MOORHEAD, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University men's hockey team hits the road this weekend, as the Cardinals travel to Concordia for a pair of MIAC contests, beginning with a 7 p.m. showdown Friday at the Moorhead Sports Center.

The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (3-9-0 MIAC | 7-13-1 Overall) vs. Concordia Cobbers (5-5-4 MIAC | 11-7-4 Overall)

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Last Action:
The Cardinals collected a much-needed split in its conference series against Augsburg last weekend. SMU dropped a 3-1 decision to the Auggies at the SMU Ice Arena last Friday, then rebounded with a 5-4 win the following night in Minneapolis, Minn. … Concordia went into overtime in both of its games against St. Olaf last weekend in Northfield, Minn., falling 5-4 in OT on Friday, then settling for a 2-2 tie on Saturday.

SMU vs. Concordia — A Year Ago:
February 15, 2013: Needing a sweep to claim their first MIAC Tournament invitation since the 2003-04 season, the Cardinals surrendered the game's first four goals and their late rally fell one goal short, as Concordia eliminated SMU from post-season contention with a 4-3 victory.
February 16, 2013: SMU put together two of its best periods of the season, and the Cardinals were well on their way to closing out the season with a victory. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, a not-so-funny thing happened on the way to that win, as Concordia rattled off three third-period goals — all off the stick of Tucker Coborn — then netted the game-winner with less than a minute remaining in overtime to beat SMU 4-3 at the SMU Ice Arena.

Up Next:
The Cardinals and Cobbers are back on the Moorhead Sports Center ice on Saturday, as the two teams square off in their second game of their two-game conference series. Opening face-off is slated for 2 p.m.

Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2013-14 Roster | 2013-14 Statistics | 2013-14 Schedule
Friday's game against the Cobbers is the second of four straight road games for the Cardinals, who do not return home until closing out the regular-season against Hamline on Feb. 22. … The Cardinals' 5-4 win over Augsburg last Saturday snapped their season-high five-game losing streak. … SMU's five goals vs. the Auggies were a season high. … The Cardinals' 3-1 loss and 5-4 win over Augsburg marked the 10th and 11th times in 21 contests that the game has been decided by two goals or less. … Five of SMU's seven wins this season have been by one goal — 3-2 and 5-4 wins over Augsburg, a 3-2 win vs. Saint John's, and back-to-back 2-1 victories over Lake Forest. … The Cardinals' six goals against Augsburg last weekend came from six different players — Dylan Dock (River Falls, Wis.) on Friday, and Jonathon Elliott (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.), Bob Marx (Sioux City, Iowa), Bobby Thompson (Centerville, Minn.), Martin Gruse (Trenton, Mich.) and Nick Nagel (Andover, Minn.) on Saturday. … Along with his goal Saturday, Gruse also added a pair of assists for his first collegiate three-point game. … Marx's goal vs. the Auggies last Saturday was his team-leading eighth of the season. … Thompson heads into this weekend's games against Concordia leading the team in points with 13, while sharing the team's assist lead (7) with Gruse and Nick Albergo (Elmhurst, Ill.). … The Cardinals boast five players with 10 or more points — Thompson (13), Marx (12), Albergo (12), Gruse (11) and Nagel (10). … Albergo accounted for all three of the Cardinals' goals against Bethel on Jan. 18 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. … The Cardinals boast five players who have scored their first collegiate goals this season — Albergo, Gruse, Elliott, Mike Wolter (Antigo, Wis.) and Mike Mezzano (Woodbury, Minn.). … Thirteen of SMU's 46 goals this season have come on the power-play. … Phil Heinle (York, Pa.) recorded a career-high 32 saves against Augsburg last Friday. … Heinle enters this weekend's matchup with Concordia leading the team in both goals-against-average (3.05) and save percentage (.909). … Christian Gaffy (Scandia, Minn.) finished with 45 saves against St. Olaf on Jan. 31 — including 38 in the first two periods combined. … Gaffy's 45 saves vs. the Oles were one shy of his career-high 46-save effort against UW-Stevens Point on Nov. 16. … 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. … Gaffy, who leads the team with 329 saves, owns a 3.42 GAA and an .896 save percentage, while Mitch Fernsler (Ballwin, Mo.) has a 4.76 GAA and .846 save percentage. … 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 has been the Cardinals' only 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. … SMU is 3-3-1 when scoring first and 4-10-0 when its opponent nets the game's first goal.

Scouting The Concordia Cobbers:
2013-14 Roster | 2013-14 Statistics | 2013-14 Schedule
The Cobbers' 5-4 loss to St. Olaf last Friday snapped their two-game winning streak. … Concordia has now gone into overtime in five of its last six games and eight of its last 11. … All told, the Cobbers have played nine overtime games this season, going 2-2-5. … Tucker Coborn and Caleb Suderman each scored two goals to account for CC's four goals in last Friday's 5-4 loss to St. Olaf, while Dave Velch and Chris Beede accounted for the Cobbers' two goals in last Saturday's 2-2 tie with the Oles. … Suderman, who also assisted on both goals by CC last Saturday, heads into this weekend's series against Saint Mary's leading the team in goals (15), while sharing the team's points lead (26) with Andrew Deters. … Deters is also the team's assist leader with 19. … The Cobbers boast nine players with 10 or more points, and three — Suderman (26), Deters (26) and Jordie Bancroft (24) — with 20 or more. … Chris Neamonitis has started 17 of the team's 23 games in goal, compiling a 2.43 goals-against-average and a .927 save percentage. … Neamonitis has made a team-high 532 saves and owns one shutout. … Fellow goalie Kelly Andrew boasts a 2.06 GAA and .922 save percentage with one shutout in six starts. … As a team, the Cobbers collected season-highs in goals (7), assists (11) and shots on goal (46) in a 7-2 win over Northland on Dec. 14. … Nineteen of Concordia's 23 games have been decided by two goals or less — including 11 of the Cobbers' last 12. … Concordia has outscored its opponents 74-57 — including 21-12 in the second period. … The Cobbers are 8-3-1 when scoring first, but just 3-4-4 when their opponent scores first.