Friday, October 10
Rochester, N.Y. / Gene Polisseni Center
7:05 PM
Sacred Heart
1-0-0, 1-0-0
1
at
0
RIT
0-1-0, 0-1-0
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sacred Heart | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| RIT | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Men's Ice Hockey Opens Season with 1-0 Win at RIT
10/10/2025 10:38:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey
Huard's first collegiate goal was the game-winner
ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Behind a first-period power-play goal by Stephane Huard, the Sacred Heart University men's ice hockey team opened the 2025-26 season with a thrilling 1-0 win at RIT in Atlantic Hockey America (AHA) play Friday evening at the Gene Polisseni Center in Rochester, N.Y.
Records:
SHU: 1-0-0, 1-0-0 AHA
RIT: 0-1-0, 0-1-0 AHA
How It Happened:
The start of tonight's game featured both teams trying to figure each other out. Both squads had four shots on goal by the media timeout, with both also committing a penalty in the opening 10:37.
After a close start, SHU pulled away in the latter half of the frame, opening the game's scoring at 14:47 with a power play strike. On the first faceoff after the penalty, a Marcus Joughin win got the puck out to Reid Pabich by the blueline, where he fed Felix Trudeau for a wrist shot. Stephane Huard was at the perfect spot for the tip, getting the stick on the rising puck from the right of the cage.
Neither team scored in the second period, as we transitioned to the third with the Pioneers still ahead 1-0. The highlight of the frame was a beautiful sliding save from Ajeet Gundarah. While on the power play, the Tigers had the puck in their zone and had an open net from the right goal line after a turnaround pass from the slot. Gundarah slid and got a toe on it to keep the score at 1-0 SHU.
The Tigers came out firing in the third period, tallying six shots in the opening 3:43 with three saves and two blocks by the Pios.
The pressure continued to ramp up for SHU after penalties at 8:07 and 13:40 put them a man down. The Pios answered all the challenges, coming up with huge saves and blocks whenever RIT was threatening. Sacred Heart tallied 13 blocks in the third, finishing with a 25-12 advantage in blocks over the Tigers. Liam Lesakowski led the way with six blocks, while Aiden VanRooyan had four and John Driscoll, Noah Ellis, Ray Fust and Reid Pabich all had three.
After the Tigers pulled the goalie at 19:22, SHU tallied three blocks in the final 38 seconds to ice the win. In addition to all the blocks, Gundarah made 22 to earn his fourth career shutout.
Notes:
The Pioneers and Tigers will conclude the weekend series tomorrow evening at 5:05 p.m. at the Gene Polisseni Center in Rochester, N.Y.
Records:
SHU: 1-0-0, 1-0-0 AHA
RIT: 0-1-0, 0-1-0 AHA
How It Happened:
The start of tonight's game featured both teams trying to figure each other out. Both squads had four shots on goal by the media timeout, with both also committing a penalty in the opening 10:37.
After a close start, SHU pulled away in the latter half of the frame, opening the game's scoring at 14:47 with a power play strike. On the first faceoff after the penalty, a Marcus Joughin win got the puck out to Reid Pabich by the blueline, where he fed Felix Trudeau for a wrist shot. Stephane Huard was at the perfect spot for the tip, getting the stick on the rising puck from the right of the cage.
Neither team scored in the second period, as we transitioned to the third with the Pioneers still ahead 1-0. The highlight of the frame was a beautiful sliding save from Ajeet Gundarah. While on the power play, the Tigers had the puck in their zone and had an open net from the right goal line after a turnaround pass from the slot. Gundarah slid and got a toe on it to keep the score at 1-0 SHU.
The Tigers came out firing in the third period, tallying six shots in the opening 3:43 with three saves and two blocks by the Pios.
The pressure continued to ramp up for SHU after penalties at 8:07 and 13:40 put them a man down. The Pios answered all the challenges, coming up with huge saves and blocks whenever RIT was threatening. Sacred Heart tallied 13 blocks in the third, finishing with a 25-12 advantage in blocks over the Tigers. Liam Lesakowski led the way with six blocks, while Aiden VanRooyan had four and John Driscoll, Noah Ellis, Ray Fust and Reid Pabich all had three.
After the Tigers pulled the goalie at 19:22, SHU tallied three blocks in the final 38 seconds to ice the win. In addition to all the blocks, Gundarah made 22 to earn his fourth career shutout.
Notes:
- SHU won its season opener for the first time since 2020-21.
- The Pios won their AHA opener for the first time since 2022-23.
- Huard's goal is the first of his collegiate career.
- Gundarah tallied his fourth career shutout.
The Pioneers and Tigers will conclude the weekend series tomorrow evening at 5:05 p.m. at the Gene Polisseni Center in Rochester, N.Y.
Team Stats
SHU
RIT
Shots
25
22
PPG
1
0
SHG
0
0
Penalties
4
4
Penalty Mins
8
8
Faceoffs Won
22
27
Game Leaders
+/-
0
Goals
1
Sh
2
A
0
+/-
0
Goals
0
Sh
6
A
1
+/-
0
Goals
0
Sh
1
A
1
+/-
0
Goals
0
Sh
4
A
0
Players Mentioned
D
/ Men's Ice Hockey
D
/ Men's Ice Hockey
F
/ Men's Ice Hockey
G
/ Men's Ice HockeyF
/ Men's Ice Hockey
F
/ Men's Ice Hockey
D
/ Men's Ice HockeyF
/ Men's Ice HockeyF
/ Men's Ice Hockey
D
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