ROCHESTER, N.Y. - The RIT Men's Hockey team hosts Atlantic Hockey America (AHA) rival Niagara this Friday (7:05 p.m.) and Saturday (5:05 p.m.) for its first two regulation home games in over a month.
 
Playing the first of four home series scheduled over the last five weeks of the regular season, the Tigers look to continue making up ground in the AHA standings after splitting two games at Robert Morris last week.  RIT bounced back from a 6-1 loss last Friday for a 3-2 win the following night. The Purple Eagles also split two conference games last week, falling 5-1 at Mercyhurst on Friday before earning a 6-3 home on versus the Lakers on Saturday.
 
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TIGER REWIND
Following a 6-1 setback at Robert Morris last Friday, RIT snapped a three-game slide with a 3-2 win in Saturday's rematch. Saturday saw the Tigers opened a 2-0 lead midway through the first period on goals by sophomore defenseman Crossley Stewart and junior defenseman Xavier Lapointe. RMU got on the board with less than six minutes remaining in the first and tied the game at 8:01 of the second, but RIT senior forward Grady Hobbs notched what proved to be the game-winner at 10:55 of the third. Junior goaltender Trent Burnham made 25 saves to earn his first victory in a Tiger sweater
 
The previous night saw the Colonials score three-unanswered first-period goals and then tally 1:35 into the second for a decisive 4-0 lead. Sophomore forward Tyler Fukakusa put the Tigers on the board at 14:41  of the second after creating a turnover on the forecheck, but Robert Morris scored two more times in the third to close the game.
 
RIT looks to avenge a 4-1 setback at Niagara on Oct. 30 earlier this season.  The Purple Eagles scored the first four goals of the game, including two in a 12-second span early in the second period, and another with 1:08 left in the second, to put the game out of reach. Lapointe scored a power-play tally at 9:23 of the third for the Tigers' lone goal.
 
NO SOPHOMORE SLUMP
Sophomore forward Tyler Fukakusa entered the week 19th nationally with 26 points and tied for fourth with 19 assists, including 21 points (6G/15A) over the Tigers' last 15 games.

• Fukakusa leads Atlantic Hockey with 0.79 assists per game and is second with 1.08 points per game, including at least one point in all but six games this season and 12 of the Tigers' last 13 outings.
• He notched a career-high four assists in the 6-2 win at Bentley (Nov. 9) and also scored a goal and an assist in back-to-back games versus Army (Nov. 16) and Sacred Heart (Nov. 22) before adding two assists opposite the Pioneers (Nov. 17) for one of his six multi-point games this winter.
• Fukakusa also entered the week seventh nationally with 276 faceoff victories while winning 55.0 percent of his draws this season. He tied a career-high winning 18-of-31 faceoffs in the Robert Morris opener and also won 13-of-15 draws (.867) in the New Hampshire opener. 

WELCOME MATT
Sophomore forward Matthew Wilde currently leads Atlantic Hockey and ranks 17th nationally with 1.19 points per game. He also leads Atlantic Hockey with 0.63 goals per game and is tied for sixth in the conference with 10 goals - only trailing five players who have played anywhere from seven to 10 more games.

• After missing the first eight games with a preseason injury, Wilde has scored at least one point in 11 of 16 games since his return and is second on the squad with 19 points.
• He scored a career-high four points on two goals and two assists in the 6-2 win at Bentley (Nov. 9) for the first of three multi-point games in November.
• Wilde was credited with four points during the two-game set at Sacred Heart, starting with two assists in the opener before logging a goal and an assist the following night.
• Wilde was named to the 2024-25 Atlantic Hockey Preseason All-Conference Team after finishing his rookie season tied for fifth nationally among first-year players with 19 goals while tying for 10th among all freshmen with 35 points. He also broke the Division I-era record for goals by a Tiger first-year by five. 

THIS ONE IS FOR STU
RIT will honor long-time Ice Operations Manager Stu Hughes, who is currently battling esophageal cancer, this weekend. The Tigers will wear special helmet stickers, while Stu ribbons will appear on the zamboni and will also be handed out to fans. Messages from the team will also be played on the video board.
 
SPREAD THE LOVE
Twenty-two of the 25 total players on the current roster have tallied at least one point this season, while junior defenseman Crossley Stewart became the 17th to score a goal in Saturday's Robert Morris victory.
 
SIMON SAYS DROP THE PUCK
Junior forward Simon Isabelle entered the week eighth nationally with 274 faceoff victories and, of the 11 players in the country with at least 250 faceoff wins, ranked second with a .593 winning percentage. Isabelle won a career-high 18-of-26 (.692) draws in the 3-2 win at Clarkson, before winning 18-of-23 (.783) faceoffs in the October loss to Bowling Green. Isabelle won 11-of-17 faceoffs opposite Robert Morris last Friday for his 17th double-digit win performance this winter. He is also tied for second for the Tigers with seven goals and sits fifth with 10 points entering this weekend's doubleheader versus Niagara.
 
SAVINGS ACCOUNT
First-year Jakub Krbecek has made at least 30 saves in 12 of his 14 appearances this season. Credited with a career-high 44 stops in the most recent 2-1 loss at Bowling Green (Dec. 29), he also made 43 saves in the 2-1 OT loss to the Falcons (Oct. 19) during the Brick City Homecoming game at Blue Cross Arena. Krbecek won the first of two-straight AHA Rookie of the Week honors after making 32 saves in a 3-2 win over Clarkson (Oct. 6) to win his first collegiate start. He also logged his first career point with an assist to go along with 33 saves in the 6-2 win over Bentley (Nov. 9). Current RIT goalie coach Mike Rotolo '17 previously held the mark for the most 30-save games by a RIT first-year in D1-era program history with eight.
 
FAMILIAR FACES
Wilde and Fukakusa join fellow sophomore Christian Catalano as the team's top returning line this season. 

• The trio played 36 games together last year, starting the season as the Tigers' fourth line before making their way up to the second line for the majority of the second semester and all of the postseason.
• All hailing from Mississauga, Ontario, they also previously played on the same line prior to coming to RIT during their time with the OJHL Toronto Junior Canadiens in 2021-22.
• Fukakusa returns after finishing seventh on the squad with 28 points (9G/19A) while Catalano tied for 11th with 17 points (9G/8A).
• The threesome totaled a season-high 10 points on three goals and seven assists during the Tigers' 6-2  victory over Bentley (Nov. 9) earlier this fall. 

TRISTAN THE NIGHT AWAY
First-year defenseman Tristan Allen ranks fourth on the squad with 14 points and is third with 12 assists. He scored his first goal in a Tiger sweater and added an assist in the home setback to Canisius (Dec. 3) before logging an assist in both ends of the home doubleheader versus Robert Morris (Dec. 6-7) en route to Atlantic Hockey America Rookie of the Week Honors.
 
BLOCK PARTY
Graduate student defenseman Dimitri Mikrogiannakis entered the week tied for ninth nationally with 49 blocked shots. After knocking down a career-high six shots at New Hampshire (Nov. 20), he blocked five shots - including the 200th of his career - the following night against the Wildcats. Mikrogiannakis blocked five shots in last Saturday's Robert Morris victory and has blocked 217 career shots to date.