Niagara at Air Force since February 2005.
• After four straight weeks receiving votes in the USCHO.com Men's Division I Poll, Niagara received its first national ranking since October 2013, coming in at No. 20.
• The Purple Eagles earned a number of conference accolades this week. Freshman goaltender Brian Wilson was named Rookie of the Week and Rookie of the Month for November, while Tanner Lomsnes collected Player of the Week honors Tuesday.
• In Atlantic Hockey play, Wilson is first in the league in goals-against average (2.01) and wins (seven) and is second in save percentage (.922). Overall this season, he holds a record of 7-4-1, a 2.44 goals-against average, and a .909 save percentage.
• Lomsnes has a career-high 17 points (12+5) in 15 games; his 12 goals on the season are tied for fourth in the NCAA, trailing three players at 13 goals.
• This weekend's rivalry matchup features five of the top seven scorers in Atlantic Hockey: Niagara's Lomsnes, Noah Delmas, and Derian Plouffe, and Canisius' Dylan McLaughlin and Ryan Schmelzer.
• Plouffe leads Niagara and is second in the AHC with 19 points (9+10) in 15 games. He has at least one point in 13 of 15 games this season and has four goals and four assists in a five-game point streak entering this weekend.
• Niagara's penalty kill has gone four straight games without allowing a power-play goal and has killed off 17 straight penalties, dating back to Nov. 21 at Cornell.
 
Lomsnes Takes Charge
• Tanner Lomsnes earned his first career weekly award as he was named the AHC Player of the Week on Tuesday. Lomsnes had four points (2+2) at Air Force last weekend, including a point on both game-winning goals.
• Lomsnes is second in the AHC and tied for fourth in the NCAA with 12 goals on the season after scoring just six in his first two seasons with the Purple and White. He currently has a goal in three straight games and five of the last six.
• Lomsnes' streak of four straight games with a goal from Oct. 27 to Nov. 4 was the longest such streak by any Niagara player since Ryan Murphy scored in five straight from Nov. 10 to Dec. 1, 2012.
 
Wilson Takes Hold In Goal
• Freshman goaltender Brian Wilson was named Atlantic Hockey's Rookie of the Month for November on Wednesday. He also collected Rookie of the Week honors on Tuesday after posting a 2-0 record and a .926 save percentage at Air Force last weekend.
• Wilson made a season-high 40 saves in Niagara's 6-3 win over Air Force on Dec. 1.
• On the season, Wilson is third in Atlantic Hockey in goals-against average (2.44) and is tied for first in wins (seven).
• Against Atlantic Hockey competition, Wilson is 7-2-1 and has a conference-best 2.01 goals-against average and is second with a .922 save percentage.
 
Special Teams Improvements
• Niagara currently holds a 22 percent power-play conversion rate, a vast improvement from the last three seasons where the team had an overall power-play percentage of 11.2 percent (54-481).
• Niagara's penalty kill is currently second in the AHC and sixth nationally at 88.4 percent. The Purple Eagles have had a perfect penalty kill in four straight contests and nine of 15 games this season.
 
Scouting the Golden Griffins
• Canisius enters this weekend's series at 8-5-1 overall, having had a five-game win streak snapped last Saturday by No. 3 Clarkson.
• The all-time series between Niagara and Canisius is tied, 21-21-4.
• Canisius sits one place behind Niagara in the AHC standings; it is the first time these teams meet as the top two seeds in the league.
• Junior forward Dylan McLaughlin leads Atlantic Hockey and is tied for sixth in the NCAA with 21 points (8+13) in 14 games.
• McLaughlin anchors Canisius' top forward line with center Ryan Schmelzer, who is tied for third in the AHC with 17 points and leads the Golden Griffins with a plus-7 rating.
• Time in goal for Canisius has been split between junior Simon Hofley and sophomore Daniel Urbani. Urbani is 6-3-1 with a 2.97 goals-against average and a .909 save percentage, while Hofley is 2-2 with a 2.78 goals-against and a .904 save percentage.
 
Stay connected with the Purple Eagles through social media. Follow Niagara Athletics on Twitter @NUPurpleEagles and for hockey updates, follow Niagara hockey on Twitter and Instagram. Check in with the Purple Eagles on Facebook.com/PurpleEagles and on Instagram @NUPurpleEagles.