WORCESTER, Mass. - Holy Cross will return to the Hart Center for the first time since Dec. 1 when they host Niagara for a two-game Atlantic Hockey series on Jan. 11 and 12. Both games will be played at 7:05 p.m.

 Talking Points

• Holy Cross resumed league play with two games at Mercyhurst. The Crusaders and Lakers split the weekend, both games decided by one goal.

• Over the weekend, the Crusaders saw 13 different point getters and five players have multi-point weekends.

• Michael Laffin started his first point-streak of the season, capping off the weekend with two points. Laffin has posted four points in three games (2-2-4).

• Johnny Coughlin posted a three point weekend (1-2-3) and continues to rank in the top-10 of Atlantic Hockey defensemen. Coughlin ranks seventh amongst the league's defensemen in points per game at 0.83.

• In the Crusaders' 5-4 win on Jan. 5, Holy Cross scored three power play goals in the game. The last time Holy Cross had scored three man-advantage goals was on Feb. 2, 2018 at Canisius.

• Kevin Darrar scored his second goal of the season as the game-winner on Jan. 5

• Anthony Vincent leads the Crusaders' rookies with nine points on the season after a three-assist weekend. Vincent has recorded one goal and eight assists.

• On Jan. 4, two Crusaders tallied their first collegiate goals. Matt Slick and Conner Jean each lit the lamp for the first time in their careers as Crusaders.

• With four power play goals on the weekend, Holy Cross' power play conversion rate jumped from 15.4% to 19.7%.

Power Play Leaders

• The Crusaders' power play has a group of leaders who have scored two goals: Coughlin, Laffin, and Peter Crinella.

• A group of seniors also lead the team in power play points. Four players have recorded four points on the power play: Coughlin, Laffin, Spencer Trapp, and Mitch Collett.

Coughlin's Help

• Johnny Coughlin leads the team in points and assists (3-11-14).

• In league games, Coughlin ranks fourth in defensive scoring (2-10-12).

•Nationally, the defenseman ranks 27th in defenseman scoring.

• Among the league, Coughlin ranks 12th with 11 assists.

Diverse Scoring

• The Crusaders have seen 18 different goal scorers on the season.

• Mitch Collett and Michael Laffin both lead the team in goals (4).

• Three players lead the team in power play goals (2): Coughlin, Crinella, Laffin.

• Seven players have tallied three goals on the season.

Exhibition vs. U.S. National Under-18 Team

• The Crusaders picked back up the second half of the season with a New Years Day matinee exhibition with the U.S. National Under-18 team in Plymouth, Mich.

• The U18s took an early 2-0 lead but the Crusaders closed the first period down 2-1. USA extended their lead to 5-1 later in the game, but Holy Cross scored two quick goals to push the game to 5-3. The U18s tallied a late third period goal to close the game at 6-3.

• Neil Robinson, Johnny Coughlin, and Matt Slick scored for the Crusaders.

• Michael Laffin, Robinson, Mitch Collett, and Ryan Leibold tallied assists in the outing.

• Erik Gordon posted 23 saves and Beau Collins made five saves.

Scouting Niagara

• Niagara travels to Worcester with an 8-11-2 and 7-6-2 in league play.

• Noah Delmas leads the Purple Eagles with 18 points on seven goals and 11 assists.

• Ludwig Stenlund has also tallied seven goals and leads the team with four power play goals.

• Brian Wilson leads between the pipes, with a .912 save percentage and a 2.73 goals against average. Wilson holds an 8-8-2 record in 18 games played.

• On the power play, Niagara holds a 17.1% conversion rate. Conversely, the Purple Eagles have a 80% success rate on the penalty kill.

• Niagara currently sits in third place in the league with 15 conference points.

Last Time Against Niagara

• On the season, the Crusaders are 0-1-1 against the Purple Eagles. The teams faced off on Nov. 9 and 10. Holy Cross fell, 6-3, in the first game and tied 3-3 in the second.

• On Nov. 9, Mitch Collett, Charlie Barrow and Spencer Trapp scored for Holy Cross.

• In the 3-3- tie, Trapp, Kevin Darrar, and Logan Ferguson scored. Erik Gordon marked a then-career high 38 saves.

• Holy Cross holds the all-time series, 16-11-2.

Up Next

• The Crusaders will play AIC in Springfield on Jan. 17 and at the Hart Center on Jan. 19, both games are slated for 7:00 p.m.

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