SUPERIOR, Wis.  — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's hockey team steps out of conference play on Friday, traveling to UW-Superior for a 7 p.m. showdown with the Yellowjackets.
 
The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (1-2-1 Overall) at UW-Superior Yellowjackets (2-1-0 Overall)
 
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Last Action:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals took 12th-ranked and three-time defending conference champion St. Thomas to the limit—twice—last weekend in the teams' MIAC openers. Saint Mary's and UST battled to a 3-3 overtime tie—with the Cardinals garnering the extra conference point with a 1-0 win in the three-person shootout—on Saturday in Mendota Heights, Minn. In the rematch on Sunday at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena, St. Thomas scored the game-winner with less than seven minutes remaining in regulation to beat the Cardinals 3-2 | UST Recap 1 * UST Recap 2
• UW-Superior: The Yellowjackets suffered a pair of one-goal nonconference losses last week, falling to Saint John's 2-1 on Thursday in St. Cloud, Minn., then dropping another 2-1 decision to Concordia on Saturday in Moorhead, Minn. | SJU Recap * Concordia Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. UW-Superior—Their Last Meeting:
• November 15, 2013: Saint Mary's coach Bill Moore has preached all season, "give 100 percent effort — and the hard work will pay off." The Cardinals certainly worked hard in their nonconference game against UW-Superior—and it most definitely paid off. The Cardinals scored a pair of third-period goals less than two minutes apart to lift Saint Mary's to a 3-1 nonconference win over the Yellowjackets at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena | Recap
 
Up Next:
•  Saint Mary's: The Cardinals are back on the road on Saturday, as Saint Mary's travels to Stevens Point, Wis., for a 7 p.m. nonconference game against second-ranked UW-Stevens Point.
• UW-Superior: The Yellowjackets are right back on their home ice on Saturday, as UW-Superior plays host to Hamline in a 7 p.m. nonconference game at Wessman Arena in Superior, Wis.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2014-15 Roster | 2014-15 Schedule | 2014-15 Statistics
With their 3-3 tie and 3-2 loss against nationally ranked St. Thomas last weekend, the Cardinals' four games this season have all been decided by two goals or less—Saint Mary's opened the season with a 2-0 loss to Augsburg and a 4-2 win vs. Concordia. … The Cardinals' 1-0 win in the shootout vs. St. Thomas Saturday was its first shootout in the two years since the MIAC added it to the end of tied games prior to the 2013-14 season. … Martin Gruse (Trenton, Mich.) collected goals in both games vs. the Tommies last weekend, while Jed McGlasson (Kenai, Alaska), Mike Mezzano (Woodbury, Minn.) and Chad Cesarz () also scored vs. UST. … Jonathan Elliott (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.) netted the shootout winner vs. St. Thomas last Saturday. … Gruse has now scored a goal in three straight games. … Gruse and McGlasson share the team lead with three goals each, one more than Cesarz, while McGlasson leads the team with four points and Mezzano, Bob Marx (Sioux City, Iowa), Nick Albergo (Elmhurst, Ill.), and Kyle Blondin (Kent, Wash.) all share the team lead with two assists each. … McGlasson recorded the second two-goal game of his career with a pair of goals vs. Concordia on Nov. 2. The senior also netted two goals against St. Olaf on Nov. 30, 2012. … Cesarz  recorded his first collegiate goal against Concordia on Nov. 2. Cesarz's goal with 1:06 remaining in the first period vs. the Cobbers was officially the Cardinals' first goal of the season. … Phil Heinle (York, Pa.), who collected a combined 48 saves in the Cardinals' first two games at the MIAC Hockey Showcase, finished with 54 saves in two starts vs. St. Thomas last week—including a season-high 34-save effort in Sunday's second game of the two-game series. … Heinle, who has started all four games for the Cardinals, enters the weekend owning a 2.47 goals-against-average and a .912 save percentage. … In his final start a year ago against Hamline, Heinle notched his first assist—marking the first time since Dan Byron during the 2000-2001 season that a Saint Mary's goalie has recorded an assist. … The Cardinals are still searching for their first second-period goal of the season—Saint Mary's has scored four goals in the first period and five in the third. … Saint Mary's opponents, meanwhile, have netted six of their 10 goals in the game's opening 20 minutes. … Saint Mary's is unbeaten (1-0-1) when scoring first. … The Cardinals' 1-1 showing at the MIAC Hockey Showcase last weekend marked the third straight season Saint Mary's has gone 1-1 at the conference's season-opening event. Saint Mary's lost to Augsburg (6-2) and beat St. Olaf (3-2), while topping Bethel (7-2) and falling to Saint John's (8-1) in 2012-13. … Saint Mary's season-opening 2-0 loss to Augsburg on Oct. 31 actually snapped its three-game winning streak—the Cardinals had closed out the 2013-14 season with a 5-2 win over Concordia and 6-5 and 8-3 victories over Hamline.
 
Scouting The UW-Superior Yellowjackets:
2014-15 Roster | 2014-15 Schedule | 2014-15 Statistics
Friday's game against Saint Mary's is the third of four straight contests against Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference opponents—UW-Superior lost to Saint John's and Concordia last week and will conclude its four-game MIAC stretch Saturday against Hamline. … The Yellowjackets had their season-opening two-game winning streak snapped with their 2-1 loss to Saint John's last Tuesday. … After scoring six goals in back-to-back wins over Aurora—6-2 and 6-3—on Oct. 31 and Nov. 1, the Yellowjackets were held to a combined two goals in back-to-back 2-1 losses to Saint John's and Concordia. … Jake Johnson and Jordan Shockley picked up the Yellowjackets' two goals last week—Johnson vs. Saint John's and Shockley vs. Concordia. … Johnson's third goal of the season vs. SJU moved him into a tie for the team lead in goals with Tanner Dion. The two also share the top spot in points (4) with Ian Ecklund and Shockley. … Shockley and Wes Judnick have each collected a team-best three assists. … The Yellowjackets have used three goalies in their first four games. Zach Thompson has started two games, compiling a 2.02 goals-against-average and a .920 save percentage, while Corey Simons (2.00 GAA, .920 save %) and Bryce Fink (3.00 GAA, .909 save %) have each started one game. … UW-Superior has scored 10 of its 14 goals in the second period. The Yellowjackets' opponents, meanwhile, have netted five of their nine goals in the game's middle period. … UW-Superior has scored first in its two wins, and have given up the game's first goal in its two losses.