PITTSBURGH, Pa. – October 6, 2013 - The Robert Morris University men's ice hockey team kicked off its tenth season of existence with an exhibition win over the University of Toronto, 2-0.  The three goaltenders on the RMU roster would collaborate for a 16-save shutout.

With the departure of the top goalie from last season, the Colonials will turn to one of Terry Shafer (Penfield, N.Y. / New Hampshire Jr. Monarchs), Dalton Izyk (Oswego, N.Y. / Indiana Ice), or Brandon Lane (Oakville, Ontario / Kanata Stallions) to shoulder the load heading in to the upcoming season.  Of the three goaltenders, Shafer is the only one to have seen playing time at the collegiate level.  Now a sophomore, Shafer recorded a record of 1-2-0 with a 3.08 goals-against average and a save percentage of .888.  Despite seeing less than 200 minutes of action between the pipes, Shafer's lone victory was a shutout at Canisius as he stopped all 24 shots he faced.

Seeing just 20 minutes of action in RMU's lone preseason contest of the season, Shafer would make four saves as neither team would find the back of the net in the opening stanza.  The Colonials would get nine shots on goal in the period, each of which would be turned away by Toronto's goaltender, Garrett Sheehan. 

Each team would have one opportunity on the power play in the period while the Varsity Blues would have a second opportunity with the man advantage that would extend into the second period.  Robert Morris would kill off the remaining time left on the penalty to start the second period as Izyk would take over in net. 

Five minutes in to the period, an altercation occurred that saw matching minor penalties as well as a four-minute power-play for the Colonials.  Just 31 seconds into the first minor penalty, Zac Lynch (Pittsburgh, Pa. / Bay State Breakers) would deflect a shot from the point to put Robert Morris ahead, 1-0.  Lynch positioned himself in the slot and got his stick on a shot by Chase Golightly (Temecula, Calif. / Prince George Spruce Kings) to redirect the puck past Sheehan.  After winning the faceoff, RMU cycled the puck in the corners before getting it out to defenseman Tyson Wilson (Brockville, Ontario / Brockville Braves) who then slid a pass along the blue line to set up Golightly for a one-time attempt.

Lynch's power-play marker would hold up as the game-winning goal and was the only goal of the period as the Colonials capitalized on one of their five power-play attempts in the period.  Izyk would record five saves during his time in net while being credited with the win. 

Things would get nasty once again as the second period came to an end and Robert Morris would have to spend the first two minutes of the third period on the penalty kill.  Lane would enter the game for the third period and instantly faced a flurry of shots while the Colonials were on the penalty kill.  Lane would finish the period stopping all seven shots he faced, including a stop stonewalling a Varsity Blues' forward on a breakaway.

Just over five minutes into the final frame, Matt Cope (Lakewood, Colo. / Wenatchee Wild) would double RMU's advantage with a sneaky shot from the left-wing corner.  After another cycle down low between Cope and his linemates Lynch and David Rigatti (Pittsburgh, Pa. / Texas Tornado), Cope spun around and flung the puck towards the net from the left corner of the offensive zone.  The puck somehow found its way through Sheehan and over the line to give the Colonials a 2-0 lead with Rigatti and Lynch given assists on the tally.

Despite the physicality of the game, neither team would be whistled for an infraction in the third period as Robert Morris held possession in Toronto's defensive zone for the majority of the period.  As time wound down and Toronto called a timeout, the Colonials controlled the puck in the offensive zone so that the Varsity Blues were unable to pull Sheehan for an extra attacker before the final horn was blown.

With a defensive mindset, Robert Morris allowed just 16 shots on goal while also blocking another 16 shots.  Offensively, the Colonials recorded 37 shots on goal as Lynch paced the squad with five shots on the cage.  Lynch finished the game with one goal and one assist after recording five goals and nine assists in 34 games as a freshman last season. 

At the faceoff dot, David Friedmann (Toronto, Ontario / Toronto Jr. Canaidens) won eight of his nine draws while Scott Jacklin (Kimberley, British Columbia / Trail Smoke Eaters) took a team-high 12 draws and won six of them.

Robert Morris will open up the 2013-14 regular season with a pair of contests on the road.  A trip to Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. to face Lake Superior State will continue the trend of the Colonials starting the season on the road.  RMU has kicked off each of the last eight seasons on the road and holds a 4-5 record in the first game of the regular season.  This season, the puck will drop on the regular season with a Friday evening contest against the Lakers that is scheduled to start at 7:37 p.m.