PITTSBURGH, Pa. - The Robert Morris University men's hockey team kicks off Atlantic Hockey competition this weekend when it hosts Canisius for a pair of games at Clearview Arena starting Friday, November 27.

ROBERT MORRIS (2-0-0) vs. CANISIUS (0-0-0)

Friday, Nov. 27 at 5:05 p.m.

Saturday, Nov. 28 at 4:05 p.m.

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LAST TIME OUT

The Colonials are 2-0 to start the season for the first time since the 2015-16 campaign after a two-game sweep over Alabama-Huntsville last weekend in Moon Township. 

After going more than 40 minutes without a goal, RMU finally broke through early in the third period of game one last Saturday after Jordan Timmons cashed in for his first career NCAA goal, part of a three-point effort for the junior that helped spur a five-goal third for RMU to earn the opening night win. 

A back and fourth effort in game-two saw a number of lead changes and momentum swings, however the Colonials managed to score two power-play goals late to erase a one-goal deficit and come away with 4-3 victory. 

KNOW BOBBY MO

• Senior Nick Prkusic is the Colonials' leading scorer through two games following a four-point performance against Alabama-Huntsville last weekend.  Junior Jordan Timmons leads them in goals (2), while both he and Santeri Hartikainen have three points. Senior Nick Jenny leads all defenseman in scoring with two points. 
• The Colonials are receiving votes in both the USCHO.com as well as the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine National Polls following their 2-0 start.  RMU received two votes in the USCHO preseason poll as an honorable mention, and this week their 32 votes trail only St. Cloud St. (52) for programs outside the Top-20. They also received eight votes in the latest USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Men's College Hockey Poll, which is conducted each week in conjunction with the American Hockey Coaches Association.
• Five true freshman have seen action so far for Robert Morris in this still new season, with Kyler Head, Randy Hernandez, Gavin Gulash, David Lafrance, and Brian Kramer all drawing into the lineup. Head leads all rookies with two points (2A) while Hernandez leads them in goals with one. Gulash also registered his first collegiate point with an assist on Saturday. 
• Special teams played a key role in the games against Huntsville. While the RMU PK unit (3-6/50%) has room for improvement, the man-advantage has produced goals in both games so far, including two on Sunday against UAH. They currently sit at 3-10 (30%) on the season.  
• Due to restrictions of the COVID-19 virus, Atlantic Hockey will be split into two pods for the 2021 campaign. Robert Morris will play in the newly-formed western pod, along with Canisius, Mercyhurst, and Niagara, playing five games a piece against each opponent as well as a two-game series against geographic outlier Air Force. RMU was undefeated a season ago against the Griffins and posted a winning records against Mercyhurst. 
• Goaltending is perhaps the most interesting spot in the lineup this season.  Freshman tender Noah West joins the program for his first season of NCAA hockey along side upperclassmen Dyllan Lubbesmeyer and Reid Cooper. The pair split duties against Huntsville, with each earning a win between the pipes in their first start this season, including the first career win for Lubbesmsyer. 
• RMU swept the first weekend of Atlantic Hockey Conference Awards on Tuesday when it was announced that Nick Nick Prkusic (Player of the Week), Nick Jenny (Defensive Player of the Week) and Kyler Head (Rookie of the Week) had all been nominated by the conference.  All three had multi-point weekends, including Head who posted two assists in his NCAA debut.
• The Colonials will play a slightly truncated schedule in 2020-21 consisting of 28 games, including 24 AHA matchups.  Non-conference competition already saw them face the UAH Chargers for the first time in nearly a decade, and they will also square off in two games against WCHA foe Bowling Green, who RMU last defeated in 2018.
• Kramer (Wexford) and Timmons (Bridgeville) add to RMU's long legacy of recruiting and training players from Western Pennsylvania.  Both are alumni of the Pittsburgh Penguins Elite program and join Tyler Love and Roman Kraemer in playing their college hockey in their own backyard. 
• Head Coach Derek Schooley returns behind the bench for his 17th season as head coach flanked by a pair of new faces in assistants Mike Corbett and Ryan Durocher.  Durocher joins Robert Morris after two seasons as an assistant with the Sioux City Musketeers of the United States Hockey League, while Corbett brings nearly two decades of college coaching experience  with him having spent seven seasons as the head coach of the University of Alabama-Huntsville Chargers as well as another ten as an assistant at Air Force. 

SERIES HISTORY

There will certainly be no love lost when the Colonials and Griffins meet this weekend for the latest installment in what is one of the longest rivalries in program history for RMU. 

Owners of a 21-10-4 lifetime record against Canisius, Robert Morris was undefeated against their northern rivals a year ago, sweeping them with a pair of 4-2 wins in their opening series last November before adding a shootout win and one final 4-3 victory in Moon Township in February. They are 11-2-1 all-time at home against the Griffins and are 6-2-2 in their last ten overall. 

SCOUTING THE GRIFFINS

While Friday will be the first game of the year for Canisius, there shouldn't be too many surprises in store for a conference foe they've faced many times before. 

Head Coach Trevor Large will have to replace a significant chunk of offensive production that left his roster via graduation a season ago, including each of their top-three scorers.  Ninety-four of the Griffins' 246 points (38%) came from seniors a year ago, and this year will most likely see them lean heavily on their upperclassmen once again. 

Senior forward Grant Meyer will serve as Griffins team captain for the 2020-21 season. He has appeared in 92 games during his first three seasons with Canisius, recording 15 goals and 40 assists for 55 points, including four goals and 12 assists in 24 games in 2020.

THE SCHOOLEY FILE

One of the longest-tenured coaches at RMU, Schooley is entering his 17th season at the Robert Morris helm in 2020-21, carrying an overall record of 262-266-68 and a proud record of championship-level success in Division I men's hockey. The native of St. Louis led the Colonials to back-to-back Atlantic Hockey regular season titles in 2014-15 and 2015-16 and a postseason AHA title/NCAA tournament berth in 2014. In the eight-season span from 2012-20, Schooley's Colonials have averaged nearly 20 wins per season and have consistently placed 20-plus student-athletes on the AHA All-Academic team.

Schooley has spent the past two decades coaching college players, starting with assistant roles at Cornell and the Air Force Academy. During his time at Robert Morris, Schooley has had 75 players go on to play professionally, from the AHL and ECHL to various leagues across Europe. Nine former Colonials have participated in NHL training camps, with the most recent being all-time top RMU scorer Brady Ferguson at the past two Toronto Maple Leafs camps. On top of that, 19 RMU alums have taken part in NHL development/rookie camps.

MARCH WITH THE COLONIALS

In addition to reports and videos on RMUColonials.com, check out Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for news and updates throughout the season.

ON THE HORIZON

The Colonials face a quick turnaround following Saturday's rubber match against Canisius, hosting non-conference foe Bowling Green on Tuesday, December 1 at Clearview Arena before flying out to Colorado for a pair against Air Force the following weekend.