EAU CLAIRE, Wis. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's hockey team hits the road on Friday, traveling to Hobbs Ice Arena for a 7 p.m. nonconference game against UW-Eau Claire.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (0-2-0 Overall) at UW-Eau Claire Blugolds (2-0-0 Overall)
 
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Last Action:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals came up empty in their two games at the MIAC Hockey Showcase last weekend in Blaine, Minn. Saint Mary's gave up the game-winning goal with 25 seconds remaining in falling to Gustavus 5-4 last Friday, while Hamline scored seven power-play goals—and a shorthander—in dealing Saint Mary's an 8-5 setback on Sunday | GAC Recap * HU Recap
• UW-Eau Claire: The Blugolds kicked off their season with a pair of impressive road wins last weekend. UW-EC opened with a 5-1 victory over Lawrence in Appleton, Wis., before cruising to a 10-1 rout of Aurora in Geneva, Ill. | Lawrence Recap * Aurora Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. UW-Eau Claire—Their Last Meeting:
• January 8, 2011 * Eau Claire, Wis.: Saint Mary's completed a five-game road swing through Wisconsin, and—unfortunately for coach Bill Moore and the Cardinals—UW-Eau Claire was just as ungracious a host as Milwaukee School of Engineering, Marian and UW-River Falls before them. The Blugolds scored less than two minutes into the first period, pushed that lead to 5-0 midway through the second period and cruised to a 5-2 nonconference win over the Cardinals at the Hobbs Ice Center | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals are back on the road on Saturday, traveling to Hunt Arena in River Falls, Wis., for a 7 p.m. nonconference game against UW-River Falls.
• UW-Eau Claire: The Blugolds are back on their home ice at the Hobbs Ice Arena on Saturday, hosting Augsburg in a 7 p.m. nonconference game.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2015-16 Roster | 2015-16 Statistics | 2015-16 Schedule
• This weekend's games against UW-Eau Claire and UW-River Falls are the third and fourth of five straight road games to open the season for the Cardinals. … 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. … Five of the Cardinals' last eight games have been decided by one goal or less—including this year's 5-4 loss to Gustavus on Oct. 30 at the MIAC Hockey Showcase. … The Cardinals' five goals in their 8-5 loss to Hamline on Nov. 1 were the most in a loss since netting six in a 7-6 overtime loss to the Pipers on Dec. 6, 2008.
… The Cardinals' nine goals in their two MIAC Hockey Showcase games last weekend came from nine different players—Mike Mezzano (Woodbury, Minn.), Kelvin Walz (Woodbury, Minn.), Jared Johnson (Hartland, Wis.), Martin Gruse (Trenton, Mich.), Nick Albergo (Elmhurst, Ill.), Jay Heinle (York, Pa.), Connor Langfield (Rosemount, Minn.), Jude Warner (Pickerington, Ohio), and Taylor Portner (Andover, Minn.). … Mezzano also collected three assists in Saint Mary's two games last weekend and leads the team with four points. … Fourteen of the 21 players who participated at the MIAC Showcase recorded at least one point. … Eight of the 13 goals the Cardinals surrendered at the MIAC Showcase came on the power play—including seven of Hamline's eight goals last Sunday. … The Cardinals have been outscored 11-2 in the first two periods—including 9-1 in the second—but Saint Mary's holds a 7-2 scoring edge in the game's final 20 minutes.
 
Scouting The UW-Eau Claire Blugolds:
2015-16 Roster | 2015-16 Statistics | 2015-16 Schedule
• The Blugolds enter this weekend's games against Saint Mary's and Augsburg ranked No. 8 in the latest USCHO.com Poll. … After back-to-back road games, the Blugolds play four of their next six contests—including both games this weekend—on their home ice. UW-Eau Claire finished 10-4-1 at home a year ago. … UW-Eau Claire outscored its first two opponents by a combined 15-2. … As a team, the Blugolds are averaging 40 shots per game through two games. … Preston Hodge and Adam Knochenmus have each scored a team-leading three goals in the Blugolds' first two games. Hodge netted two goals in the Blugolds' season-opening 5-1 win over Lawrence last Friday, adding another in UW-EC's 10-1 victory over Aurora. Knochenmus, meanwhile, scored once vs. Lawrence and twice against Aurora. … Mac Jansen has amassed a team-best four assists, and shares the team lead in points (5) with Hodges and Knochenmus. … UW-Eau Claire has scored four power-play goals this season. … Tyler Green started both games in the Blugolds' season-opening weekend, allowing just a single goal in each contest, while recording 41 saves. … UW-Eau Claire has outscored its opponents 3-1 in both the first and second period, while holding a 9-0 scoring edge in the game's final 20 minutes.