WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's hockey team steps out of conference play on Saturday, as the Cardinals entertain Aurora in the first of two nonconference games at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena. Game time is slated for 8 p.m.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (4-2-2 Overall) vs. Aurora Spartans (1-4-1 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
Live Stats * Live Video | Video Preview | GameDay Program
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals picked up a tie and a win against St. Olaf last weekend, as the two teams battled to a 4-4 tie on Nov. 20 in Northfield, Minn., with Saint Mary's posting a 3-1 win in the teams' rematch a day later at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena | Olaf Recap 1 * Olaf Recap 2
• Aurora: The Spartans have been off since Nov. 13-14, when they dropped a pair of home games to nationally ranked St. Norbert, falling 4-1 in the first game and 7-1 in the rematch | SNC Recap 1 * SNC Recap 2
 
Saint Mary's vs. Aurora—A Year Ago:
• December 5, 2014 * Geneva, Ill.: Aurora scored four special teams goals—three power play tallies and a shorthanded goal—in dealing Saint Mary's a 6-3 nonconference setback at the Fox Valley Ice Center | Recap
• December 6, 2014 * Geneva, Ill.: After dropping a 6-3 nonconference decision to Aurora the previous night, Saint Mary's was determined to make a statement in the teams' rematch. Message delivered—with authority. The Cardinals erupted for a season-high 11 goals—including five in the second period—in cruising to an 11-2 victory over Aurora and a split of the teams' nonconference series at the Fox Valley Ice Center | Recap
 
Up Next:
• The Cardinals and Spartans are back on the ice on Sunday, squaring off in a 3 p.m. nonconference game at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2015-16 Roster | 2015-16 Statistics | 2015-16 Schedule
• With their 4-4 tie and 3-1 win against St. Olaf last weekend, the Cardinals pushed their unbeaten streak to six (4-0-2). It's the longest unbeaten streak since Saint Mary's went 7-0-1 during the 1996-97 season. … With their seven goals against St. Olaf last weekend, Saint Mary's has scored 42 goals in its first eight games (5.25 gpg)—ranking No. 2 in all of NCAA Division III. … The Cardinals' 10 goals against Bethel in their Nov. 13 10-2 victory were the most since netting 11 against Aurora on Dec. 6, 2014—and the most in a conference game since scoring 14 against Concordia on Dec. 7, 2007. … The Cardinals' combined 19 goals in their sweep of the Royals were the most since scoring 21 in 14-3 and 7-2 victories over Concordia on Dec. 7-8, 2007. … Jay Heinle (York, Pa.)—who recorded his first collegiate hat trick against Bethel on Nov. 13—notched his second multiple-goal game of the season with a pair of tallies against St. Olaf last Saturday—giving him three goals in Saint Mary's two-game series vs. the Oles. … After not scoring a goal in his first year as a Cardinal, Heinle has now netted a goal in six of the team's eight games—and leads the team with nine goals. … Martin Gruse (Trenton, Mich.)—a Second-Team All-American last season—leads the team in assists (10) and points (14). … For the second straight Friday, Gruse and Bob Kinne (St. Paul, Minn.) enjoyed multiple-point games. After posting four-point efforts against Bethel in the Cardinals' 10-2 win over the Royals on Nov. 13, Kinne and Gruse each had a goal and two assists vs. St. Olaf last Friday. … Gruse has recorded at least one point in seven of the team's eight games—including 10 points in his last four contests (3 G, 7 A). … Kinne has notched at least one point in six of eight games—including nine points (4 G, 5 A) in Saint Mary's last four games. … Gruse's four-point effort vs. Bethel on Nov. 13 was the third time in his collegiate career—and second time against Bethel—that he has notched four points in a game. … Kinne's four-point night vs. the Royals on Nov. 13 was his first in a Cardinal uniform. … Saint Mary's had a player score three goals in both games of its conference series vs. Bethel on Nov. 13-14—Heinle recorded his first collegiate hat trick in Friday's 10-2 win, while Jared Johnson (Hartland, Wis.) posted his first three-goal game in a Cardinal uniform in last Saturday's 9-1 victory. … Johnson also picked up an assist in the 9-1 win en route to the first four-point game of his collegiate career. … Kellen Wasell (Edmonds, Wash.) picked up three assists in the Cardinals' 9-1 win vs. Bethel—it was the first three-assist game of his collegiate career. … Heinle and Landon Farrell (Rochester, Minn.) have each scored their first collegiate goals this season. …Phil Heinle (York, Pa.) made 45 saves in two starts against St. Olaf last weekend, giving the junior 171 saves in seven starts this season … Heinle owns a 2.52 goals-against-average and a .905 save percentage in this season. … The Cardinals have outscored their opponents 15-5 in the game's final 20 minutes. … Saint Mary's is 3-0-2 when scoring the game's first goal, while going 1-2-0 in games in which the Cardinals' opponent scores first. … The Cardinals have faced two nationally ranked teams this season, collecting a 4-2 win over 10th-ranked UW-River Falls and battling No. 8 UW-Eau Claire to a 3-3 tie. … The Cardinals—who reached the MIAC Playoffs championship game a year ago, after finishing second in the regular-season standings—were picked to finish second in the MIAC Preseason Coaches' Poll. … With their 5-4 loss to Gustavus on Oct. 30, the Cardinals fell to 0-3-0 in their last three season openers. Saint Mary's last season-opening win was a 7-2 victory over Bethel on Oct. 27, 2012.
 
Scouting The Aurora Spartans:
2015-16 Roster | 2015-16 Statistics | 2015-16 Schedule
• Aurora heads into the weekend at Saint Mary's having dropped back-to-back games. … Three of the Spartans' first four opponents this season have been nationally ranked—No. 2 UW-Stevens Point, No. 8 UW-Eau Claire, and No. 9 St. Norbert. … Aurora has been limited to just one goal in each of its last three losses and has scored just six goals in its four setbacks combined. On the flip side, the Spartans have netted a combined six goals in their win and tie. … Aurora has surrendered seven or more goals three times this season—giving up seven in losses to St. Norbert (7-1) and UW-Stevens Point (7-3), while allowing a season-high 10 in a 10-1 setback against UW-Eau Claire. … Tom Greene heads into the Spartans' weekend series with Saint Mary's leading the team in goals with three. … Greene also shares the team lead in points (4) with Anthony Pnewski. … Greene has netted the Spartans' game-winning and game-tying goals this season. … Pnewski, Tim Santopoalo, Ron Lingren, Patrick Sofer, and Andrew Bergguist all share the top spot in assists with two each. … Aurora's 12 goals have come from eight different players, while 16 Spartans have recorded at least one point. … Jared Rutledge has started five of the team's six games in goal—and has appeared in all six. … Rutledge owns a team-leading 4.32 goals-against-average and an .897 save percentage. … Rutledge has stopped 210 of the 234 shots he's faced this season. … The Spartans are 1-1-0 when scoring the game's first goal, while going 0-3-1 when their opponent scores first. … The Spartans have played four of their first six games at home—but they are still searching for their first home-ice victory, going 0-4-0. Aurora is unbeaten (1-0-1) on the road this season.