College Hockey Stats Box Score

PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – The No. 6 Plattsburgh State men's ice hockey team kicked off the 2016-17 regular season with a win on Saturday evening at the Ronald B. Stafford Ice Arena, topping SUNY Canton, 4-2, in front of a 2,058-person crowd on Matty Strong Night.
 
Plattsburgh State finished with a 36-21 margin in shots, while the two teams combined for 17 power-play opportunities. Canton went 1-for-7 on the man-advantage, while Plattsburgh State converted on 2-of-10 power-play chances.
 
Plattsburgh State rises to 1-0-0 overall with the win and begins State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) play on Friday, Nov. 11, when it visits Buffalo State for a 7 p.m. encounter. Canton drops to 1-2-0 overall with the loss and next hosts SUNY Geneseo in a pair of games from Friday-Saturday, Nov. 11-12.
 
Junior Brandon O'Quinn (Belleville, Ontario/Kingston Voyageurs) put the Cardinals on the board at 6:48 of the first period, ripping a shot top shelf from the high slot on the power play. Sophomore Pat Egan (Rochester, N.Y./Lone Star Brahmas) and junior Chris Taff (Omaha, Neb./Odessa Jackalopes) each were credited with assists on the play.
 
Just 11 seconds into the second period, freshman Schuyler Seyfert (Marshfield, Wis./Ogden Mustangs) gave the Cardinals a 2-0 advantage. Senior Kyle Hall (Assiniboia, Saskatchewan/Battlefords North Stars) received a pass from senior Patrick Hermans (North Andover, Mass./Northwood School) on the right wing before taking a shot that was saved by Canton's freshman goaltender Michael Cerasuolo. Seyfert was waiting right at the doorstep and knocked it home for the goal.
 
Canton netted a shorthanded goal at 3:52 of the second period to trim the deficit to one, as junior Trenton Yule cleared the puck out to sophomore Joey Vocino, who then fed junior Kyle Matsumoto with a centering pass on an odd-man rush. Matsumoto deposited the puck into the back of the net from the slot to put the Kangaroos on the board despite being down a skater.

Freshman Joe Drabin (Rochester, N.Y./Wenatchee Wild) gave the Cardinals a 3-1 cushion at 5:57 of the second period, as he tapped a rebounded puck into the back of the net after the Canton goaltender turned aside a shot from freshman Antoine Fournier-Gosselin (Saint-Lazare, Quebec/Cégep de Saint Laurent) from the point. Fournier-Gosselin and sophomore Santino Ragone (Babylon, N.Y./New Jersey Hitmen) each were credited with assists on the play.

O'Quinn netted his second power-play goal of the game at 13:01 of the third period off passes from freshman Evan Lindquist (Amston, Conn./Ottawa Junior Senators) and Taff to hand Plattsburgh State a 4-1 lead, while Canton cashed in on a 5-on-3 power-play chance at 14:46 of the third period off tic-tac-toe passing. Vocino scored the goal, while junior Josh Sova and freshman Vili-Jesper Koivula were credited with assists.
 
Senior goaltender Brady Rouleau (Fort Macleod, Alberta/Quinnipiac University) made 19 saves in the victory for Plattsburgh State, while his counterpart, Cerasuolo, finished with 32 saves in the loss for Canton.

Prior to the start of the game, the Cardinals honored longtime assistant equipment manager Matty Thomson in a pregame ceremony. Thomson has been battling Hodgkin's lymphoma for approximately two years and has served as an inspiration to all those around him. The men's ice hockey program announced that a team award bearing Matty's name will be given to those within the program who inspire, encourage and unselfishly challenge other members of the program to provide service to the Plattsburgh community.