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Senior captain Brian Kaufman and the RedHawks are flying high after using a flawless penalty kill and shutdown goal-keeping to blank the Irish Friday and win 3-2 Saturday.

RedHawks sweep Fighting Irish

MU moves up to No. 6 in USA Today poll after consecutive road wins

By: Erika Hadley

Posted: 10/28/08

The Miami University men's ice hockey team returns victorious to Oxford this week after sweeping the No. 8 ranked University of Notre Dame in a two-game away series this past weekend. Miami's penalty kill was flawless on the weekend, as the RedHawks killed all 16 penalties against a Fighting Irish team that was ranked 10th nationally on power plays coming into the weekend.

"If you go 0-for-16 on the power-play for the weekend, you aren't going to win many games," Notre Dame senior Christian Hanson said.

Freshman goalie Cody Reichard's impenetrable goaltending Friday propelled the Red and White to its first shutout victory against a ranked opponent since Feb. 7, 2004. Reichard turned away all 29 shots he faced, boosting Miami to a 2-0 win over the Gold and Blue and recording his own first career win.

Sophomore Pat Cannone found the back of the net for the third time this season at 5:05 in the first period, giving the RedHawks an early 1-0 lead. Sophomore Andy Miele was instrumental in the execution of the play, weaving through two Notre Dame players to leave the puck for Cannone, who slammed it home. Miele's assist was his first point of the season.

Notre Dame went on the power play three times during the first period, but Miami's penalty kill unit expertly halted each of the Fighting Irish's man-advantage efforts. Reichard made some tremendous saves and shut down breakaway shots by junior Dan Kissel and Hanson.

The Red and White increased its lead early in the second period with a one-timer off the stick of sophomore Gary Steffes-his fourth goal of the season. Miele backed this tally, picking up a pass from the Irish to earn his second assist of the game.

The Fighting Irish battled back fiercely in the third and even pulled net minder Jordan Pearce with 1:50 remaining in the game in an attempt to turn the tides in their favor. A crosschecking call on sophomore Vincent LoVerde gave Notre Dame a 6-on-4 advantage on the ice, but Reichard turned away three more shots to record his first career shutout and earn first-star honors.

"They (Miami) played a great game," Notre Dame head coach Jeff Jackson said. "They played a smart game, a relentless game."

Freshman goaltender Connor Knapp faced an Irish onslaught early in Saturday night's game when freshman Chris Wideman was called for holding 1:30 into the game. The Red and White turned the action around a few minutes later with a power play goal by Steffes. Miele and sophomore Tommy Wingels picked up the assists.

Notre Dame sophomore Ian Cole evened the score at 15:48 with a shot off dishes from Calle Ridderwall and Billy Maday.

Despite being out shot by the Blue and Gold 8-2 in the first, Miami went 1-in-3 on the power play and held the Fighting Irish scoreless on all three of its man-advantage opportunities.

The Red and White barraged Pearce in the second period, ultimately out shooting Notre Dame 15-2 and finding the back of the net twice more. Senior Justin Mercier scored Miami's second goal of the game off a quick back door pass from sophomore Carter Camper, with Cannone on the second assist. All of Camper's eight points this season have been on the power play.

Just 1:22 later, senior Alexandre Lacombe tallied another RedHawk goal, capitalizing on a rebound from a shot by freshman Brandon Smith.

The Miami penalty kill continued to dominate into the third period as the Red and White shut down three more Notre Dame power plays. For the second game in a row, Notre Dame pulled Pearce in favor of a sixth man at 1:27. The move paid off immediately as Hanson delivered Notre Dame's second and final tally of the game with 1:26 left. The final score was a 3-2 RedHawk win.

"(Miami) competed hard and they defended well," Jackson said. "They didn't look like they had a young defense or goaltending this weekend. Kudos to them. It's early in the season and we have a lot of work to do and that's what its all about right now."

Miami returns to Steve Cady Arena for a full home series against Alaska Fairbanks. The two teams will face off at 7:35 p.m. Friday and 7:05 p.m. Saturday. The Ohio News Network (ONN) will provide live weekend television coverage of the games, and the action will also be broadcast on WMSR at www.redhawkradio.com.