WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University men's hockey team looks to keep its MIAC playoff hopes alive on Friday, as the Cardinals host Gustavus in a key conference showdown at the SMU Ice Arena. Puck drop is set for 7:30 p.m.

The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (6-5-1 MIAC | 8-12-1 Overall)
vs. Gustavus Gusties (5-5-2 MIAC | 11-7-3 Overall)

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Last Action:
The Cardinals picked up a key two points last weekend against Saint John's in their quest for an MIAC Playoff berth. SJU opened the weekend at the National Hockey Center in St. Cloud, Minn., with a 6-0 win on Friday, with SMU bouncing back to claim a 2-1 overtime victory in the rematch on Saturday. … Gustavus, meanwhile, erupted for 11 goals last weekend in earning a sweep over Hamline. The Gusties outscored HU 7-4 in Friday's game in Vadnais Heights, Minn., then turned around and completed the sweep with a 4-2 victory at the Don Roberts Ice Arena in St. Peter, Minn.

SMU vs. Gustavus — A Year Ago:
February 10, 2012: Another day, another game decided by one goal or less. And so it went for SMU against Gustavus, as the Cardinals played their 14th game this season decided by a goal or less. Thanks to some late-game heroics by Nick Gorup (Omaha, Neb.), there was a better ending for the Cardinals, as SMU rallied from a pair of two-goal deficits — and got a goal from Gorup with 15 seconds remaining in regulation — to lift SMU to a 4-4 MIAC tie with the Gusties at Don Roberts Ice Arena.
February 11, 2012: With five minutes remaining in the third period, it appeared like SMU and Gustavus were headed for their second overtime game in as many days. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, a not-so-funny thing happened on the way to OT — Gustavus netted a pair of power-play tallies and an empty net goal en route to a 4-1 conference victory over SMU at the SMU Ice Arena.

Up Next:
The Cardinals and Gusties square off again on Saturday, this time at Don Roberts Ice Arena in St. Peter, Minn., as GAC entertains SMU in a 7 p.m. MIAC showdown.

MIAC Playoff Chase:
With four games remaining in the regular season, the race for all five conference tournament berths is still up for grabs — with eight of the nine conference teams still in the chase. St. Olaf leads the league with 18 points (9-4-0), one point in front of St. Thomas (8-5-1). Saint John's (6-4-3) is in third with 15 points, while Saint Mary's (6-5-1) is fourth with 13 points, one point in front of both Bethel (6-6-0) and Concordia (6-6-0) and three points better than Augsburg (4-6-2). St. Olaf and Saint John's kicked off the first of their two-game MIAC series on Thursday, with SJU?earning a 4-2 victory. In other matchups this weekend, Augsburg faces Bethel, Gustavus squares off against Saint Mary's, and Hamline is at Concordia.

Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2012-13 Roster | 2012-13 Statistics | 2012-13 Schedule
Saturday's 2-1 win over Saint John's snapped the Cardinals' four-game losing streak. … With their win over SJU last Saturday, SMU collected its eighth win of the season, the most since the Cardinals went 9-14-2 during the 2007-08 season. … Their 2-1 win over SJU was also the Cardinals' second overtime contest in their last six games — SMU battled St. Thomas to a 0-0 OT tie on Jan. 18. … The overtime victory over the Johnnies was SMU's first since Nov. 22, 2011, when the Cardinals knocked off then-11th ranked MSOE 2-1. … SMU's OT win over SJU also snapped a four-game winless streak in overtime games (0-1-3). … Nic Gualano (Prospect Heights, Ill.) and Bobby Thompson (Centerville, Minn.) scored SMU's goals in its 2-1 OT win over SJU last Saturday. … Thompson's game-winner was SMU's seventh shorthanded goal of the season, tying the school record set during the 1991-92 season. … Gualano's second-period goal snapped a streak of nine consecutive periods without a goal for the Cardinals. … Thompson's goal was his ninth of the season, leaving him two goals behind team-leader Mike Hill (Fort Worth, Texas). … Thompson's goal was also his second game-winner of the season. SMU's other six game-winning goals have come from six different players. … The Cardinals have posted 10 multiple-goal games this season. Hill has four, Austin Balko (Midland, Mich.) has two, and Thompson, Nick Gorup (Omaha, Neb.), Jed McGlasson (Kenai, Alaska) and Bob Marx (Sioux City, Iowa) have each recorded one. … Hill, who has missed SMU's last three games with an ankle injury, is also the team-leader in assists (10) and points (21). … SMU boasts seven players with 10 or more points through 21 games — Hill (21), Thompson (17), Balko (14), Marx (13), Wentland (13), McGlasson (11), and Nick Nagel (Andover, Minn. / 10). … SMU's 56 goals have come from 16 different players, while 21 Cardinals have recorded at least one point. … Jason Horstman (Faribault, Minn.) stopped a season-high 32 shots in recording his first win in goal this season. … SMU has used three different goalies this season. Andy Scheib (Sun Prairie, Wis.) enters this weekend's games vs. Gustavus owning a team-best 3.75 goals-against-average and an .874 save percentage. Christian Gaffy (Scandia, Minn.) has compiled a 3.87 GAA and an .874 save percentage, while Horstman has posted a 4.56 GAA and an .870 save percentage. … Scheib stopped all 38 shots he faced vs. St. Thomas on Jan. 18 en route to his first collegiate shutout. … Scheib's 38 saves were three shy of his career high. … SMU's 0-0 tie vs. the Tommies on Jan. 18 marked the first time in program history the Cardinals played to a scoreless tie. … SMU has outscored its opponents 45-16 in its seven victories this season. …  The Cardinals scored a season-high nine goals in their 9-2 rout of Hamline on Nov. 9. … SMU's nine goals against the Pipers are the most since SMU erupted for 14 goals in a 14-3 win over Concordia during the 2006-07 season. … The Cardinals have scored first in seven of their 21 games — including five of their eight wins. … The Cardinals are 3-10-0 when their opponent scores first. … With their 0-0 tie against St. Thomas on Jan. 18, the Cardinals moved to 4-2-1 on their home ice.

Scouting the Gustavus Gusties:
2012-13 Roster | 2012-13 Statistics | 2012-13 Schedule
The Gusties enter this weekend's showdown with Saint Mary's as one of the hottest teams in the MIAC. GAC has won two straight, three of its last four — and are 8-2-2 in its last 12. … After dropping their first four MIAC games, the Gusties are 5-1-2 in their last eight — the lone blemish a 3-1 loss at Concordia on Jan. 26. … Gustavus' seven goals against Hamline in last Friday's 7-4 win equaled a season high. GAC also scored seven times in a 7-4 win over Concordia on Jan. 25. … The Gusties' 4-2 win over Hamline last Saturday marked the 15th time in 21 contests that the game was decided by two goals or less. … Brenden Baker scored two goals and Adam Smyth had a goal and three assists to pace the Gusties' seven-goal outburst vs. Hamline last Friday. Corey Leivermann and Andy Pearson also chipped in two assists each in the 7-4 rout. … GAC's four goals in the rematch with the Pipers came from four different players — Smyth, Jack Walsh, Andy Pearson and Ryan Johnson. … Walsh's third-period goal was the game-winner — giving the sophomore a team-leading three game-winning goals. … With his two goals last weekend vs. Hamline, Smyth leads the team with 10 goals. … Smyth also leads the team in points with 18, while Pearson in the team-leader in assists with nine, one more than Smyth and Johnson. … Over the past four games, Smyth has recorded nine points — five goals and four assists. … The Gusties boast six players with 10 or more points — Smyth (18), Johnson (15), Pearson (12), Walsh (11), Baker (10) and Tyler Lapic (10). … Smyth has recorded two hat tricks this season — vs. Lawrence on Dec. 7 and at Concordia on Jan. 25. … Tyler Venne, who made 47 saves in the Gusties' two games against Hamline last weekend, has seen the majority of the work in goal for GAC — compiling a 2.74 goals-against-average and an .899 save percentage. … Gustavus has outscored its opponents 58-51 — including 20-10 in the first period. … The Gusties are 9-2-1 when scoring first, going 2-5-2 when their opponent nets the game's first goal. … The Gusties have played four overtime games this season — going 1-0-3. GAC beat Augsburg 3-2, while tying Amherst (2-2), and Saint John's twice (3-3, 1-1).