K.C. Finnegan had two goals and an assist and Tim Fisher snapped a 3-3 tie 3:25 into the third period, guiding Army to a 4-3 edging of Canisius in a MAAC contest before 1,763 fans at Tate Rink Friday night.
Fisher’s go-ahead tally gave the Black Knights (8-13-1, 7-10-0 MAAC) their first back-to-back wins of the season, with both victories coming against upper-division MAAC teams: Army defeated Quinnipiac 2-1 on Tuesday on Finnegan’s goal with 8.6 seconds remaining in overtime. Finnegan starred against Canisius (10-8-2, 8-6-2) as well, scoring twice in succession in the opening period to help the Black Knights escape a 2-0 hole.
Rob Martin and Todd Bisson staked the Ice Griffs to the two-goal cushion with goals in the first seven minutes of play. But at the 9:12 mark Finnegan knocked in a rebound for a power-play goal, then seven minutes later Finnegan capitalized on a Canisius mistake for the tying goal. With his team on a power play, defenseman Steve Birch left his feet to try to keep the puck in the offensive zone. The puck slipped by him though, setting up a breakaway for Finnegan, who beat goalie Stephen Fabiilli for Army’s first shorthanded goal since Nov. 21.
At 10:42 of the second period, Army goalie Scott Hamilton couldn’t corral the rebound of a Joe D’Urzo shot from the point, and Todd Houston flipped it in for a 3-2 Canisius lead. The advantage lasted less than seven minutes, though, as Army’s Nathan Mayfield slapped a loose puck through traffic past Fabiilli.
Fisher used an athletic move to score the winner. Taking a pass from Mayfield at the blue line, Fisher streaked along the right boards, cut hard to the net and scored around a fallen Fabiilli. The goal was Fisher’s 10th of the season and extended his point-scoring streak to five games, the longest by a Black Knight all season. Mayfield finished with a goal and two assists, while Fisher tallied a goal and one assist.
Hamilton made 22 saves, including four in the final minute when Fabiilli was off for the extra skater. Fabiilli made 15 saves, as Canisius outshot Army 25-19. The Ice Griffs saw their five-game winning streak end.
Both teams are back in action on Saturday. Army hosts Sacred Heart at 7 p.m., while the Ice Griffs travel to Iona.
