Gophers' NCAA first-round opponent at a glance
Canisius earned an automatic bid by defeating Holy Cross 3-0 in the AHA tournament final.
March 19, 2023 at 11:33PM
A look at Canisius, the Gophers' first-round opponent in the Fargo Regional of the NCAA men's hockey tournament:
Location: Buffalo, N.Y.
Record: 20-18-3.
Conference: Atlantic Hockey Association, fourth-place finish.
NCAA bid: Automatic. Defeated Holy Cross 3-0 in AHA tournament final.
Coach: Trevor Large, sixth season.
Key stats: 2.83 goals per game (30th nationally), 2.68 goals allowed per game (25th); power play 22.79% (16th); penalty kill 79.71% (36th).
Key players: Senior F Keaton Mastrodonato (16 goals, 20 assists, 36 points), senior F Ryan Miotto (17-17-34), senior D David Melaragni (4-21-25), senior G Jacob Barczewski (16-14-1, 2.44 goals-against average, .925 save percentage, three shutouts).
Did you know? This is Canisius' second NCAA tournament appearance. The Golden Griffins lost 4-3 to top-ranked Quinnipiac in a 2013 regional first round. … Canisius began NCAA Division I play in 1998-99. … The Golden Griffins have three Minnesotans on their roster: Senior forward Grant Loven of East Grand Forks who previously played at St. Thomas and Northern Michigan, senior defenseman Lincoln Erne of Blaine and sophomore defenseman Keegan Langefels of Eden Prairie.
A former Gophers player, Taylor Landfair, helped the No. 2 Huskers hand No.16 Minnesota its third consecutive loss.
