Throughout the 2013-14 season, Prisuta will serve up weekly stories surrounding Colonial hockey as well as the latest notes and news around college hockey.

Prisuta on Pucks: The Turnaround

Robert Morris' program-record, nine-game unbeaten streak was destined to end eventually, and did. What mattered once that happened was the Colonials' reaction.

"We did what we needed to do," head coach Derek Schooley assessed after last Saturday night's 5-0 decision over Niagara.

In doing so the Colonials offered up an immediate and emphatic response to their streak-snapping, 5-3 loss last Thursday night at Niagara.

They also improved to 10-2-2 since Jan. 1 and remained in the thick of the chase for a top-four finish in the Atlantic Hockey Association standings.

With four regular-season games remaining the fifth-place Colonials (12-14-4 overall, 12-7-4 AHA) trail Air Force and Connecticut, the two teams tied for the third spot, by just a point (29-28).

Robert Morris hosts Canisius (11-16-3, 10-10-3) on Friday night (7:05) and then plays at Canisius on Saturday night (7:05) this weekend.

The Colonials will then play at Mercyhurst (17-12-5, 15-4-4) on Feb. 28 prior to closing the regular season against Mercyhurst on March 1 (7:05) at the Island Sports Center. 

What might prove most significant for RMU through the stretch run and beyond is what the Colonials have established since January.

Components of their game that have proven as consistent as they've been decisive since then include:
 
GOALTENDING: Sophomore Terry Shafer has compiled a 1.96 goals-against average and a .936 save percentage while earning every decision in the 2014 calendar year. Shafer's goals-against average and save percentage for the second half of the season are comparable to those posted by the NCAA leaders in those departments over the entire campaign (Doug Carr, Massachusetts-Lowell, 1.80; Clay Witt, Northeastern, .943).
 
PENALTY KILLING: The Colonials are No. 53 out of 59 teams for the season (99-for-129, 76.7 percent). But in the last 14 games RMU has killed off 52 of the last 58 opposition power plays (89.7 percent). No. 1 Boston College leads the nation at 91.5 percent for 2013-14.
 
GOAL SCORING: RMU found the net five times on 23 shots in its shutout of Niagara. That bloated the Colonials' total to 53 goals in the last 14 games. Only BC (56) has scored more goals in that span.
 
STAR POWER: Junior winger Cody Wydo is riding a seven-game scoring streak (6-8-14). Wydo's 21 goals on the season are one shy of Ryan Cruthers' program-record 22 in 2006-07 and Wydo's 55 career goals trail Chris Margott's RMU-record 64 (2005-08) by nine. Wydo is fifth in the NCAA in goals per game this season (0.70).
 
SECONDARY SCORING: The second line of center David Friedmann centering Colin South and Jeff Jones has accounted for 13 goals and 20 assists in 13 games as a unit. South scored goals in both Niagara games and the threesome accounted for five points in the two-game series.
 
All of the above have factored into the Colonials' dramatic turnaround from a 2-12-2 start.

But to Schooley it's the intangibles that have really made the difference.

"There aren't many secrets to how we're winning hockey games," he said. "It's through our work ethic, our mindset and our commitment."

Last Saturday night's bounce-back effort against Niagara offered more confirmation as to what type of team RMU can be when those qualities are evident and abundant.

"Our guys were very disappointed in losing on Thursday night," Schooley said of a game in which a 3-2, third-period lead got away. "To be able to put that disappointment behind us and play extremely hard and compete like they did says a lot about where their mindset is right now."