ST. PETER, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University men's hockey team heads to Don Roberts Ice Arena on Friday, as the Cardinals square off against Gustavus in the first game of their two-game MIAC series. Game time is set for 7:05 p.m.

The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (2-4-0 MIAC | 6-8-1 Overall) at Gustavus Gusties (6-1-1 MIAC | 9-4-3 Overall)

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Last Action:
The Cardinals earned a split in their MIAC series with Bethel last weekend, with both teams winning on the road. SMU got goals from four different players in beating the Royals 4-1 last Friday in Blaine, Minn., while Bethel overcame a three-goal performance by SMU's Nick Albergo (Elmhurst, Ill.) to record a 4-3 win at the SMU Ice Arena a day later. … Gustavus earned six conference points with a sweep of Augsburg last weekend — winning 3-1 on Friday in St. Peter, Minn., then adding a 4-2 victory on Saturday in Minneapolis, Minn.

SMU vs. Gustavus — A Year Ago:
February 8, 2013: The Cardinals gave up a goal when a puck was rung around the boards, hit a seam by where the Zamboni doors open and bounced right out in front of the net, where Gustavus' Ryan Johnson scored into the empty net. And that was just the beginning. SMU also lost two of its top six defensemen to season-ending injuries — and to top it off, the Cardinals came out on the short end of a 4-1 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference decision to Gustavus at the SMU Ice Arena.
February 9, 2013: The Cardinals headed into their MIAC rematch with Gustavus battling with three other teams for the fifth and final conference playoff spot. A win against the Gusties would propel SMU into that No. 5 slot, one point ahead of Gustavus with two games to play. A loss against the Gusties, and the Cardinals would find their backs against the wall, needing a sweep against Concordia in the final weekend — and maybe a little help — to land that elusive playoff berth. And, unfortunately, thanks to a 5-2 loss to the Gusties, the Cardinals are left hoping help is on the way.

Up Next:
The Cardinals return home to the SMU Ice Arena for the second game of their two-game MIAC series against Gustavus on Saturday. Game time is set for 7 p.m.

Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2013-14 Roster | 2013-14 Statistics | 2013-14 Schedule
Saturday's 4-3 loss to Bethel snapped SMU's two-game unbeaten streak (1-0-1). … The Cardinals' 4-3 setback also marked the ninth time in 14 contests that the game has been decided by two goals or less. … Nick Albergo (Elmhurst, Ill.) accounted for all three of the Cardinals' goals against Bethel last Saturday en route to his first collegiate hat trick. … Albergo's hat trick marked the first time since Mike Glaesmer scored four goals at Hamline on Dec 6, 2008 that SMU has boasted a player with three or more goals in a game. … Jonathon Elliott (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.), Martin Gruse (Trenton, Mich.), Austin Balko (Midland, Mich.) and Bob Marx (Sioux City, Iowa) accounted for SMU's four goals against Bethel in the teams' first game last Friday. … Elliott has now recorded six points in SMU's last five Friday games — along with his goal vs. Bethel, the sophomore scored the Cardinals' lone goal against Concordia (Wis.) on Jan. 10, netted a goal against Lake Forest on Nov. 29, notched his first collegiate multiple-point game with a pair of assists in SMU's 4-3 loss to Saint John's on Nov. 22, and had an assist vs. UW-Superior on Nov. 15. … Marx's third-period goal vs. Bethel last Friday was his team-leading sixth of the season — equaling his single-season career-high. … Marx recorded his third collegiate two-goal game with a pair of goals against UW-Stevens Point on Nov. 16. … Bobby Thompson (Centerville, Minn.) shares the team's points lead (10) with Marx, while also leading the team with six assists. … The Cardinals boast five players who have scored their first collegiate goals this season — Elliott, Gruse, Albergo, Mike Mezzano (Woodbury, Minn.) and Mike Wolter (Antigo, Wis.). … Eleven of SMU's 35 goals this season have come on the power-play. … Christian Gaffy (Scandia, Minn.) — who stopped a career-high 46 shots against UW-Stevens Point on Nov. 16 — takes a team-leading 2.76 goals-against-average and a .910 save percentage into the weekend series vs. Gustavus. … Gaffy leads the team with 262 saves. … Gaffy's 46 saves against UW-Stevens Point on Nov. 16 were the most saves by a Cardinal goalie since Jason Horstman stopped 52 on Feb. 19, 2011. … Fellow goalie Phil Heinle (York, Pa.), who stopped a career-high 31 shots in SMU's 2-2 tie vs. MSOE on Jan. 11, enters the weekend with a 2.85 GAA and .904 save percentage. … Heinle has stopped 30 or more shots twice in his six appearances this season. … As a team, the Cardinals posted a season-high 41 shots on goal against UW-Superior on Nov. 16. … SMU's 2-2 tie vs. MSOE on Jan. 11 was the Cardinals' first overtime game of the season. … The Cardinals' four goals in a 6-4 loss against UW-Stevens Point on Nov. 16 were the most in a loss since scoring four in a 5-4 overtime setback against Augsburg on Jan. 28, 2012. … Three of SMU's five wins this season have been by one goal — a 3-2 win over Saint John's and back-to-back 2-1 victories over Lake Forest. … SMU is 3-2-1 when scoring first and 3-6-0 when its opponent nets the game's first goal. 

Scouting The Gustavus:
2013-14 Roster | 2013-14 Statistics | 2013-14 Schedule
Gustavus heads into Friday's game against Saint Mary's having won two straight and 7-1-3 in its last 10. … After falling to Concordia 3-1 on Nov. 15, the Gusties have gone 6-0-1 in their last seven MIAC games. … GAC's 2-0 loss to No. 1-ranked Adrian on Jan. 11 snapped the Gusties' season-high seven-game unbeaten streak (5-0-2). … The Gusties have played three overtime games this season, with all three ending in ties — 6-6 vs. Lawrence on Nov. 29, 2-2 vs. St. Olaf on Dec. 7 and 2-2 vs. Lake Forest on Jan. 10. … Corey Leivermann had a goal in both games against the Auggies, while Adam Smyth, Sam Smith, Tyler Lapic, Alex Gallen and Andy Pearson also found the back of the net vs. Augsburg last weekend. … With his two goals vs. Augsburg last weekend, Leivermann pushed his team-leading total to 10, two more than Smyth. … Leivermann also leads the team in points with 17, while sharing the team's assist lead (7) with Lapic. … GAC boasts three players with 10 or more points — Leivermann (17), Smyth (13) and Lapic (11). … GAC's 49 goals this season have come from 18 different players. … John McLean has appeared in 15 of the team's 16 games in goal, compiling a 2.30 goals-against-average and a .910 save percentage. … McLean has posted 335 saves, including a season-high 31 against Lawrence on Nov. 29. … Gustavus holds a 49-40 edge in goals, and has outscored its opponents 15-9 in the first period and 21-15 in the third. … GAC is 3-2-2 on its home ice and 6-2-1 away from Don Roberts Ice Arena. … Gustavus is unbeaten (9-0-3) when scoring the game's first goal, but the Gusties have yet to win when their opponent scores first (0-4-0).