PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – The Plattsburgh State men’s ice hockey team opened its 2026-27 campaign in convincing fashion on home ice, shutting out MCLA, 5-0, in an exhibition matchup on Friday night. The Cardinals and Trailblazers met in an exhibition after not facing each other in a regular-season game since the 1997 season.
Plattsburgh got on the board late in the first period when junior Blake Hall (Fort Erie, Ontario) scored at 17:57, giving the Cardinals a 1-0 advantage. Junior Tyler Ramm (Westborough, Mass.) and first-year Ethan MacTavish (Kanata, Ontario) picked up assists on the opening goal.
The Cardinals extended their lead in the second period with a pair of goals. First-year Maxime Poirier (L’Ancienne-Lorette, Quebec) found the back of the net at 17:22 off assists from first-year Matt Holst (Boston, N.Y.) and junior Shane Bondy (Sharon, Ontario) to make it 2-0. Just under two minutes later, graduate student Joshua Belgrave (Burlington, Ontario) added another goal at 19:21, with senior Alessio Nardelli (Laval, Quebec) and first-year Gabriel Filion (Montreal, Quebec) recording assists to send Plattsburgh into the second intermission with a three-goal cushion.
Poirier struck again in the third period, scoring his second goal of the night at 9:29 to push the Cardinals’ advantage to 4-0. Holst earned his second assist of the contest, while first-year Robin Zehnder (Zurich, Switzerland) also picked up an assist on the play.
Plattsburgh capped off the shutout with a late goal from Filion at 19:44. First-year Anthony Campbell (Phillipsburg, Quebec) and Zehnder assisted on the final tally, sealing the Cardinals’ 5-0 exhibition victory.
Poirier led the Cardinals with two goals, while Holst and Zehnder each recorded two assists. The Cardinals kick off their season with an exhibition win and will play one last exhibition at home next weekend against Canton before opening up conference play.–
